Teen's lie about past puts off his girlfriend
Dear Abby: I am a 16-year-old guy in my sophomore year of high school. I am known as a friendly, outgoing guy who gets along with girls. My problem is, I used to be one of the biggest jerks who ever was. I was involved in fighting and other things I won't go into. But I turned my life around.

Woman objects giving boss her cell number
Dear Abby: My boss wants my cell phone number for "work purposes." He has trouble with limits, and I am reluctant to give it to him. I don't want to receive text messages, unsolicited calls or contact outside of work. My private life is just that -- private.

Friend in need repaid with disappointment
Dear Abby: Please print this for me on behalf of myself and all the other well-intentioned folks out there who have lent money to others.

Man ignores his visiting grandpa
Dear Abby: My wife and I were visiting our children and grandson, "Rhett," age 24. Rhett is a college student who lives at home. He had his girlfriend, "Peggy," who lives in another town, at the house for the weekend.

Displays of affection praised by readers
Dear Abby: Thank you for your response to "Alarmed in Apple Valley," who was concerned because her teenage nephew shows so much affection toward his mother. I raised a very affectionate son who, to this day at age 30, hugs and kisses me no matter where we meet. I raised him with the principle that because he is male does not mean he has to hide his feelings as generations before him did. My daughter-in-law tells me often that she could not ask for a better husband and father to her children.

dear abby Mom longs for empty nest
Dear Abby: I have a 19-year-old daughter, "Caitlin," whom I love very much. Despite a few rocky periods, we have a great relationship.

Don't fall for his emotional blackmail
Dear Abby: For the last two years I have been going out with a guy I'll call "Ricky." My problem is I don't love him anymore. A few weeks ago I told him I no longer wanted to be with him, and he started crying. He scared me when he said his life was in my hands.

Daughter is driving toward disaster
Dear Abby: My daughter insists that she's a "multitasker" -- too busy to telephone or text except when she's driving. It scares me to be in the passenger seat while she's talking on the phone or picking up toys the baby has dropped from his car seat.

dear abby Special-needs children require special parents
Dear Abby: On Aug. 10 you printed a letter from an aunt who was upset because her sister, the mother of a child with autism, doesn't have time to join in fundraising with her and the rest of the family. While I commend the writer and her family for raising money for autism research, that woman needs to cut her sister some slack.

Woman's predatory boss is eager to score again
Dear Abby: I attended a business-related function with my boss and some co-workers. I had way too much to drink and ended up having sex with my boss. (He offered me a ride to my car and took advantage of me.) If I had been sober, it would never have happened.

Underweight teen gets grief from family
Dear Abby: I am 13, 5 feet 3, and weigh 90 pounds. I just started high school. My parents think I'm starving myself. They call me "disgusting," "horrifying," and my personal favorite -- "ugly." My brother calls me "Skinny Bones Jones."

Husband keeps repeating cruel prophecy about son
Dear Abby: My brother, "Luke," died young due to drug addiction. When our son, "Adam," misbehaves, my husband blames me. He says Adam is going to end up "just like Luke," and it will be my fault.

Letting children cheat is harmful
Dear Abby: I was raised from an early age that if you play a game, you have to play fair and obey the rules. Those rules were never bent regardless of what the game was or who we played with.

Wife is pumping up her social life
Dear Abby: My wife, "Laura," and I have been married 15 years. She recently had gastric bypass surgery and has lost 80 pounds so far.

dear abby No excuses needed if you don't want to drink
Dear Abby: I was thrilled to read "Sober in Scottsdale's" (July 28) letter about drinking. I'm a 21-year-old college student who has also struggled with choosing to be sober amidst the majority of my drunken peers. Most people my age drink only to get drunk and appear to be unable to have fun without the aid of alcohol.

Family's tapes are now a matter of a memory
Dear Abby: When our first grandchild was born, my son, "Vic," and his wife bought the first video camera in the family. I often asked them to bring it to family get-togethers, and to help out, I purchased dozens of long-running, high-quality tapes.

Mom wishes her good deed could be undone
Dear Abby: I'm in a bit of a predicament because I lent my maternity clothes to a friend who is due in late December. Her husband lost his job.

Mother frets that son is forgotten overseas
Dear Abby: Before my son deployed to Afghanistan two months ago, his grandma, aunts and cousins all promised to send cards, letters and care packages.

Gifts for grandchildren can be both fun and practical
Dear Abby: This is in response to "Where's the Fun in Upstate New York" (July 26), whose husband, "Hugh," insisted they buy their grandson a $100 savings bond for his first birthday when she wanted to splurge on toys and clothes. I understand her frustration.

Teen in despair pleads for help and guidance
Dear Abby: I am a 15-year-old girl who is losing the will to live. I am bisexual, but my parents are very anti-gay/lesbian, so I can't tell them about my sexual orientation.

Wife's suspicions raised by husband's many secrets
Dear Abby: I have been married nearly a year. My husband and I were together for five years before that. I am his fourth wife.

dear abby Wife resents husband's failure to pick up slack
Dear Abby: The other day my kids asked me why I'm always so angry. I didn't know how to respond. I'm angry that they think their dad is "wonderful" because he plays with them all day (he's not working), takes them to get fast food (instead of cooking something healthy), and because he's their coach (he is having an emotional affair with one of the parents).

Despite unhappy past, girls resist parents' divorce
Dear Abby: I am a 15-year-old boy who has known for as long as I can remember that my parents would eventually divorce. I can't remember a day in my life without their constant fighting. Dad has been out of the house for a year now, and our home situation is better.

dear abby Mom's Internet sleuthing gives daughter the creeps
Dear Abby: I have become alarmed by my mother's recent habit of "Googling" people. She digs up things about my friends and calls to report them to me. The list of those she has researched on the Internet ranges from friends I haven't talked to in years, to an ex-boyfriend of hers against whom she filed a restraining order.