Weekly Column
Girl rides with friend who texts and drives
Dear Straight Talk: A friend won’t stop texting when she drives and it makes me nervous. She is the only friend I have with a car and I can't get around without her. How can I get her to stop without alienating her? - "Rose,"…
Weekly Column
Boy worries about end of the world
Dear Straight Talk: I'm afraid for the end of the world. How do others cope with the mistreatment of our planet? We have rising oceans, nuclear plant meltdowns, species extinction, food-chain disruptions, economic collapse, nuclear…
Weekly Column
Parents clueless about brother’s gaming addiction
Dear Straight Talk: I'm 17, writing about my brother, 16. I believe my parents are allowing him to socially retard himself with video games. If he gets good grades and does his chores, they feel he can spend his time how he likes.…
Weekly Column
Mother turns to panel for help with sibling rivalry
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: Help! My first daughter,10, from a previous relationship and four-year-old daughter from my current marriage, fight constantly. This leads to mini arguments with my husband. Why do they fight so much? How can I…
Weekly Column
My daughter is afraid to learn how to drive
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: My daughter is 19 and still doesn’t drive. She didn’t take driver’s training in high school, and now she says she is afraid. I’m afraid too. Outside of college it inhibits her ability to…
Weekly Column
What’s expected when boy pays for prom date?
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: A guy from school asked me to prom and I accepted. He’s cute and nice and will make a great prom date, but I have no interest in being his girlfriend. I'm nervous because isn’t it implied that you…
Weekly Column
Mom worries about shy daughter in large high school
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: My daughter has attended the same small school from kindergarten through eighth grade. She is friendly but not particularly outgoing. She tends to have one or two close friends (and is very caring toward them),…
Weekly Column
Divorced father threatens daughter’s wedding
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: I am 22 and getting married next month. We are planning something special in the backyard of a friend's house with our families and friends. My father has written a check to cover most of the food. The problem…
Weekly Column
What if high school started an hour later?
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: I read with interest about the mother who couldn't get her son to sleep before midnight. Sleep deprivation is the norm today. But combining sleep deprivation with teens leads to extra problems because teens…
Weekly Column
Boy seeks help to find the light
DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: I just stopped cutting about a month ago. I started a journal, but sometimes when I get frustrated or angry I start to cut again. I was wondering if you have any ideas for helping me. I am so scared of falling back…
TNT AdvisorOn the lighter side...
Sexuality 101
Nobody knows why some people turn out to be girls and others turn out to be boys, and what any of it means at puberty. Some think girl-ness or boy-ness is a function of how many Oreo cookies the mother ingested during pregnancy. Others think it's the number of Doritos.
While scientists get their pocket-protectors in a wad over this, cunning linguists have discovered that girl is simply a misspelling of the word gril. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to tell you that since the discovery of fire, boys have been irresistibly drawn to grils! Whether it's hamburgers or hotdogs, a man wants to hang with his gril and barbeque! And nobody needs a linguist, cunning or otherwise, to tell you that if a gril isn't given enough attention, things will soon be toast!
Ah, but while scientists were straightening their pocket protectors, linguists have been tying their tongues in square knots, slip knots, even the legendary bowline over the aggravating fact that some grils band together, telling boys to "back away from the flame." And some boys prefer flambéing in a cheery kitchen with a well-scrubbed hardwood floor underneath over chillin' with their gril. And here the scientists jump back in the fray with "Aha! We did not consider the Pecan Sandies!" —LF
