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Breathing bothers

Dear Annie: My husband of 42 years discovered a new way of breathing, and it has made me scared to death. I am afraid that he might die in his sleep. “Charles” had asthma and allergies in his childhood, and he was prescribed all kinds of medication. He mostly outgrew his asthma as an adult, though he would frequently get terrible allergies and take various forms of antihistamines, usually prescribed by his doctor. But a year ago, someone at his office was talking about the “Buteyko Breathing Technique,” which basically means taking shallow breaths through the nose. It seems ...

We are living the fable of the emperor’s new clothes

If you’re going to lie, make it a good one. Meaning, put some effort into it. Make it convincing. Make sure the truth is not easily discoverable. Don’t just draw on a weather map with a Sharpie. That’s apparently what Donald Trump or someone in his employ did last week to prove he was right all along in claiming that the state of Alabama lay in the path of Hurricane Dorian. He made this claim via Twitter Sunday morning, and it was so alarmingly wrong that the Birmingham office of the National Weather Service quickly tweeted an emphatic correction: “Alabama will NOT see any ...

Is ex stealing money?

Dear Annie: My wife left me a little over a year ago. She handled all the finances and was a stay-at-home mom while I worked to earn money. After six months of counseling and her refusing to budge, it was evident the marriage was over. Upon review of my finances, I discovered that over the last four years of our marriage, she spent 55% of my take-home earnings without my knowledge. For what, I don’t know. This amounted to $155,000. She says it was spent on groceries, gas, gifts and other living expenses, while our family checking account shows those expenses were drawn from it. ...

Climate change a convenient excuse to transform economy

“Climate change is an existential crisis,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren declared Tuesday, unveiling her plan to fight climate change in advance of CNN’s interminable townhall event on the topic with 10 Democratic presidential candidates. The use of the term “existential crisis” is ironic. No doubt, they mean “existential threat,” i.e. that global warming threatens to end life on Earth. It doesn’t. But we’ll get back to that in a second. The term existential crisis comes from psychology or philosophy, not environmental science. An existential crisis is when you’re ...

Not my brother

Dear Annie: I am looking for some help in dealing with my alcoholic, grossly overweight brother-in-law. He is 53 years old and has been an alcoholic since high school. Over the past 15 years, he has lost his wife, house and more jobs than you can count. He lives with his mother, and she supports him and his food and alcohol habits. As a family, we have supported him through all the losses and several attempts at rehab and AA, but he chooses to continue to drink, and my mother-in-law won’t kick him out. We have set up boundaries of when he can participate in family functions, such as, ...

Uninvited four-legged dinner guest

Dear Annie: Recently, my girlfriend had a dinner party for six people. One of the guests took it upon herself to bring her dog to the affair. I was livid. This woman let her dog roam throughout the host’s home unattended. The dog owner was totally oblivious to the other guests in attendance. What is your take on this total disrespect for everyone involved? — Offended By Unwanted Guest Dear Offended By Unwanted Guest: Unless the invitation specifically mentioned that pets were welcome, you are absolutely correct. It was rude of the guest to bring her uninvited and unwanted dog. Of ...