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Talking over a loud speaker

Dear Annie: I need to vent here. I have a group of girlfriends, and there is one, “Melanie,” who dominates the conversation. Melanie’s voice is louder than mine so if I am telling a story or asking a question, she will just blare out whatever is on her mind. Another annoying habit: Even if someone is talking directly to Melanie, she often starts turning her head away from that person and trying to listen to the other girls’ conversations. Last night was the final straw. I am finding myself not wanting to participate in lunches or dinners out when she is there. How do I tell her ...

Distraction-free dining

Dear Annie: I’m sitting at Reagan National Airport close to dinnertime. There are limited options for seats and tables for people to eat at. You know the scene — folks standing behind diners who look to be finished. There is a mother and two daughters who, from the look of the trash around them, finished a long time ago. They’re all playing on their phones and won’t vacate their unnecessary seats with a table. Why are some people so rude and oblivious when the majority of people are trying to make room for others? — Burned Up at the Airport Dear Burned Up: The mother and ...

Lies the liar tells

When politicians talk in private, they regularly use a cruel shorthand. For example, a candidate who is uninformed, unreflective and uncurious is often branded a “lightweight,” as in, “He is so lightweight he could tap-dance on a souffle.” Conversely, a “heavyweight” would be a politician of some substance, some political clout and personal gravity. Al Gore — the Democratic presidential nominee who won 543,895 more votes than George W. Bush in 2000 but ended up losing the election in a 5-4 Supreme Court split decision — was regularly dismissed for being so unexciting ...

Educating readers on condition

Dear Annie: I read your column every day and am a faithful fan. Your column reaches a multitude of readers and is a valuable way to enlighten and educate on topics either not talked about or not well known. I wanted to write to you about a condition that my son has, in hopes of educating people about it, as there are many others who have the same condition and are suffering in silence. My son has prosopagnosia, which is a neurological condition characterized by the inability to recognize the faces of familiar people. Some experts have claimed that 2% of the population has the condition. ...

Continuing to honor all fathers

Dear Readers: Fathers and father figures deserve more than one day of recognition for all their work and love, and the amount of beautiful words sent in reflected this. Below are a few more moving tributes submitted for Father’s Day. ‘My Father’s Example’ A father gives instruction to his family, Is willing to go the extra mile. Always willing to help others Leaving them with a joyful smile. He is an example of what it means To have a walk with God. Gives his children a desire to follow, The path of faith that he has trod. He is willing to rise up early, To ...

Don’t downplay Trump’s role in the U.S.-Mexico immigration deal. His strategy worked.

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s detractors are trying to play down the significance of the U.S.-Mexico immigration deal, saying it is largely comprised of actions that Mexico had already agreed to many months ago. Nice try. If Mexico had truly agreed to implement many of these measures in December, then why had they not been implemented six months later? As even Mexican officials acknowledge, it was Trump’s threat of tariffs that forced Mexico’s hand. In announcing the deal, a relieved Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard said the “most important thing is that they didn’t ...