‘Wonderful’ husband ‘befriends’ other women

Dear Annie: I am married to a wonderful man. He is my high-school sweetheart, and we have been together for 15 years, married for seven. I believe he is faithful, but something has been troubling me a lot.

Whenever he goes away for a weekend with his friends, he meets girls at the bar and talks to them. I could live with that, but what bothers me is they exchange contact information, become Facebook friends and stay in touch. I have explained to him that this upsets me, but he continues to do it. Am I out of line for worrying? Disturbed in Canada

Dear Canada: No, dear, your lines are fine. A married man should not be meeting women in bars and taking down their phone numbers, e-mail addresses or anything else. Unless he brings them home and introduces them to you, he has no business getting so friendly. The fact that he knows it upsets you yet continues to do it indicates he has no respect for your feelings. Get some marriage counseling — with or without him.

Dear Annie: A few years ago, my elderly mother noticed someone had been drawing money in $500 increments from her checking account. This went on every month for two years. Mom initially attributed the drain of money to having plumbing, roofing, electrical and other housing problems. Because I work and live far away, I didn’t realize she wasn’t as sharp as she used to be.

A very nice 40-something woman had offered to sit for people who wanted to take trips. Mom developed a friendship with her, and the woman not only house-sat, but would take Mom to the doctor and market once in a while. With full access to my mother’s house, she called the bank and ordered an ATM card in my mother’s name, picked it up from the mailbox and activated it from Mom’s phone. She then ordered other credit cards, which, fortunately, arrived after we found out what was going on and were able to stop her.

When we reported the crime, the detective showed us the driver’s license of the woman, but in that picture, she had bright red hair and wore tons of makeup. It also showed a different birth date, and her name was spelled with a slight alteration. The DA said these changes are the sign of a habitual criminal. My mother could not get past the altered appearance to see that it was the same woman and, consequently, was unable to identify her.

Mom is now scared to death of anyone who comes to the door and is brokenhearted to have loved and trusted a person who betrayed her. I am sending this to you hoping you can get the word out to families of other seniors who live alone and may be victimized. We know this parasite is still out there. Southern Daughter

Dear Daughter: Thanks for the warning. We’re sorry to say there are plenty of scam artists looking to take advantage of anyone with a kind and trusting nature. Please be careful.

Dear Annie: I was very disturbed by the letter from “Have Medical Coverage But No Doctor.” As a young physician in my 30s, I’ve been forced to move back into my parent’s house. After a decade of training and living on below-average wages, I have compiled a mountain of debt and don’t even own my car. Yet people still expect their doctors to provide them medical care for free or even at a financial loss.

It is the insurance companies that have abandoned people. To top it off, I’ve just been sued by a patient who somehow believes I should have diagnosed her breast cancer when I only saw her once for a broken toe.

How am I supposed to use the skills I’ve trained so hard to obtain without sacrificing my own livelihood? Desperate Doctor in a Harsh New World

Dear Doctor: If we could solve this problem, we’d ask for a cabinet post.

• E-mail your questions to anniesmailbox@comcast.net or write to: Annie’s Mailbox‚Ñ¢, P.O. Box 118190, Chicago, IL 60611.

Creators Syndicate