DEAR ABBY: I know every relationship is different, but how do you know when to stop trying and let go? My boyfriend and I have been dating for a year and a half. Lately all we seem to do is fight or upset each other. I don't want to call it quits, but I'm tired of being angry or sad all the time.
We have been trying to fix our relationship for a while now, but nothing seems to stick. We haven't been able to get professional help due to our financial situation and COVID, but I don't know what else to do.
We have so much potential for having an amazing life and family in the future that I don't want to give up on what could be just because we can't get along right now. Is love enough to help us through this rough patch? Or am I just fooling myself into thinking we can survive together? -- LOST IN LOVE IN KANSAS
DEAR LOST: Many couples -- married and not -- have been having relationship problems related to the pandemic and the social isolation it has brought. Add financial issues into the mix, and the result has been anxiety, depression and disrupted relationships.
These are difficult times, and I hope you and your boyfriend can weather the storm by giving each other the gift of patience and understanding. The answer to your dilemma may be as simple as returning to normal once the pandemic gets under control.
DEAR ABBY: I am a 68-year-old man. Yesterday, my girlfriend and I were in a small gift shop. A young couple was there with a 6-month-old baby in a stroller. I bent down, smiled, winked, waved at the baby and said, "Hi there!" I then told the mother that her baby was beautiful and that I love little kids.
My girlfriend said I was being creepy. I was shocked. I said that she knew I liked kids, and she said yes, she knew that, but that I was still being creepy.
Abby, I have two wonderful, successful adult daughters and always enjoyed having their friends over to our house, which was the place to be back then. I am still stunned at the accusation, but I now wonder. Was I out of line and being "creepy"? -- STUNNED IN WASHINGTON
DEAR STUNNED: There's a double standard for men interacting with children that women don't face. But admiring someone's baby and telling the mother her child is beautiful isn't "creepy." Neither is mentioning that you love kids. Countless people say the same thing in passing, and there's nothing untoward about it.
DEAR ABBY: Is there a respectful way to dispose of funeral memory books that no one is interested in keeping? -- CURIOUS DOWNSIZER
DEAR CURIOUS: Funeral memory books are similar to guest books. Mourners sign them so the grieving family will know who attended the service. If you're familiar with whatever messages were left, there is no need to hang on to them. If you don't wish to keep them, offer them to your local genealogical society, historical society or local archives to see if they would be welcomed.