Dear Captain Awkward: There is an elderly man in his 80s, who I will call Fred, who I have known for almost twenty years. He is known by almost everyone in the community as a grandfatherly figure and was voted Citizen of the Year. He likes to hug people, and I used to give him … Continue reading #742: The Touchy-Feely Neighbor
Tag: saying no
#504: Replying to The Council of Unsolicited Advisors
Hi! I have a dog. I estimate the number of strangers who come up to me in public and give me unsolicited advice about my dog at about 25%. Yes, seriously, 1 in 4 strangers. An informal unscientific poll of my friends shows that not even parents of small children get that much advice! I … Continue reading #504: Replying to The Council of Unsolicited Advisors
#459: Do I have to destroy my health to be in grad school?
I'm in grad school for creative writing. It's hard. Right now, I'm taking three classes, which means that I'm reading 500-plus pages a week, in addition to commenting on my classmates' writing and producing a poem every week. Plus, I'm teaching a basic composition course for struggling writers, and a literature course (for the first … Continue reading #459: Do I have to destroy my health to be in grad school?
#397: Pretty should be optional.
People are always telling me I could be attractive if I wanted to, and I acknowledge the truth of this - thing is, I don't want to. I don't care about my appearance beyond being clean and presentable. I'm not interested in putting more effort in just to please other people, and I'm perfectly comfortable … Continue reading #397: Pretty should be optional.
#336: Gracefully exiting from conversations.
Dear Captain Awkward, I've recently been going to social events where I don't know anyone (such as MeetUp groups - thankyou for the suggestion BTW - I didn't know about them until you mentioned them) in order to meet new people and perhaps rebuild some kind of social life, since the one I had kind … Continue reading #336: Gracefully exiting from conversations.
#313 & #314: Broken Friendships
Should there ever be a Captain Awkward Dot Com Meetup, I will acquire a bunch of these coloring books and the big boxes of crayons (and some silver and gold gel pens) and have a table where people can hang out and color. Right? Right. Thanks, Cleolinda! Today's letters are on the less happy topics … Continue reading #313 & #314: Broken Friendships
#305: “Quit helping so much! I’m not going to fall in love with you.”
Dear Captain, I am having a hard time finding my words, or finding words that will get through. Here's the situation: I am a thirty-something female who has, after several years of struggle, come to terms with her complete lack of sexuality. I have dated men, and I have dated a woman, and all in … Continue reading #305: “Quit helping so much! I’m not going to fall in love with you.”
#280: “How do I get rid of my Facebook stalker without being mean about it?”
Aw fuck, people. More stalking. Emergency kittens standing by thanks to Twitter friend and hilarious DVD-reviewer @jearl8000. Dear Captain Awkward, For a few months now, I have what would be defined as a "Facebook stalker" - he likes all of my pictures, all of my statuses, all of my photos, all of my comments on … Continue reading #280: “How do I get rid of my Facebook stalker without being mean about it?”
#276 & #277 & #278: A three-for-one stalker (un)special.
Here be a bunch of letters about dudes who can't let go and the very young women who pity/get stalked by them. Have a website full of cute animal pictures open in another tab while you read this. You're going to need it. Dear Captain Awkward: Came across your 'the art of "no".' post, wish … Continue reading #276 & #277 & #278: A three-for-one stalker (un)special.
#258 = #191 + Bridesmaidery
This is a follow-up to this post: https://captainawkward.com/2012/02/15/191-annual-reminder-time-get-your-teeth-cleaned-get-your-eyesnaughty-bits-checked-and-stop-hanging-out-with-crappy-people/ Dear Captain Awkward: First of all, I want to thank you and your commenters SO MUCH for being such kick-ass human beings and providing so much support and insight into the situation when I was so blind to what was going on. If I could, I'd invite … Continue reading #258 = #191 + Bridesmaidery
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