Ask Nicole Q. I’ve been divorced for three years and am ready to date again – finally. This is a somewhat scary idea as I move a little past middle age. I think I can handle the “romance” part of dating, but some of the practical stuff is worrying me. Surely the fellow isn’t expected …
Dear Nicole, My husband likes to blast loud music while he’s working in his garage. When I get home from a long day of work, the last thing I want to hear about is “b*%^7es and hos” at a 10 level volume. I want him to be able to unwind the way he does but …
Dear Nicole: For a while I lived in Bali and grew to absolutely love the culture. I decided to start a “fair trade” business I called Bali Karma to buy from local artists who were struggling on the nearby island of Lombok, and to bring their crafts to the United States to sell. To get …
Dear Nicole: My friend is one of those serial entrepreneurs. If you can think of one of those parties you have in your house where someone has tried to sell you something, this lady’s done it. Makeup, cooking stuff, you name it. She recently went to a conference where she learned she could have a …
Dear Nicole: I grew up in Maine, but had to get the heck out once I graduated. After college, I moved to Chicago for work, and I had a good job. Like most people, I realized that Maine isn’t such a bad place when I was away. When the company went out of business two …
Dear Nicole, I happen to be dating two guys who are friends. Let’s call them George and Jeremy. We are casual in both cases. Jeremy knows George and I are dating, but not vice versa. George (the oblivious one) is starting to demand more attention, but Jeremy isn’t ready to be exclusive. How do I …
Dear Nicole, I sent a few sexy images to my boyfriend via text message. We have now broken up and he’s threatening to send them all over school unless I give him $500. What should I do? — Exposed But Not Overexposed (Yet) I am assuming if you are talking about school that you’re a …
Dear Nicole, I am dating a girl and she wants me to bring over my favorite Christmas movie for a movie night. I’m a dude who has no favorite Christmas movie. Is this a trap? What do I bring? — Christmas Movie Grinch Let us do a brief analysis of some of your possibilities and …
Dear Nicole, I have an illness I’ll just call ‘gift freeze.’ When I have to buy gifts (like right about now), all of a sudden it’s like I’m completely dumb about what the people in my life would like. I don’t know what to buy anyone. How do I unfreeze myself so I can actually …
Dear Nicole, There is a woman at my office who talks all the time. I am busy and have stuff to do! I often try to signal to her that I’m doing something by looking away and working on my computer — but she doesn’t get the hint. How do I (politely) get her to …
Dear Nicole, My friends just had a huge fight. I am not sure what it was even about but I know they aren’t speaking. I am throwing a holiday party soon and the idea of inviting both of them is making me worry the party will turn into battleground. I also can’t invite only one. …
Dear Nicole, How do you address issues (often thoughtless versus malicious) micro-aggression in a professional setting without alienating yourself from your co-workers/boss? — (Slightly) Hostile Work Environment I am so curious about examples of this. I’m guessing things you would see on PassiveAggressiveNotes.com or slightly digging comments in a staff meeting. They aren’t insulting enough …
