Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, Help! There’s this really cute guy working at a local bookstore near my office and I’d love to ask him out. But every time I go into the store he’s busy with customers or helping other employees. What can I do to stand out from the regular customers and show him I’mContinue reading

Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, I’ve leaving in a few weeks for a vacation with extended family at a beach house that we’ve rented for a week. Do you have any tips for surviving the week with family while still having fun? Thanks, Beach Mom Dear Beach Mom, What you need is a project.  Fathers, fathers-in-law, andContinue reading

Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, I’m attending a housewarming party for a young couple who love good food and outdoor entertaining. I want to get them something useful and enduring–maybe to help with their garden or to use in the kitchen. What’s new in the world of DIY home and garden products? Or would it be bestContinue reading

Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, I have recently adopted some pet snails.  Now they are having snail babies! The soil in the terrarium has little tiny bugs in it; I think they might have come from a medium-sized stick I put in there. I want to replace the soil to get rid of the bugs, but amContinue reading

Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, Help!  It’s February and I’m going crazy!  The days are short, the sky is grey, and the garden is buried under dirty, slushy snow.  I’ve become so irritable and downtrodden myself that even my best friends can’t stand to be around me.  Winter has seriously gotten me down.  Do you have anyContinue reading

Dear Dr. Bleedingheart, Should I worry that crickets have decided to move into my basement this winter? Thankfully, they are rather polite tenants and respectful of quiet hours. Although generally nondestructive, they are eating the cat food, which shows some poor judgment on their part – without an ample supply of Friskies, the cats veryContinue reading