Friend doesn’t want to plan every gathering

DEAR HARRIETTE: My friend expects me to handle every single detail whenever we hang out: choosing the activity, making the reservations, checking hours and figuring out travel time. The moment we decide to do something, she defaults to, “You pick!” or “Just tell me where to go!”

Elizabeth Ko, M.D.

Dear Doctors: I know therapists use music to get through to people with Alzheimer’s disease who don’t really connect with anything else anymore.

As parties entrench, an impasse grows

MARBLEHEAD, Mass. – He helped supply the Continental Army during the early days of the American Revolution. He signed the Declaration of Independence. He shaped the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. He was a member of the House of Representatives, a governor of Massachusetts and vice president. He lent his name – perhaps the most mispronounced name in American history, even more so than Kamala – to the creative shaping of a congressional district we now call “gerrymandering.”

Trump is making America poor again

Fox News host Laura Ingraham recently told President Trump that America didn’t need to import foreign workers because “we have plenty of talented people here.” The president then gave an astounding retort. “No, you don’t,” he said. “You don’t have certain talents.”

Stranger’s mix-up causes reflection on health

DEAR HARRIETTE: I was coming up out of the subway the other day when a man spoke to me from behind. He complimented me on my outfit and then looked at me. He remarked that he had thought I was someone else – a prominent woman in our city.

Co-worker’s personal struggles impact job

DEAR HARRIETTE: One of my coworkers has had a lot of personal stuff on her plate lately. I am always an advocate for work-life balance, because no matter what, you should always take care of yourself (mentally, physically, spiritually, personally – whatever that looks like).

Elizabeth Ko, M.D.

Dear Doctors: After getting a pacemaker, my 90-year-old mother was diagnosed with A-fib. She resisted taking a blood thinner for stroke risk but finally agreed. Not 90 minutes after the first pill, she had a major stroke. Who can I notify that this is a possible side effect of the medication?

Elizabeth Ko, M.D.

Dear Doctors: Any advice on controlling chiggers? When I work in the yard, they eat me alive unless I wear long pants. My wife does not garden and is rarely bitten. My son worked with me last weekend and said they don’t bother him.

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