Some of our friends and relatives have gotten in the annoying habit of arranging birthday parties and other special occasions for Sunday afternoons. This past week, my wife's sister in law invited us to her son's birthday party, which is scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. It's easy to see why Sunday outings don't always sit well with everyone, let alone those that don't begin until the late afternoon. Many people leave their errands for Sundays. Others consider it a "family day" to spend with their kids. Still others, like my wife and I, reserve Sundays for rest and relaxation. And then there are folks who go to sleep at 9 p.m. or earlier. Of course, the main reason why people take issue with Sunday get-togethers is the fact that they have to go to work the next day. If the party ends at 8 p.m., that leaves you with little time to do much once you get home. You might grab something to nosh on, shower, and watch a little TV, but before you...

Friendships usually change a great deal when one or both people get into relationships . In a way, this is to be expected. People get busier and tend to put their significant before anyone else. And once kids come along, this is only magnified tenfold. The most noticeable shift is that face time with the friend becomes very hard to come by. In most cases, the friends still manage keep in touch via text, email, or Facebook, but plans made with partners now preclude outings to the movies, concerts, and elsewhere that the friends used to make at the drop of the hat. That's not to say that seeing each other becomes impossible once one or both friends are in a relationship, but it takes more effort and planning. Obviously, any proposed plans with friends now have to be run by the significant other, who may or may not be on board. That was never an issue when the friends were both single. A great example of this is my friendship with an ex co-worker of mine, Elizabeth. During t...

They say women are usually better at making and keeping friends than men are, and I have certainly found this to be the case in my own life -- with male friends and family members alike. In general (not always the case, but very often so), women seem to be more accessible, reliable, and consistent than men. Men tend to be a little more standoffish, usually off doing their own thing. Some of my male friends, on different occasions over the years, have used words like "emotional" and "dramatic" to describe me. To be completely honest, I can't exactly refute those claims. Once you're someone I care deeply about and have invested plenty of time in, I can become rather sensitive if I perceive I've been slighted or taken advantage of by you. In other words, I feel that I "keep score" and read into things a lot more than my male buddies. I don't take kindly to friends kicking me to the curb whenever they enter into a new relationship. Why? ...