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Q: ive liked this girl for a while and i finally just worked up the courage to talk to her recently. weve been talking and i told her i like her. im not sure if she feels the same way about me or not. it seems like she might like me but im not sure. she hasnt really said no yet. i wanna hang out with her and get to know her better. how can i find out whether she likes me or not?

Dear How do I know If She Likes Me,
I know that feeling when you like someone and you tell them but you can't really figure out if they like you back. First, props to you! It takes a lot of guts to tell your crush that you like them. But again yes its so hard to figure out the other persons viewpoint and its like you want to go up to them and ask them lol but dont. Keep talking to her and gradually ask her to go do something. Maybe grab a group of friends and ask her to come along that way it wont be akward. Go on a couple of those and then try some one on one activities like bowling or put putting. Don't rush, but if you still have the same feelings ask her out. Maybe ask her how she feels about you before and then pop the question if she feels the same way. To make it more exciting you could ask her in a creative way. One thing that you must have though is that goog firm grounded relationship. Thats a big part of a relationship. well good luck and I hope this helps!

Q: Hi, I really hope you can help; i've gotten mixed responses from others...

Basically, my BF discovered that in my senior year of college (I graduated last year) I had taken two semesters worth of judo classes and he thought this was really funny b/c I don't look like, I guess, a "typical" jock chick--that is i'm not muscular or buff or whatever...i'm your stereotypical "girly girl" in appearance--tall, skinny, blond hair, blah blah blah and I'm like 125 lbs....so he's laughing at me, calling me "judogirl", etc., and I was fine w/all that, if a little annoyed, but then he made a mistake: he challenged me to a wrestling match...and I beat him.

He outweighs me by like 40 lbs. and is pretty strong but he didn't understand that my judo skills would use his strength against him and he just couldn't believe I won. I figured it was a one-time deal, but he was so bent out of shape that he's challenged me several times since then, and I've defeated him every time. It would be OK if he didn't take it so seriously, but he just becomes this mean pouty jerk when he loses and keeps challenging me and now i've refused to wrestle him b/c it's no fun and I hate his sexist attitude as well. But refusing to wrestle just makes him angrier and he says stuff like "you're just afraid i'll figure out your 'tricks' and win...it's so annoying!

I've considered just faking it and letting him win but I don't REALLY want to do that b/c I'm proud of my skills, and just wish he would be too...plus when he baits me w/all this "you're just a girl" crap, it gets my goat and i'm more than happy to throw him to the floor and pin him when he gets too tired to fight me off...

Have you ever beaten a boy at something athletic--whether martial arts or sports--or know a girl who has? B/c maybe if I can tell him he's not the only one he won't feel so bad...

Dear challenger,
Yes I have actually! I am a skinny person ( i get it from my dads side) and everyone thinks that im weak until I arm wrestle them. I beat my own dad and one of my best guy friends too. At first they were kind of upset but after a while they laughed it off. I dont get why girls can never beat the guys with out the guys freaking out. There all for competition and when two competetive people collide you better stand back because it can get pretty ugly lol. Tell your bf that girls can do anything guys can do..and maybe even better :) GOOD LUCK!

Q: well junior prom is coming up, my someone just left me lately and im really desperate to find a date, i know this girl who might like me, but im not sure if she likes me or not, or i can go with this other girl, who is kind of a party girl, and i dont think i can really trust her, what should i do?

Dear needing a prom date,
First, sorry for the loss. I know that can be hard..especially right before prom, but dont get your head down who knows maybe this girl that you really want to go with likes you. Ask her to go, and maybe spice it up by asking her in a creative way. Your not neccassarly asking her out..yet lol. If she says yes she probably has in interest in you and at the end of prom night im sure you will find out if she likes you. As for the party girl. If you go with her you will probably end up doing some stupid stuff..right? And you should be able to trust the person you are going with. So, my vote is for the good girl! If she ends up saying no you could always go with a friend. If not, grab a bunch of guy friends that are too with out dates and go hit the dance floor! I know prom can be VERY stressful..especially the whole finding a date part. GOOD LUCK!

Q: 16/f

My boyfriend and I have been dating for a year and 7 months. He has been talking to some stupid girl from another state and it bugs me wicked badly. So one day I was on myspace and I purposly looked for a guy from my school who is completely gorgeous. We started talking and became best friends. He knows i have a crush on him and he tells me he has one on me. I feel so attached to him. I really do like my boyfriend a lot. I have already broken up with him twice for this kid and we got back together because i cant help but be with him. By the way, my boyfriend hates this kid because he thinks he tried using me for sex, even though we never did anything together but hug. My boyfriend would be wicked pissed if he found out that we talk. It is extremely complicated and i dont know what to do. I need advice desperatly. Who should I pick? If you need more imformation I'll send you some. Thanks.

Dear my boyfriend vs. really cute guy,
My opinion is to let go of your boyfriend, esecially when hes been "talking" to another girl and it bugs you. You say that you have dropped him a couople of times for other guys. Doesn't this show you something? Your going to hurt him even more by staying with him then breaking up with him. Your only sixteen and your still younge. Date around!

Q: so, there is this guy i know. We have become friends over the year and now we've grown closer. Everything is all great except for the fact he is into drugs and he gets high every weekend and i tell him he is addicted but he doesn't listen, he's so blind he can't see that he is addicted. i feel as though i can't tell anyone besides close friends because he made me swear i wouldn't tell anyone. and if i go tell his parents or my own, he would hate me forever. but i really want him to get clean and stop wrecking his life. He thinks that smoking pot doesn't affect you in any way. but i think it does. How can i get or influence him to stop?

Dear so I need advice,
This situation is a toughy. Obviously theres something going on at the house, because a lot of pot smokers or alcoholics do all that stuff because they feel its the only way to relieve their pain. I have a friend whos dad makes her miserable all the time. Before she used to cut herself but now that she found a friend with the same problem shes doing what he does with the situation and thats to get high. Another girl had smoked weed over 100 times and has failed the 7th grade multiples of times, but now is in the 8th grade. She has failed many of her classes and is in the 3rd term. The only way that she got through it was with the help of her true friends. You are probably that guys only true "non-smoking" friend right? Well, he depends on you even if he doesnt show it. He will later find out in life that smoking weed is not the anwser, but to rely on his friends for support. Maybe ask him to go out and chill with you and a couple of friends on the weekend that way he wont be near the pot and it will get his mind off of it. In this type of situation it should be hard to stand back and watch him slowly throw his life away, but to reverse that you need to be there for him. Maybe go on the internet and print out some stories and advice on smoking pot and how its bad for you. Maybe seeing what hes doing on an outside view will give him that look on whats really going on every time he takes a puff. Dont give up on being his friend, but instead you want to keep that friendsip close, because he will soon relize that pot is not the way.

Q: Me and this girl have been talking for a while and we both sound interested in eachother but i was wondering how to ask her out. We hardly get a chance to hang out and now i'll almost never see her in school and i want to ask her out very soon so she doesn't think we arn't going anywhere and move on...cause i seem to find that happen with girls lol. So would it be ok to ask her out via text message or what? Thanks.

Dear when to ask her out,
Make sure shes interested in you and if she is and your ready to ask her out dont do it over txting. Thats the worst thing you could do. Set a date like to the movies or at Qdoba. Before the date maybe get her some flowers. When the time is right go ahead and ask her out. This sort of thing should be face to face and its better because you get to see her reactions when you do!
Good luck!

Q: Picture This:

You live in a 8000 sq foot home. You have a 13 year old, a 10 year old and a 5 year old. You've been married for 15 years. However, you're married to a man who calls your daughter a stupid bitch, and your sons dumbasses and idiots on occasion. He's called you a lazy, ungrateful, fat, stupid pig. You've been fighting since you met, and it only gets worse. He's abandoned you without a car, locked you out of the house, and is distant and shows no emotion for your kids. Your kids are upset.
You're an english teacher, and there's no way you could afford the house on your own, but you're not sure what to do with it because it's on your parents land and you don't want to sell it to someone who isn't family. Your struggling, considered divorce, but you know you love him even though your kids get upset.

What do you do?

Dear Picture This,
As a child I am suffering from my parents separation, but if it was my choice for my parents to get a divorce I would want them to. My dad is exactly like your husband. He has cheated on my mom 4 times through their 22 years of marriage and cusses out his kids and cuts down his wife, who by the way is disabled and bound to a wheelchair. He expects her to do ALL the work in the house and thats not exagerating. Keeping your kids in that kind of environment is not safe and can effect their future. As for the house, I understand how its put under your family name, but in this situation what would you rather choose? Your children or your angered husband and the house? I know how your children are feeling and they are suffering. They will try not to show it, but instead keep that anger inside of them when later theyll blow up. Talk to your children and ask them what they want to do. Your children should come first and you need to make that right decision for them. Before you get a divorce..have you considered marriage counciling? It can be a long process, but maybe it can work. Dont let your husband take control of you and your kids. What hes doing is taking his life problems and frustration out on you guys and thats not how you settle the situation. Let me ask you this. You love a man who calls your children names and conflicts situations on you that arnt even your fault, cuts you down, and calls you fat? Thats not love..im sorry. You need to get out of that house and take your children with you. Studies show that a person (usually men) that shows verbally abuse will later eveolve into physical abuse. Save yourself and your kids and leave.

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