Dear Abby: My sons wife is an alcoholic

DEAR ABBY: My oldest son, “Adam,” turned 50 last month.He and his wife, “Lindy,” live four hours away.

They invited me and my husband to a birthday party she was having for him.Adam’s daughter from a previous marriage couldn’t make it for whatever reason.Lindy tends to drink too much.

At one point, she went around screaming about how Adam’s “stupid daughter” didn’t bother to make it to his birthday party.To say the least, I was furious.

I didn’t speak up because my son’s friends had traveled to be there and I didn’t want to ruin the celebration, and she was obviously very intoxicated.My granddaughter doesn’t have a good relationship with them.Adam adopted the youngest of Lindy’s three daughters because the two older ones were married.

I no longer want to have anything to do with Lindy.Adam and his father don’t know about what happened that night.

We haven’t had a good relationship since Adam left his first family for Lindy.Any advice? — HOLDING MY TONGUE IN TEXASDEAR HOLDING: Adam knows his wife is a drinker who sometimes becomes out of control.

You didn’t mention whether he has maintained contact with his ex-wife or his daughter.That she avoided his birthday party may not have been unexpected.

My advice is to keep your lip zipped and resist the urge to further rock the boat.DEAR ABBY: A friend I’ve known since our school days works in the same organization I do.We’re in different departments, but we had similar jobs when I started six years ago.

During that time, I’ve had two big promotions, and she has stayed where she is.Her work is well received, and she always gets positive reviews, so she’s frustrated she hasn’t been promoted.She asked me to help her figure out what is going on.

(When asked, her supervisor didn’t give a straight answer, which is typical here.) I think the problem may be how she presents herself.It’s an old-school setting, and she has a modern attitude toward work-life balance.

She d...