Dear Abby: My fiance thinks me and my daughters close relatonship is weird

DEAR ABBY: My fiance gets annoyed and calls it weird that I talk to my daughter every morning on my way to work and in the afternoon on my way home.She’s a wife and young mother of two, ages 1 and 4.

I’m proud of how well she is doing.I work full time, and she works part time.We’re both always busy, so we don’t see each other as often as we’d like, even though we live in the same town.

At 25, my daughter is becoming my best friend.I love helping her through decisions, ideas, etc.

I don’t agree with my fiance that this is “weird.” I believe mothers and daughters who are close do this.What’s your opinion about this? How can I better explain to my fiance that this isn’t taking anything away from him? — MOTHERING IN MASSACHUSETTSDEAR MOTHERING: You are extremely fortunate to have such a warm relationship with your daughter.You can explain this until you’re blue in the face, but if your fiance feels that he, and not your daughter, should be your best friend, it will be like talking to a wall. From where I sit, for your fiance to dictate how often you talk with your daughter — when you’re not with him — is more than a little bit controlling.

It’s time to ask yourself if his need to control manifests itself in other ways.If it does, you may want to reconsider his status as fiance.DEAR ABBY: One of my neighbors keeps their dog tied outside for long periods of time.

I often see him shivering and pacing, and he barks and cries late into the night.I don’t know my neighbor well, and I don’t want to cause conflict or make assumptions.

At the same time, it’s hard to ignore what I’m seeing and hearing, especially when the temperatures drop below freezing.I’ve thought about saying something or even reporting it, but I worry about overstepping or making the situation worse.

What’s the right thing to do? — CONCERNED IN THE COLDDEAR CONCERNED: You can’t possibly make the situation worse, so why not try to make it better? Research...