Ask Amy: Parents worry about son’s unemployment
You and your wife should approach this as equal partners in your household, and you should present a united strategy for how to parent him into adulthood.
The unemployment rate right now in Wisconsin is a very low 3 percent. Your son does not need another special opportunity put into his lap due to how smart he is. He squanders those opportunities because he knows he can.
He needs to get a job. At a fast-food drive-thru, a landscaping crew, the Walmart warehouse, or wherever he can get hired.
Working a full day will give him a skill set, some money in his pocket, and self-esteem.
I would cut the wireless at your house during the day, stop paying for his cellphone, and offer him only a roof over his head and nourishment until he can afford other housing. I know this is tough, but your marriage is on the line, and so is his future.
Many parents have dealt with this issue by offering their adult children the option of working full time or of joining a branch of the military, which, given your son's interests, might actually be a very good fit for him.
Dear Amy: My sister will earn her Ph.D. out-of-state this summer.
My wife and I have a one-year-old and a three-year-old.
Bringing the whole family would be too much for the one-year-old to handle.
I'd like to bring our older child, who is close with the graduating aunt.
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