I grew up without a father. He wasn't dead, but he might as well have been. My mother divorced my father when I was one because he was throwing away his music career and life on drugs. Soon after the divorce, his parents and brothers essentially divorced him as well. He wrote me one letter when I was 12. Last year, my father passed away before I could ever meet him. As I am getting older ( 32 ), I am starting to wonder how this experience, or lack therof has shaped my character. Do guys who grow up without a father exhibit certain character flaws or attributes. Without making me feel totally jipped, what is it like to have a father? Am I doomed to have deep reaching gender identity issues? Are there any good books on the subject? Does anyone have some good perspective on growing up fatherless and how you manage(d) it?
posted by jasondigitized
on Jul 18, 2006 -
19 answers
I'm thinking about a move to the Tampa Bay area (possibly to set up shop and raise the family)....Can any Mefites familiar to the area or living there tell me stuff about schools, crime, culture in the area...? Of course, assorted pros/cons would be great.
[more inside]
posted by skepticallypleased
on Jul 18, 2006 -
12 answers
My neice is due to give birth any day now to a little boy. How will her new son be related to me? (ie. grand-nephew?) And what will be his relationship to my son?
Any help finding an online resource for determining relationships such as this would be appreciated.
posted by mezzanayne
on Jul 14, 2006 -
11 answers
What's the best way for a tech-impaired, budget-conscious mom in the US to talk to her son while he's living in Indonesia?
[more inside]
posted by mdonley
on Jul 9, 2006 -
18 answers
My seventy-seven year old grandfather, maker of pierogies and violins, will have his bladder removed this Friday to help stop the spread of cancer. What can I do to keep him positive?
[more inside]
posted by furtive
on Jul 5, 2006 -
15 answers
Help me with a family member who wants me to help her because of the word of a psychic!
[more inside]
posted by andraste
on Jun 26, 2006 -
23 answers
Fun things to do in NYC and Boston for a young family? I'll be in NYC with my wife and two small children (3yrs & 8months) from June 16th-19 and in Boston from the 25th-29th of June.
[more inside]
posted by allthewhile
on Jun 14, 2006 -
16 answers
My kids like listening to the stories on TLA when we happen to catch it in the car. I was going to grab a few off of Audible.com for an upcoming road trip. Kind of a subset of this question (http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/20670). Any suggestions?
posted by jbradley
on Jun 14, 2006 -
16 answers
Alternative living filter: I am a single woman in my mid-30s, seriously contemplating having a child on my own.
[more inside]
posted by picklebird
on Jun 13, 2006 -
17 answers
I'm looking for a free genealogy website - one where I can upload my GEDCOM file, reference various databases and the like.
[more inside]
posted by rinkjustice
on May 29, 2006 -
8 answers
"La Riviera Maya" (er, coastal Quintana Roo, Mexico) or Costa Rica for a Totally Awesome Father-Son Bonding Experience in March/April/May 2007?
[more inside]
posted by mdonley
on May 26, 2006 -
13 answers
I’m a Brit living in the US and my husband is a New Yorker. I really suffer in the presence of my in-laws and don’t know whether this is just a cultural difference and I need to be more understanding and less uptight or if they really are insufferable and I need to draw a line. Below are the main issues. (Long sorry!)
[more inside]
posted by anapurna
on May 11, 2006 -
61 answers
How do I get my great-grandfather's and great-grandmother's birth and marriage certificates from the town of Randazzo (province of Catania, Sicily), Italy?
[more inside]
posted by mdonley
on May 10, 2006 -
12 answers
Autofilter: What are some good family (2 adults, 2 toddlers) cars on the market in Europe?
[more inside]
posted by smcniven
on May 2, 2006 -
8 answers
Was your father 45+ when you were born? Were your own children born later in your life?
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Apr 27, 2006 -
34 answers
I'm seeking advice on and a short term investment strategy that won't offend Grandad.
[more inside]
posted by godawful
on Apr 25, 2006 -
41 answers
My parents divorced when I was a toddler, with virtually all my baby pictures plus many hours of movies (including birth, first steps, etc.) going to the non-custodial parent. For a variety of painful reasons, I have been long estranged from that parent, as well as that entire branch of the family. And that is of the good. Yet it would mean so much to be able to fill in the blank slate of my childhood with images and sounds. Am I wrong for feeling as though morally this collection belongs to me? Does a child, especially an estranged child, have the right to ask for their baby pictures? And how, precisely, do I ask such a favor of a person from whom I want absolutely no other contact?
[more inside]
posted by nakedcodemonkey
on Apr 22, 2006 -
12 answers
1. fail to show up for orthodontist consultation
2. ex-wife gets the account in her name
3. profit!
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Apr 20, 2006 -
16 answers
How do you deal with a family member who constantly inflicts feelings of
guilt?
[more inside]
posted by jca
on Apr 11, 2006 -
29 answers
I have been tasked with coming up with some ideas for what to do for a warm weather outing for our small (30-40 people) company here in Atlanta.
Does anyone have any ideas or experiences that they have really enjoyed that they would share?
[more inside]
posted by GrumpyMonkey
on Mar 24, 2006 -
8 answers
I talked to my parents this morning and my brother is in a psych-center on suicide watch after going thru $2,000 of my folk’s money on crack. This is not the first time this has happened:
[more inside]
posted by PHINC
on Mar 18, 2006 -
17 answers
My ex wife is asking me to pay for half of homeopathy for our children and I don't want to.
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Mar 14, 2006 -
29 answers
Are my sister and I the world's first "Brother Sister Blog Team" or has it been done before? Personally, I haven't been able to find any.
[more inside]
posted by travosaurus
on Mar 7, 2006 -
13 answers
Where to live in Leeds, UK? Calling all current or previous inhabitants! I'll shortly be starting a job in the city, and need some help determining the best place for a young family to live.
[more inside]
posted by StuMiller
on Mar 3, 2006 -
9 answers
PuppyFilter: A friend of my Mother's needs advice on how to train and deal with an abused puppy, and also her son & son's girlfriend whom the dog actually belongs to.
[more inside]
posted by Meredith
on Feb 21, 2006 -
16 answers
My mom is bad with money. She has asked me and my brother to help her with her financial situation, and my brother wants to have power over her financial accounts at her bank. She does not gamble or have drug problems, she just lives beyond her means and we can't stop her unless we have control of her assets which she has agreed to. She currently holds two known mortgages on the home and we want to be able to keep her from putting on any more against it.
[more inside]
posted by Dean Keaton
on Feb 20, 2006 -
24 answers
I am moving from santa cruz to portland. My girlfriend and I recently(4 months ago) had a daughter and the cost of living here is so high that we feel there is more opportunity for us up there. We have been invited to stay with my girlfriend's parents for a few months until we get settled, but i am concerned with finding a job that will pay enough to support us. I will be the sole earner so that my daughter will be able to have a parent with her all the time. Any suggestions?
I need to make at least $15/hr ... I have been doing construction related work for the last couple of years but would like to steer away from that in favor of something not so hard on the body. I'd appreciate any comments...
posted by thatjackbuilt
on Feb 13, 2006 -
19 answers
I gotta young teen who, sad to say, isn't a great strategist and so on. Consequently, he gets his ass kicked in most every competitive-style board or card game. Got any recommendations on great cooperative-style games?
posted by five fresh fish
on Feb 9, 2006 -
24 answers
Is there any way to find out my grandfather's medical / criminal history when a) I know almost nothing about him and b) He's been dead since 1994?
[more inside]
posted by bondcliff
on Feb 1, 2006 -
12 answers
My friend is traveling back to the US to deal with her estranged 83 year old acid-casualty father’s deteriorating health and living situation. Can she be held legally responsible for his debts?
[more inside]
posted by zaelic
on Jan 19, 2006 -
13 answers
What do you do when a sibling asks you bail them out of a financial problem entirely of their making?
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Jan 13, 2006 -
47 answers
Fundy-In-Law-Filter: My husband's sister and her husband are hard-core evangelical fundamentalists. We are liberal Episcopalians. This causes a problem every Christmas. What do you say when you get a gift that was clearly meant to make a point?
[more inside]
posted by Biblio
on Dec 27, 2005 -
84 answers
Why did you choose to have a baby?
I'm trying to get inside the mindset of people who are older than I am and in a very different part of their life. If you're someone who has always planned on having a family, why did you always plan on it and how do you feel about it now? If you never planned on a family and changed your mind, what made you change your mind? If you never planned on children but one come along by accident, how do you feel about them now? I'm looking for personal stories/anecdotes/opinions about it, not so much statistics or figures.
posted by twirlypen
on Dec 26, 2005 -
33 answers
Can you name a reasonable price for a late wedding ring? Family Drama Inside! Come Look! -->
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Dec 20, 2005 -
39 answers
Beside myself filter: My 22 year old sister is close to hitting rock bottom, and she is heading there fast.
[more inside]
posted by anonymous
on Dec 8, 2005 -
42 answers
