Tough Talk,
I come from a large and extended family where we have been close going back decades no matter how far apart we are. However, my younger brother married a woman who always seems to be starting problems and keeping us apart. We’ve spoken to him about this, but he looks at you like you’re speaking Greek. He gets this dazed, docile look in his eyes.
One of our great aunts recently passed away and he showed up by himself and without his wife. Even though it was rude that she was not there, we were glad as we had a good time talking with all our brothers, sisters and cousins and not having her pompous and arrogant attitude around. Then she calls him and demands that he run to the grocery store and pick up a laundry list of feminine toiletries. He runs out the door like a trained seal or bunny rabbit. It was disgusting. We love our brother, but this is too much. What should we do TT? (Cloister Court, South Dakota)
CC,
Your brother is what we used to call pussy-whipped. It’s when a guy is so gutless, he allows a woman to run his life. The best way to handle this is that for future family gatherings, you send his wife a message humbly beseeching her permission to release gutless toad from her control for that limited period of time. You copy your brother emphasizing that it’s totally up to his wife and he has no choice in the matter. Make it clear that he is a whiney little puppy dog with no control over his own life. Let’s see what happens.
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Tough Talk 