Dear Todd Parker,

I'm about to start my second year of college and it seems like everyone in the world is asking me what I want to major in. My parents, my friends and my advisor have all been asking me what course of study I'm going to follow.

How the hell should I know? I'm 19. Am I really supposed to know what I want to do with the rest of my life? It feels like this is the biggest decision I'll ever make and I don't have a clue. I spent my freshman year taking a bunch of required classes, but there wasn't anything that inspired me or anything. None of them were really terrible, either. I feel like I'm in pretty much the same boat as I was when I started.

Dear Todd Parker,

My sister and her husband have a little boy who just turned three years old. He can be a bit of a terror they're very much from the 'never say no' school of parenting but he's a pretty cute kid. He's definitely sharp as a tack and generally sweet, if a bit rambunctious.

However, there's one problem that refuses to go away. The kid won't stay potty-trained.

Dear Todd Parker,

When my kid was born, I was convinced that I would be a terrible father. I figured that I was an irresponsible punk; how was I going to raise a decent human being. Only it turns out that I'm pretty good at it. My wife and I have had a pretty good run of it.

But now the moment I've been dreading has arrived.

Dear Todd Parker,

A buddy and I have been debating something for a while now and I thought it was something that you might have an interesting take on.

We have this mutual friend. Call him Jeff. A couple of years ago, Jeff dated this girl for about six months. They broke up, but they still liked each other afterward. No hard feelings or anything. They both moved on from there. A couple of months after they ended things, Jeff met his current girlfriend and they're very happy.

Dear Todd Parker,

I'm in love. I haven't been seeing this girl for very long, but everything about her seems perfect for me. She's smart and funny, plus she's super hot. She likes a lot of the same things that I like, and we always have a good time when we go out together. So yeah, like I said, she seems perfect. There's just one little problem.

It's her cats.

Dear Todd Parker,

What is it with the kids today?

I've been working in education for the past six years, primarily at the middle and high school levels. I got the job right out of college, so I'm still young enough that I occasionally get misidentified as a student in the high school hallways. I always thought that I'd be able to maintain some level of connection with the stuff the kids are into.

Dear Todd Parker,

I need to preface this by saying that I have no problem with kids. I like kids; sure, they can be a little irritating when they're running around and screaming and all that, but most of the children in my neighborhood are really nice, respectful kids. Besides, I understand that mischief is part of the package. Kids get up to stuff. I get it.

But there's such a thing as too far.

Dear Todd Parker,

A really good buddy of mine started dating this girl a couple of months ago. I'd seen her around and stuff, but I didn't really know her that well. It's not like we'd ever really hung out or anything like that. Anyway, my buddy took the plunge and asked her out. All of a sudden, they're dating and now I'm seeing her more and more in a social setting.

She's f---ing terrible.

Dear Todd Parker,

I'm going to be a senior in high school this year and I'm starting to look at colleges. I play a couple of sports and have a bunch of extracurricular activities and make the honor roll almost every quarter. Everyone tells me I'm going to have an easy time getting into whatever school I want to go to. I'm really lucky because my parents are pretty well-off financially. I'm not going to have to worry too much about going into debt to pay for school.

My problem is that I want to go to art school. I've been thinking about it for a long time and I finally decided this summer. When I told my parents, they freaked out. I got all these speeches about how majoring in art was useless and how I should study something that would help me get a job when I graduated. My dad even threatened to not help me pay for school, but I think my mom talked him down.

Dear Todd Parker,

I'm a guy who has just recently returned to the area after being away for a couple of years. I've spent the past few months reconnecting with some old friends and making a few new ones. I've got a solid social circle, a great job and a fairly well-rounded life. 

What I don't have is a girlfriend. Not only do I not have a girlfriend, I don't even have any real prospects. I have a real issue with finding a way to make that leap.