DEAR Jasminda, We have a few family members who work from home and our mannerisms and work styles are getting on each other’s nerves. How do we improve our work-from-home balance? Megan P. Dear Megan, Research by Roy Morgan (2025) stated that more than 6.7 million Australians work from home at least some of the […]

DEAR Jasminda, Real tree or fake? Kids are nagging me for a real one, but I have a tree on the mezzanine that I can just drag down and decorate. Katherine E. Dear Katherine, I don’t want to alarm you, but do you realise we are heading towards the pointy end of Christmas? With just […]

DEAR Jasminda, MY husband’s Netflix viewing history shows an abnormal amount of True Crime shows, serial killer series, and murder mysteries. Should I be worried? Petra L. Dear Petra, For some strange reason, many people like having the living daylights scared out of them for relaxation. I’m not one of them, and it sounds as […]

DEAR Jasminda, FOR five years, I have been minding a friend’s dog (Minty) while they go on holidays. This is usually no problem; the dog and I get on very well. This time, though, I was left with instructions that Minty (who is 15) now eats breakfast at 4.30am and dinner at 3.00pm every day, […]

  DEAR Jasminda, I’m thinking of getting an ice bath for stress relief. Do you have any views on this? Gavin H. Oh, Gavin, Sometimes I read a conundrum and my first thought is, yes, I have views on this, but do you really want to know them? I have no qualifications in ice-bath therapy, […]

DEAR Jasminda, LAST night (when I was sound asleep) my husband woke me about the mosquitoes in the room. He then searched (unsuccessfully) for the flyspray before trying other tactics. By the time he’d killed them, I was wide awake and stayed that way. What do I do to avoid this in the future, Katie […]

DEAR Jasminda, I’VE started going to a gym and there’s a man there that leaves various personal items on the equipment I want to use. His drink bottle is on one, his towel is on another and then he leaves his backpack on a third machine. What is the gym etiquette around this? I only […]

DEAR Jasminda, Every time I look at the news there is a new tragedy unfolding or a new source of conflict. It’s actually getting to me. I feel that I’m in a constant state of worry wondering what will happen next. Do you have any ideas on how I can address this? Leonie B. Dear […]

DEAR Jasminda, My new girlfriend chats incessantly as soon as she wakes. I prefer to ease into the day. How can I get our morning routines in sync? Karl B. Dear Karl, I’m with you on this one. My husband’s mouth seems to wake up before the rest of him. From the moment his eyelids […]

Dear Jasminda, “On the weekend, my partner and I went to a Murder Mystery Lunch. We have since decided that we would actually prefer to remain in character. Is it okay to do this indefinitely? Cardinal Matteo Rossi. Dear Cardinal, I’m assuming that is your Murder Mystery name and not your current moniker and occupation. […]