DEAR ABBY: A new employee, "Nicki," was recently hired at the company where I work. A group of us eat lunch together, and we have tried to make Nicki as welcome as possible by asking her to join our table.
Usually our conversation consists of talk about our families or a movie we saw recently, but Nicki always seems to interject a piece of information that is so private as to be inappropriate. Recently she confided that her husband had cheated on her, and that he had been arrested for theft.
Lunchtime has become less pleasant because this woman seems to have no boundaries. How can I politely let her know that giving too much information about her private life makes me (and other employees) uncomfortable? -- SQUIRMING IN COLUMBIA, S.C.
DEAR SQUIRMING: The woman has my sympathy. She is trying to bond with you folks in the only way she knows how. It would not be impolite to take her aside and quietly tell her that it isn't necessary to air her dirty laundry in order to make friends at the company. You will be doing her a favor. Please do it now.