DEAR ABBY: A longtime friend and I have always exchanged birthday cards. For years, we would try to "one-up" each other with funny cards or sometimes sweet ones. I have always spent a lot of time in card stores choosing just the right one for her.
For the last four or five years, my friend has sent me the SAME card, one which obviously is taken from a box of cards. They are so old that the paper has yellowed and the message is generic and impersonal.
It's obvious that she does not care enough to give my birthday any thought and, frankly, it's tacky. It aggravates me so much that I'd rather not receive a card from her. I rarely see or talk to her anymore. Am I being petty to let this bother me as much as it does? -- PRETTY MAD IN KENTUCKY
DEAR PRETTY MAD: Before making more negative judgments about your old friend, make an effort to find out why her pattern of behavior changed so radically over the last four or five years. Is she having financial or health problems? That she remembers your birthday -- regardless of how humbly -- should count in her favor. The two of you are long overdue for an honest conversation to catch up with each other.