DEAR NATALIE: A neighbor whom I have known as a "seldom seen friend" for many years recently asked if she could spend some time at my house while her home was being shown by a Realtor. I agreed, but surprisingly she showed up with a large new (untrained) dog that was out of control in my house. The dog spilled water and food, jumped on cabinets and furniture. After an hour, it looked as if the dog needed to be relieved. So I suggested that we take the dog outside for a walk and subsequently suggested that we keep her tied up outside. It was another five hours before the Realtor was gone. When we went back outside, the dog had chewed through my brand new hose/handle to render it unusable. My neighbor was well aware that this had happened but didn't offer to replace it. Is this my fault for suggesting that the dog be kept outside or her fault for bringing the dog in the first place? -- BAD DOG

DEAR BAD DOG: Your neighbor is rude. She invited herself over, then she brings an untrained dog into the home, then the dog causes damage and she doesn't offer to replace what damage her animal did. You did nothing wrong, other than try and be a good neighbor (and we all know that no good deed goes unpunished). She originally should have told you that the dog was coming with her, and she should have offered to tie her dog up outside in your yard. Once having the dog secured outside, she should have cleared the area of anything that the dog could have gnawed on to minimize the chances of the dog finding inappropriate chew toys. In fact, she should have brought a bowl for water for the dog along with a treat or two, as well. This isn't the dog's fault. This is the inconsiderate owner's fault. At least you know in this situation how differently you would have acted and be glad you were raised well. In fact, call your mom right now and thank her. As my acupuncturist always says (and, yes, I have an acupuncturist), "As hard as it is to be with them, just be glad you aren't them." 

Please send your relationship and lifestyle questions to nbencivenga@post-gazette.com or tweet them to @NBSeen. You can also send postal letters to Natalie Bencivenga, 358 North Shore Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15212

(This column was originally published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.)

Natalie's Networking Tip of the Week: Get out of your comfort zone. Attend a social function out of your normal circle of influence. You may be surprised how much you actually have in common with those who come from different backgrounds. 

DEAR NATALIE: My sister-in-law is throwing a New Year’s Eve party and decided that I am not invited. She is literally inviting my whole family except me and my children. She claimed the reason is because it is an “adults only” party. My children are 16 and 18, so they aren’t exactly babies. I really think the reason is because my brother, her husband, and I got into a fight at Thanksgiving. He hasn’t spoken to me since. It was over something trivial and I have let it go. He, clearly, has not. I want my family to be back together and start 2019 off right. What should I do? --FIX IT PLEASE

DEAR FIX IT PLEASE: It sounds as though your brother is trying to have his wife do his dirty work for him. He is driving a wedge between the two of you because he is clearly nervous to talk to you directly. I would end this nonsense by calling him and squashing whatever caused the fight in the first place. Just start by saying something like, “I know we said some harsh things to each other at Thanksgiving. I don’t want to continue down this road with you. I’m sorry for what I said and for hurting you. I want to be together during the holidays and my kids want to see their aunt and uncle. Let’s try to find a way forward here.” If he isn’t ready to apologize, don’t bristle. Some people take time to absorb apologies and recognize their role in the fight. The important thing to do is to mend the fence enough to survive the holiday season. You can always work towards building a better relationship in the new year, but baby steps are still steps in the right direction.

DEAR NATALIE: I have a little office inside the school that I work at because I do a lot of one-on-one learning with my students who have special needs. Yesterday, the guidance counselor used my office to give a student a test. When I got back in this morning, there were a bunch of wrappers for candy and treats that I give to my students in the garbage can. It looked like 15 or more candies had been eaten. Either the counselor ate them while the student took the test or she was giving them to kids. They were in a bin that had all of my personal items in it, so it was clear that they belonged to me. She didn’t say anything to me about it and I don’t want this to become a regular thing. What should I do? --NOT SO SWEET

DEAR NOT SO SWEET:This would really annoy me if I walked into my office and saw that someone took things without asking. Maybe she noticed the candy and started mindlessly eating it while she was waiting for her student to finish the exam. When she realized how many she consumed, perhaps she just became embarrassed and hoped you wouldn’t notice. Or maybe she just didn’t care. Let’s hope it is the first theory. Regardless, the next time she wants to use your office, you may want to lock up items in a drawer or a bin that you don’t want anyone to touch. You could also confront her, nicely, about this situation, but it may just make things tense between the two of you. I suggest trying the “hide the candy in the drawer” option first. If she continues to take things from you, there won’t be any choice but to address it directly. It’s important that we establish boundaries and a healthy level of respect for space and property when working with many types of people. Better that than throwing candy at her head.

Natalie's Networking Tip of the Week: Meeting someone for the first time? Arrive ten minutes early, not late. Showing someone that you respect their time by being on time is a great way to start the relationship off on the right foot.

Please send your questions to Natalie Bencivenga to her email, nbencivenga@post-gazette.com; or through postal mail to Natalie Bencivenga, 358 North Shore Dr., Pittsburgh, PA 15212. Follow her on Twitter at @NBSeen and on Instagram @NatalieBenci

(This column was originally published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.)

DEAR NATALIE: I have been married to a fairly wealthy man for 30 years, and, in addition to our children, he has several grown kids from a previous marriage who all grew up with the best of everything and all have lucrative lifestyles/careers. My husband has kindly set up a family limited partnership that distributes cash annually to his children based on the highest tax consequences. Over the past decade, he has distributed more than half a million dollars to each grown child. My husband is not obligated to make these distributions but has done so in line with the regulations governing FLPs through his lawyer. Unfortunately, the kids see this as their money anyway, and there is only one who ever expresses any appreciation and who ever sends my husband a holiday gift. (None of the grown kids sends gifts or cards, including for their father's birthday.) 

When the value of the FLP and tax issues reduced the distribution to each child this past year, the grown daughter found this to be highly unacceptable. She immediately told her father that she expected double. Subsequently, her partner started emailing my husband requesting an additional $20,000 distribution -- one email was very nasty. If the daughter wants more money, she could get a job but has refused to work. When my husband read the nasty email his face turned white as a ghost. After I read it, I was dumbfounded and disappointed that our son-in-law and grown daughter would be so cruel to him. 

His kids will all be very wealthy when he passes away, but he would like to see them all be contributors to their own wealth now. With each passing year of the lack of appreciation and the entitlement is embarrassing. What do you think he should do? -- SAD AND MAD

DEAR SAD AND MAD: Wow, sounds as though your grown stepchildren are complete brats. In my imagination, I would think that It would be a real challenge to ground children when they grow up wealthy. The idea of not sending a birthday card or holiday present to a man who has supported you financially your whole life is next level narcissistic. Unfortunately, because this seems to be a nasty pattern that he helped create over the years (unintentionally, of course ... in fact, it seems as though he had very good intentions by helping them), there is no easy way to undo it. But, if these were my bratty kids, I would cut them off - at least for a year - just so they can have a sense of what it feels like to not have him in their lives. 

Regardless of what their relationships were like growing up, this man has supported them throughout and will long after he's gone. Show some decency, show some respect, pick up the phone and call him once in a while. It's not too much to ask. 

Please send your relationship and lifestyle questions to nbencivenga@post-gazette.com or tweet them to @NBSeen. You can also send postal letters to Natalie Bencivenga, 358 North Shore Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15212

Natalie's Networking Tip of the Week: Hang out by the bar. This doesn't mean you have to be drinking, but positioning yourself where people will naturally be heading first is a great way to catch them when they are still "fresh" and interested in networking. 

(This column was originally published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.)