DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: My best friend is a good person and has a lot going for her. But she also likes to party hard on the weekends and more than once has ended up in trouble. Not long ago she was so over-the-top drunk that she got us bounced from a club we had been going to for a long time. She gets loud and sometimes mean and now some friends refuse to meet up with us when they know she is going to be there.

I don’t think she is an alcoholic or anything like that, but I think she is headed for bigger trouble if she doesn’t lay off the drinking. How do I say something to her? --- WORRIED ABOUT MY FRIEND

DEAR WORRIED: You’re right to be worried about your friend. She may not be an alcoholic, but she could very well be a “problem drinker.” The line between social and problem drinking is crossed when alcohol consumption begins to have adverse effects on the drinker’s life. Many outgrow the party drinking after getting good and scared by something they did or almost did.

It sounds like it’s time you and maybe a few more friends had an honest conversation with your BFF when she’s completely sober to let her know what you and others are seeing. Expect pushback, but don’t give up. It could take several attempts on your part, or an eye-opening realization on hers that she is not in control of herself when she’s drunk. In the meantime, you may need to continue playing guardian angel to make sure she doesn’t do anything really bad that can’t be undone.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: I share a house with a friend from my hometown. After we finished college, we both got jobs in a city about 60 miles from where we grew up. He has been seeing a girl since high school and he tells me all the time how great she is and that he loves her, but that he is not ready to settle down with her, or anyone. In the past couple months he has been talking to two other girls in the area. His girlfriend doesn’t know he is cheating on her and it makes me feel bad knowing what is going on when she isn’t around. Do I tell her about the other girls? --- KNOWS TOO MUCH

DEAR KNOWS: It’s rarely a good idea to spill someone else’s secrets, especially if you’re not sure about the parameters your roommate and his hometown girl have in place.

If, however, you know that the extracurricular activity is only on his side, you should encourage him to fess up to his long-time girlfriend that he’s not ready to be as serious as she is. Then it becomes her informed decision to stay with him or not.

DEAR SOMEONE ELSE’S MOM: There is a guy in my office who loves to gossip. Most of what he spreads around is either trash or already common knowledge, but sometimes he puts stuff out there that’s way out there, but that could also maybe be for real.

He told me last week that my boss is hot for me and ever since then I am uncomfortable when I am around my boss. I don’t know where this guy got his information from, but he makes it seem like it was a solid source. Should I believe him? --- CAN’T WORK LIKE THIS

DEAR CAN’T: If you’re going to listen to office gossip, keep your ears open for any indication that your boss has a track record of hitting on staffers. Players tend to live up to their reputations. It should also be pretty obvious if he’s exhibiting any behavior that smacks of interest in you other than as a subordinate. If he does, then that becomes a deeper concern and a matter to take up with HR.

If not, I wouldn’t worry about what your gossiping coworker says. Take it for what it hopefully is, which is bad enough – a misguided attempt to be entertaining, even at the expense of others.