DEAR HARRIETTE: As much as I try, I cannot seem to get my house clean. I have friends who tell me they think I am a hoarder. I'm not so sure about that. I do know that I have a hard time throwing things away, so I end up having piles of stuff that I can't seem to find a home for. I am tired of being embarrassed by my house. I want to be able to invite people over, but I can never seem to get it together. I don't have a whole lot of money to hire a housekeeper, but even when I have tried that in the past, it didn't really work. There was too much stuff, and each person I hired quit. What can I do? -- Hoarder No More, Boston

DEAR HOARDER NO MORE: You have taken the first step by acknowledging that you have a problem. This is a huge step, by the way. People who hoard have tremendous difficulty letting go of their belongings and differentiating between what is worth keeping and what no longer serves them. So, you do need help, but it's help of a particular kind.

There are professional services that help people who hoard to clear out their spaces. I highly recommend that you reach out to one of them. One national organization that has webinars to support people who hoard as well as services to help you clear out your space before it overtakes you can be found at hoardingcleanup.com/help_for_hoarders.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I talked to a neighbor the other day, and he had the weirdest logic that he wanted me to co-sign, but I just could not. He is way behind in his rent, so much so that the landlord is threatening to throw him out. I felt so bad for him until he explained that when he does get a little money, he uses it first to pay for his cable bill. Since he is out of work, he stays at home most of the time and says that he cannot bear to be without his TV, so he always pays for cable first. Doesn't that sound crazy? He asked my wife and me if we would lend him some money to pay his rent so that he doesn't get thrown out. We were seriously considering it until we learned how he is spending his money. How can we help him? It seems like he needs more help than a one-time handout. -- Perplexed, Bronx, N.Y.

DEAR PERPLEXED: Your friend has his priorities all wrong. Can you help to open his eyes? That's a great question. You can tell him how you think his situation will play out if he doesn't change his ways, namely that he will have no home and therefore no cable with no ability to watch TV or even have a bed on which to lay his head. Point out that what he must focus on accomplishing is finding a way to be able to pay his back rent and find income to be able to pay moving forward. Tell him that you think his priority should be to secure his home. Then step away. He has to come to terms with his reality. Do not pay his rent. He needs to walk this path and discover what lies at the end.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I get so frustrated when I am going to events like conferences, where you get a name card. People misspell my name on place cards or nametags all the time. My name is not that unusual, but you do have to pay attention to the spelling. Because I know it's possible for my name to be misspelled, I take the time to ask the organizer either directly or in writing to please spell my name properly. Nine times out of 10, it doesn't happen. People with really unusual names that are from other countries or just highly unusual often get their names spelled right. I wish this didn't bother me, but it does. It's my identity, and I want it to be documented accurately. What can I do in this situation? -- Misspelled, Detroit

DEAR MISSPELLED: I have this same challenge, because my name is spelled unusually. Even as an author and a person with a public presence, I often find that my name is misspelled on nametags and such. What I do is similar to you. I do write it out plainly beforehand, sometimes pointing out in writing that my name has an unusual spelling. When I arrive, if I notice that the spelling is inaccurate, I point it out and ask for the tag to be reprinted.

As you likely know, this could mean that your nametag becomes handwritten because the computer and printer that generated the tag are not on site. In the end, you are not likely to win 100 percent of the time, but your friendly vigilance should help reduce the number of times that your name improperly represents you. You might also make up a nametag for yourself that states your name accurately and choose to wear that when the one provided is incorrect!

DEAR HARRIETTE: My husband and I are in pretty dire financial straits, and we haven't figured out a way out. The other day, he suggested that we participate in what looked to me like a scheme. It was something he saw on the Internet that promises you can make hundreds to thousands more per month through data entry. We had to take a long aptitude test to try out for it, and in the end, we got a bad score. I read up on the company, and while it isn't a hoax, it doesn't look like people make much money from it. I told my husband, and now he thinks I'm not supporting him in trying to make more money. I just don't think this is a smart idea. How can I get him to consider other options without insulting him? -- Needing Cash Now, Jackson, Miss.

DEAR NEEDING CASH NOW: You can show your husband the research you did, especially if it points out that the earning power of the company he selected appears to be limited. You might also suggest that the two of you make a budget that itemizes every expense and every dollar of income you have. Review your financial requirements. Figure out where you can shave off expenses. Then talk about options for earning more money. Review your skills and the needs in the job market to see what you may be able to do to bring some extra cash home.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I ran into a college friend recently, and we exchanged information. A few weeks later, I got the strangest email from her, asking me to wire her money because she was stranded in another country and couldn't get out. I know that there are scams like this, but I was concerned because I did just run into this woman and it seemed odd to get an email from her out of the blue when I had never received one from her before. I wrote back to her, and she responded that she was glad I had written to her because she was in dire straits. I thought I should send her the money. I told my husband, and he told me I was an idiot to do that -- it had to be a scam. I didn't want to defy my husband, so I didn't do any more.

I feel horrible because she is a nice woman, and I'm afraid she might really be in need. When I attempted to call her, I didn't get through to her. Do you think I did the right thing? -- Friend in Need, Racine, Wis.

DEAR FRIEND IN NEED: It is most likely that the email you received was a scam. Typically, the way it works is that someone hacks into a person's email or social media account and takes over. Had you sent money, it would not likely have reached your friend because she no longer has control over that account.

It is odd that she didn't answer her phone, but there's no telling why. Since you two are not close friends and have not been in communication for a long time, it all seems a bit fishy. You were right to not send money. If she shows up again, either by phone or in person, you can ask her about this situation. Otherwise, stand down. There's something off about this that places her either as the potential victim or as a participant.

DEAR HARRIETTE: My husband and I get in huge fights about what we are going to watch on TV. We do not share programming tastes at all. We have two TVs in the house, but what happens is we end up never in the same room because he's holed up in one room watching his shows, and I'm in the other. I have tried to get us to be in the same room, offering to watch his show sometimes and suggesting that we take turns. He wants nothing to do with that. I don't think that's fair. We need to spend more time together, though. Help! -- Stubborn Screens, Chicago

DEAR STUBBORN SCREENS: Why not make times when both TVs are off? Choose to wean yourselves off of constant TV so that you can spend time together, enjoying each other's company. It may be hard to resist turning the box on at first, but it is worth it.