評論
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Dear Annie:
親愛的安妮：
I live with my boyfriend, Mike, in a very small apartment. Last month, his mother and 14-year-old sister moved in. They had nowhere else to go.
我和我的男友邁克住在一個非常小的公寓里。上個月，他的母親和他14歲的妹妹搬了進去。她們無處可去。
His mom has no money and nothing to contribute except for some food stamps, which keep the pantries slightly stocked. When we buy food, we have to buy enough for four.
邁克的媽媽除了一些食品券之外一無所有。這些食品券把食品室都塞滿了。如今，我們買飯要買四個人的。
We have no idea when she will be able to move out. Our electric bill has doubled and we are paying a lot more for water. Mike and I are having trouble making ends meet, and I don't sense much effort on his mother's part to find work. She is only looking for a specific type of job.
我們不知道她什么時候搬走。我們的電費增加了一倍，水費也漲了很多。我和邁克入不敷出了。我感到他的母親并沒有努力尋找工作。她只是在尋找她想要的工作。
This is taking a toll on our relationship. How do we tell her to just take any job she can get and move out? － Squished
這令我們的關系緊張起來。你能告訴我們，怎樣讓她對工作不再挑揀然后搬出我們的公寓嗎？——“一個為生活所迫的人”
Dear Squished:
You can't tell her anything. Mike has to do it. Mike needs to give Mom a deadline for getting a job (perhaps three months), making it clear that if she cannot find one in her particular field by then, she must take whatever allows her to pay rent. She should not be freeloading. However, Mike may be unwilling to stick with such an ultimatum, so consider moving out until this resolves itself.
親愛的“為生活所迫的人”：
你不能對她說些什么，但邁克可以跟她說。邁克需要給他媽媽制定一個期限（比如3個月），在這期間她必須找到工作。和她說清楚，如果她最后無法找到她想要的工作，她就必須接受任何可支撐她房租的的工作。她不應依賴別人。但是，邁克可能不愿意對他的媽媽發出最后通牒，所以讓她搬出去這事還是順其自然吧。
