DR. WALLACE: I am a freshly minted adult at 18, and I'm living with my parents. I'm attending a local college this fall that's half an hour away, so that commute will be manageable.

I was invited to a summer college event by one of the fraternities and have made plans to go on this trip in July.

However, my parents did some research and found out that last summer's event turned into a large raucous fracas that involved underage drinking and a lot of police activity.

They've now told me that they won't allow me to attend this event. I've never gotten in trouble with alcohol before, and I've been a good student in high school. I feel that as an adult, I should be able to make my own call on this. Don't you agree that someone with no history of alcohol and who is an adult should be able to make her own decisions? — Parents Are Crimping My Social Life, via email

PARENTS ARE CRIMPING MY SOCIAL LIFE: The key factor here is that you live under your parents' roof. 18 years old or not, legal adult or not, if you're living under their roof, they can make the rules. Your letter did not mention who is paying for your college tuition and books, so if they are, this also might be factoring into their decision.

Your alternative, of course, is to move out on your own, be fully self-sufficient and make all of your own decisions as a legal adult.

MY PHOBIA CRIMPS MY BUSINESS LIFE

DR. WALLACE: I'm a college student doing a summer internship. It's a great job opportunity and I'm learning a lot, but there is an unfortunate part of it that bothers me deep down.

Because I work with many different people at this company, and I'm always changing job functions and supporting roles, I meet roughly four to 10 new people every single day.

Inevitably, they always reach out to shake my hand when they're introducing themselves. I'm a bit of a germaphobe, especially after COVID-19, and this makes me mentally cringe whenever I have to meet someone new in a business context. Is there anything I can do about this? It seems that the world has gone back to shaking hands rather than bumping fists or elbows. — Not Happy Shaking Hands, via email

NOT HAPPY SHAKING HANDS: If you're going to be in business, you're going to experience this going forward from time to time.

My advice is to carry around antiseptic wipes in individual size packages in your pocket so that once you're alone, you can wash your hands off.

Hopefully, knowing that you can do this shortly after a new introduction will allow you to relax and focus on meeting the person, learning their name and being able to smile and interact in a polite, professional way. These skills are imperative to most business careers.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Cytonn Photography at Unsplash