DR. WALLACE: I'm 14 and live alone with my mom. My parents divorced when I was 10 so Mom and I have been alone for quite some time. Mom is wonderful, but she does have one huge fault. She never believes me when I tell her I'm sick.

No matter how miserable I feel with an upset stomach, a splitting headache or a sore throat, she insists that I go to school. Last year I had a perfect attendance even though I went to school a half dozen times feeling miserable. I don't know why she has this thing about my missing a day of school. It's not like the school is going to give me an award for missing the fewest number of days.

What can I do to make her realize that when I say I'm sick, I'm really sick? I'm a good student and a model citizen, so I don't need this kind of treatment from a parent. Help! — Nameless, Oklahoma City, Okla.

NAMELESS: Some students use the "I'm not feeling so good" routine as an excuse to miss school. But a wise parent can usually tell when the "illness" is the real thing. Good students who are also model citizens enjoy school and rarely want to be absent. You fit in this category. It's also important for parents not to insist that their children attend school when they are ill. In crowded classrooms, contagious illness can spread rapidly. Make sure mother reads my response to your request for help!

YOU WERE BEING A GENTLEMAN

DR. WALLACE: The girl I was dating had an 11:45 p.m. weekend curfew. Last Saturday she arrived home at midnight because she wanted something to eat after the movie. If we had gone to her house without a pit stop for food, we would have been to her house with time to spare.

When I walked her to the door, her father came out and blasted me verbally for bringing his daughter home after her curfew. He wouldn't allow me to explain and told me I couldn't take his daughter out again. This really surprised me. I asked the girl to tell her father it was her fault, not mine, but she didn't say a word.

I realize I won't be dating this girl again, but still, I'd like you to give me your thoughts on all of this. I think my date was more to blame than I was. Do you agree? I'm hoping you will because I want the two of them to see your response. If you agree with her father, I'll take full blame and stop feeling that I've been ripped off. — Ted, Albany, New York.

TED: Your date's dad seriously overreacted to a minor infraction. If you had been an hour late, I could more easily understand his anger and unwillingness to listen to you, but 15 minutes is not a serious crime.

But Dad's temper was on a too short fuse. The fact that his daughter was unwilling to speak up on your behalf suggests she was afraid of him, which hardly seems healthy. Clearly she should have explained what happened. It is called communication. Your mistake was being a gentleman for supplying food to a hungry young lady.

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. E-mail 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.