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About a month and a half ago, I met a guy that I really like. We made out that night, and two days later I woke up with a sore throat. Turned out, it was strep. Since then, we've spent more and more time together. He's sweet, smart, good in bed, basically everything a girl could want. Except, as it turns out, he's a strep carrier. Which has meant that every time I finish my antibiotics, I get sick again, which has included a painful sore throat, falling asleep at work, and waking up over and over at night with dry mouth. They have him on antibiotics at the moment, but both his doctor and my ENT think that that is unlikely to do anything. My ENT thinks the only way for me to kick this cycle of strep throat is for us to avoid each other completely or for him to get his tonsils removed, which seems like a lot to ask. So do I break up with an awesome guy because he keeps making me sick? Do I try to get him to get the incredibly invasive surgery? Technically, he could infect other people he meets along the way, but it would really be for me, a girl he's known for less than two months. And how can I even do that without breaking the nice momentum we've had so far? What should I do?

A Strep Too Far

I've got about ten thousand letters in the old SL inbox from people freaking out about Donald Trump. I'm freaking out about Trump too, of course, right along with Angela Merkel and every other good and decent person on the planet. My weekly column—which goes live Tuesday night—is entirely devoted to freaking out about Trump. So I've decided not to answer any Trump-related questions this week in SLLOTD. We're all going to need some Trump-freakout-free zones if we want to get through the next four years with our sanities intact.

Okay, ASTF, I've certainly heard of people being strep carriers—and I've made out with at least one—but I've never met someone who was basically a walking, talking, tongue-kissing, responsibility-dodging strep virus. But this was my first reaction to reading about your new boyfriend and your health issues: You've been dating him for a month and a half... and it's been flu season the entire time. Are you sure you're getting strep from this guy? Do you take public transit? Work in an office? Go out in public? Inhale and exhale and touch things? Because the whole world is a disgusting petri dish right now and we want to be sure this is coming from your awesome new BF before pushing him to get majorish surgery.

But if you and this guy and your doctor and his doctor are positive this strep mess is coming from him, ASTF, he would be crazy not to get a tonsillectomy. And you would be crazy not to make surgery a condition if he wants to keep putting his tongue in your mouth. From some basic research, it seems that "if a patient has six to seven recurrent strep throat infections over a one to two year time span, then a tonsillectomy should be considered." If this dude is infecting people just as often, ASTF, then it would be in his own best interest (and everyone he talks/works/makes out with) for him to get a tonsillectomy now. Like right now. Before you-know-who can repeal you-know-what.

Okay, okay... one question from the huuuuge Trump pile:

How can white people prepare for Thanksgiving? I'll be sitting next to racist people whose feelings we can't afford to protect/coddle anymore. After a vicious, public argument with my dad that took years to heal, I've avoided all political conversations in order to preserve my relationship with him. My temperament is more "throw baked potatoes like grenades" than "father, kindly support your views with evidence so this sparkling dialogue mayest commence!" So?

White-Meat Vegetarian

White people with racist relatives could skip Thanksgiving this year. And every year that. But if you can't skip Thanksgiving for some reason...


...try subtly jerking off under your parents' dining room table* during Thanksgiving dinner. Who knows? Maybe you'll be able to forgive your dad after blowing three or four dozen loads. But even if you can find within yourself (or your sack) to forgive your dad, his racism shouldn't be tolerated—no one's racism should be—so you go right ahead and throw those baked potatoes anyway.

* Don't attempt this if your parents have a glass-topped dining room table, WMV, as you'll never be invited to Thanksgiving dinner ever again. On second thought: If your parents don't have a glass-topped dining room table, go get them one. Happy wanking.