DR. WALLACE: I'm 18 years old and live at home with my parents. They are encouraging me to get a passport, but I don't see the need for one and it's pretty expensive! I talked to one of my relatives who got one recently and it ends up costing about $200 when you take into account a processing fee for first-time applicants. Plus, paying for special passport photographs.

Besides, the summer is already over, and our family has no plans to travel out of the country, as we completed our vacation to Texas over three weeks ago. My parents are telling me that it's always best to get something when you're not in a hurry to get it, and they highly recommend that I do this. I have a part-time job, but I'm certainly not looking forward to spending $200 to toss a passport into my dresser drawer. Do you think it's worth it? — Don't Need a Passport, via email

DON'T NEED A PASSPORT: I actually think your parents are giving you a solid recommendation here. You never know in life when something could come up, and even though you don't see any need for today, a first-time passport is actually valid for 10 full years!

Typical passport processing takes approximately six weeks, so getting started on that process now would be ideal for you, since you wouldn't need to pay any expedited fees to have it created sooner.

I also found it interesting that your parents recommended that you get this passport, as it may be possible that they are planning a family trip outside of the country at some point in the future and for now it's planned as a surprise. Paying for a passport now and obtaining it right away would amount to only about a $20 expense per year when you amortize it over the full 10 years. Yes, you'll be paying the entire $200 up front, but you'll get 10 years of value. Finally, having a passport gives you a great extra form of identification that has many positive uses for you beyond just international travel. Not only do I think this is a good idea specifically for you, but since your parents brought it up and suggested it, there may be a reason for it that you don't yet know about. I also recommend the same advice to all young readers, especially those who are 18 and older who have never applied for a passport before.

HE MUMBLES "UH HUH" THEN SOMETIMES BLAMES ME LATER!

DR. WALLACE: I'm 20 years old and live with my 22-year-old boyfriend who has a good full-time job. I'm currently a college student and I have a few more years to finish my education before I enter the workforce in my chosen field. My boyfriend is a great guy most of the time, but he has a really annoying habit that is increasingly driving me crazy. This occurs when I'll make a suggestion or recommendation to him while he's either reading something on his phone or watching a sports event on television. He'll listen with only one ear towards me at best, because he's paying attention to other things simultaneously.

I'll make a recommendation of something we should do, purchase or plan, and his usual reply is always the same. He simply says, "Uh huh" without looking up. When whatever I suggested eventually comes to fruition, if it works out fine, he never says anything, and certainly never thanks me for doing the planning and organizing in advance.

But if we make a purchase that turns out not to be good, or we plan an event that doesn't work out well, or enter into some kind of decision that we end up regretting, he'll whine and complain to me, asking me why I made such a poor decision! When I tell him that he agreed with the decision at the time it was made, he'll deny it explicitly.

What can I do about this? It's beyond unfair and puts me in a "tie-lose" situation at best. — He Denies Being Part of the Decision, via email

HE DENIES BEING PART OF THE DECISION: I can understand why you're not happy, as he is completely avoiding accountability and heaping it all on your shoulders for better or worse. It appears to me that he is intentionally not participating in the decision-making process at the time it occurs. So to start with, be sure to bring up subjects like this at times when you can get his direct attention, not two words muttered under his breath while he's doing something else.

Walk him briefly through the pros and cons of the decision as you see it and ask him questions that will secure his input. Don't plan to have a long, drawn-out discussion about these items, but be prepared to state your case either way, and then ask him a couple of good questions related to the decision and see how he reacts.

In the future, be sure to secure his accountability in advance of entering into a formal decision. Not only will this make you feel better since he won't be able to exclusively blame you, but if the two of you have open and interactive discussions about these topics, theoretically you'll come up with even better decisions via two good sets of input rather than one person deciding while the other one abdicates responsibility entirely.

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 [email protected]. 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.

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