Oklahoma first for teen drivers’ course

With the passage of House Bill 2418, which took effect Nov. 1, Oklahoma became the first state in the nation to require a course for new teen drivers to teach them about safety in road construction zones and when around first responders.

Grandmother wants to repair relationship

DEAR HARRIETTE: My teenage granddaughter, who is a junior in high school, and I are going through a period of disagreement. It seems like we can’t see eye to eye on anything lately.We used to have a close and open relationship, but now it feels strained.

DO JUST ONE THING

• It’s believed something like 5 billion pounds of unwanted holiday gifts – sweaters, gift baskets, candy, decor and more – end up in landfills every year. That means a lot of “perfect” gifts ended up being wastes of resources and money.

TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1577, Sir Francis Drake left England on a three-year voyage around the world.In 1972, American astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt began the third and final lunar excursion of the Apollo 17 mission. They remain the most recent humans to set foot on the moon.

What if? That’s a question to now ask

There is a subterranean conversation going on in the United States that every one of the country’s 500 or so political insiders is conducting, but that none of the rest of the 332 million Americans has heard. For the time being, that conversation is meaningless.

COVID-19, flu vaccines at same time is safe

Hello, dear readers, and welcome to our monthly letters column. With chillier weather in much of the country, we’re getting a lot of questions about flu and COVID-19 prevention.

Student plans logistics of birthday party

DEAR HARRIETTE: My birthday just passed, and I am throwing a birthday party at my friend’s house. I used to invite everyone in my grade to my parties when I was younger, but my classes were also very small then. Now that I am in college, I cannot invite everybody.

Remembering pioneer, ‘a good judge’

Sandra Day O’Connor, who died last week at age 93, was both the first and the last. She was the first woman to sit on the Supreme Court, appointed by Ronald Reagan in 1981. She was the last justice to serve in elected office before joining the bench.

Genetic counselors component in genetic testing

Dear Doctors: After my best friend was diagnosed with breast cancer, she learned that she has a BRCA gene, and that it put her at risk of getting it. Now she's urging all of her girlfriends to get genetic testing.What is that, and how does it work? I'm actually afraid of learning something bad.

Reader ready to declutter living space

DEAR HARRIETTE: I'm eager to reorganize and declutter my living space. However, I have tried to do this in the past and have never been successful.