I ask Eric: I don’t want any contact with my nephew, who is incarcerated for child abuse crimes

Dear Eric: I need help figuring out how I should have responded to a cashier who I felt went too far. I’m currently about 15 months postpartum with my second child and am lucky enough to still be able to breastfeed. Breastfeeding plays a role in how/when the menstrual cycle starts again. My husband and I are not aiming for a third child, so we use protective measures. However, my cycle is still not regular and I was worried that something had gone wrong since I was about eight days late. I stopped to pick up a pregnancy test to confirm the negative.

At the checkout the cashier congratulated me. I suppressed my initial “colorful” response; I was honest and told her that I hoped it was negative because at age 42 I wasn’t ready for my third c-section.

She then said that I should enjoy every life I create and every baby is a blessing. I just nodded, paid and left. While I don’t disagree, I would have been happy if it had been positive, but I was also a little nervous because it means we 100% need a bigger house in a place where housing construction is still stupidly high .

I really felt like she was pushy and nosy. What would have been the right response in this situation without being rude? – Not pregnant

Dear, not pregnant: This cashier certainly has a vivid imagination as she creates imaginary scenarios for your life and your family. There are many reasons why people buy pregnancy tests. One of the most common causes: you don’t know whether you are pregnant. So a warm “congratulations” shows a fundamental misunderstanding of how testing works.

You responded generously and probably avoided being enticed into further conversation about her inner world. Nosy is like Nosy. Another option would have been to say, “As I’m sure you know, it’s not appropriate to comment on customers’ personal purchases.” Let’s make some other small talk while I wait for the load to go through. Oh look, it’s done. Goodbye.” But here too I think you made the best choice.

Dear Eric: You gave a great answer to “Lonely Driver,” whose wife is busy on her phone as they drive together to visit their kids at college. Another option could be to listen to an audio book together. The library app “Libby” makes it easy to borrow audiobooks using your library card and download them to a phone or tablet. My family has enjoyed many road trips this way. – Street reader

Dear reader: A wonderful suggestion. I love, love, love books from Libby and Libro.fm for audiobooks. They’re a great way to pass the time on a road trip and make for interesting conversations. On my last road trip I listened to “Broken Places” by Tracy Clark, who edits this column. I loved it!

Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at [email protected] or PO Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and subscribe to his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.