Holidays in hell: When to know to go separate ways

I AM PLANNING A TWO-WEEK HOLIDAY TO THE US WITH MY 29-YEAR-OLD SON. MY SON WANTS TO SEE HOLLYWOOD AND CASINOS AND I WANT TO VISIT FRIENDS IN ILLINOIS AND WASHINGTON DC. HOW SHOULD WE GO ABOUT THIS? S. PINTO, LALOR, VIC

Sounds to me like you should consider going your own separate ways.

What each of you seems to want from your US trip is so different from the other, why burden them with something they really don't want to do?

Couples make this mistake all the time.

One wants to see opera, galleries and museums, the other wants to sit in a cafe and watch the world go by, or hike through alpine meadows, yet for the sake of their relationship they compromise and neither ends up doing what they really want.

Admit you want different experiences, do your own thing and meet up at the end of the day and you'll hopefully have something wonderful to share.

It might well be that some places that would work for both of you.

Perhaps while your son is in pursuit of Hollywood you could visit the J. Paul Getty Museum, but this should be no guilt trip if your paths take you in separate directions.