Mystery of the missing wedding gift

DEAR ABBY: My daughter was married recently and has been sending out her thank-you notes. When she checked her registry to determine if all her gifts had been accounted for, she saw that her stepbrother and his wife purchased a gift, but it was not mailed by the department store.

We're assuming that it was brought to the wedding, but it's nowhere to be found. She plans to contact the wedding venue, but it has been three weeks. We are also going to check with the friends who packed up the cars. Any other ideas?

- Steve in Florida

DEAR STEVE: Because your daughter knows a gift was purchased by her stepbrother and his wife, she should ask them how it was to be delivered because it might have been lost en route.

I doubt that the stepbrother and his wife, having gone to the expense of buying something, would have forgotten to give it to your daughter. I also doubt the couple who packed up the gifts would have overlooked one. As to the venue where the wedding was held, one would think that if a package had been left behind they would contact the family that rented the place, if only to protect their reputation.

DEAR ABBY: We recently moved to another neighborhood. Our closest neighbors are a very nice couple in their 70s.

I am a keen do-it-yourself enthusiast. When I get home from work, at 2 p.m., I love to go into my workshop and work on one of the many projects I always have going. I'll do this for a couple of hours until my wife and kids get home. I admit, it probably gets a bit noisy, and I usually leave the door open to let some air in.

My neighbor approached me today and told me his wife usually naps from 2 to 4 every afternoon, and the noise I make is disturbing her. Until he told me that, I had no idea their downstairs bedroom is only a few feet from our communal fence.

Would it be rude to suggest she find another time to nap, or maybe sleep in another room? I can't imagine having to sit around every afternoon waiting for her to finish her nap, especially since she has most of the day to nap while I'm at work. This doesn't seem fair to me.

- D.I.Y. Guy

DEAR D.I.Y. GUY: I'm pretty sure your neighbor's wife takes her naps at the time of day when she needs one. However, your idea of suggesting she try sleeping in another part of the house so she won't be disturbed is a good one.

Or you might agree to a compromise so she starts her midday rest period a little earlier, and you start your projects a little later. That way you would both get what you need.