Frenemies on Shine

Friend or Foe: Should I stop bankrolling my buddy’s bad choices?

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Dear Friend or Foe, A few years ago, I became friends with a girl—“Faye”—who moved to my city from a farming village to attend college and get some modeling assignments on the side. After her parents lost their income and couldn't provide for her as they did before, she was very distraught. Even so, she continued to live way beyond her means. Whenever her parents sent her a bit of cash they’d succeeded in putting aside, she'd blow it on cheap outfits or cocktails she couldn’t even name. Consequently, she'd be late on her rent and her power would get cut off. Sometimes, she couldn't afford to buy food!

Spot a Frenemy

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By Amanda Ford The portmanteau "frenemy" encapsulates the complexity of modern life - we may want to think all relationships are easily categorized, but sometimes we have trouble discerning a friend from an enemy. Popularized by the 2004 teen flick "Mean Girls," the…

Friend or Foe: My bridesmaid hates big weddings

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Dear Friend or Foe, I just turned 37, and I’m getting married in two months. Most of my closest friends have been married for a while now and have at least two children. I'm pretty sure everyone is thrilled for us, since they’ve been waiting for this day FOREVER. Everyone except for my “best friend” Carin. She’s being kind of awful about the whole wedding part. I’m not one of those bridal people who has been looking forward to this day since I was 5. It’s my husband-to-be who really wanted a big wedding. So that’s what we’re doing: three days, destination wedding, the whole shebang. And Carin is, of course, one of my bridesmaids. But as the day gets closer, I’m feeling less and less like she belongs in the bridal party. Recently, she asked, “When is the latest possible time I can arrive at your wedding? Also, just so you know, I’ll be leaving at the crack of dawn the next day.”

Powder Room Talk: 10 Ways To Be Ahead Of the Frenemies

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Ladies, you have to be 2 steps ahead of these pitiful women who turn into your frenemies at any given moment. If you keep yourself in check you can avoid those so called…

Powder Room Talk: 9 Ways To Spot Your Future Frenemy

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Just like that Mr. Right NOW you can spot and know anything with him will lead into a bad relationship in the making, you can also spot that "girlfriend" who will be your future frenemy. Check these signs out and if you have a few others please share them with us over at

9 signs your friend is toxic

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Susan Shapiro Barash, author of Toxic Friends: The Antidote for Women Stuck in Complicated Friendships, on how to tell when your friendship is unhealthy … and how to disengage.

The colloquial term "frenemy" was coined to describe a complicated relationship wherein a person causes a friend such pain and anguish that there is a blur between this person being your "friend" or "enemy." Why is it so hard to tell the difference between the two opposite words that society had to create a fuzzy word to describe a shade of gray? For one, our parents didn’t raise us with built-in "bad friend sensors" because our girlfriends are different to us than they were to our mothers or grandmothers, explains Susan Shapiro Barash, a nationally regarded gender expert and author of Toxic Friends: The Antidote for Women Stuck in Complicated Friendships , an upcoming tome on dealing with female relationships.

See, See My Frenemy, Come Out and Hate on Me

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See, see my frenemy, Come out and hate on me, And bring your insults three Pretend to compliment me Then quietly call me a " w----" As I walk out the door, And we'll be jolly frenemies forever more... In middle school or high school, it seems pretty normal to have a few enemies. And in…

Momversation: Toxic Friendships

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On Monday, she's your best friend; by Tuesday, she won't return your calls. She's your frenemy... you know, your friend-slash-enemy. But do you really need her in your life? Dana Loesch of Mamalogues asks our panelists, including guest Karen Walrond of chookooloonks.com, "How do you handle a toxic friend?"

Have you had a frenemy? Do you currently? Do you think people should cut toxic friends out of their lives or try to repair the relationships? Join the Momversation by commenting in the forums below: