Do you suffer from multiple check-up calls and agonizingly long voice mails? Is your inbox full of “we miss you” e-mails? Have you received several packages full of useful items?

If any of this even remotely resembles the interaction between you and your parents you may be experiencing the “Chinese finger trap syndrome,” the harder you pull , the tighter the little tube-shaped toy clings to your fingers.

The Chinese finger trap syndrome is a metaphor for the child-parent bond. The harder you try to pull away, the more they seem to want to hold on.

So here's a suggestion: Stop pulling and stop tugging, at least openly, and loosen up. Instead, try some less conspicuous forms of reaction.

•    Avoid any and all problems. They are what cause parents to become their nosiest.

•    Buy OU football season tickets. It provides an excuse for most Saturdays.

•    Leave a message on your voice mail saying that you can't answer your phone because you're studying. They'll feel bad about disrupting you.

•    Make friends with someone who has laryngitis. No voice, no talk.

•    Pretend to have suddenly become love-struck and insist that your parents read all of your disgustingly mushy poetry and lyrics. Sing your songs off key for particularly stubborn parents.

•    Never tell your parents what Facebook is or that you have one.

•    Trade phones with one of your bilingual friends. Your friend can tell your parents exactly where you are in a foreign language.

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