I Met My Guy Through A Friend But I Don’t Seem To Understand What He Is Up To!

This is from a NEB Reader:

I have been dating this guy for a year and 4 months now. He's 35 and I am 25. No doubt he’s caring and nice but the truth is, we've never met before. He was introduced to me by a friend. For the past 16 months things have been going smoothly. He planned coming home last Xmas but couldn't make it due to work issues. He wasn't given vacation permit. My family and his are aware of the relationship.What we are waiting for, is for him to come home.

To cut the long story short,my problem and fear are these: He has never used the word Love to me. He says he will use it whenever we see. Secondly,each time we have an issue, I am always the one calling his attention. What he does is to ignore me. No effort to know what the problem is and I try to resolve it. I see myself fighting to keep this relationship,no effort on his part. I don’t want to be that person. Presently,we are having issues and for two weeks he hasn’t called. I tried calling and texting but to no avail. I don’t know what to do. In as much as I appreciate him.I don’t wanna look desperate. I need your candid advice.
Thanks!

Everyone Thinks My Man Is Ugly Including My Mum & This Is Really Tearing Me Apart!

This is from a NEB reader:

I am currently in a relationship with a guy who is 11yrs older than I am. I am 20 and he is 31, the age is actually not the problem as my dad is 16yrs older than my mum.
My relationship is just perfect,we both love each other dearly, that is something we are both very sure of, he wants to get married to me any time soon, even though I objected to it at first because I am so much in love with my education, and don’t want to be a liability to any man. I am currently a 200l law student, but right now I am just so into him that I want the marriage even more than him, he is also willing to wait a few more years(say like 2yrs).
My problem actually is his looks, according to my friends, my aunt who knows him and my MUM. They all feel he is UGLY. My problem actually is my mum, I love her so much i don’t want to disappoint her. She is friends with him on Fb, we rarely talk about him, but on a particular day she mentioned that he was Ugly. I am really worried as this is a problem to me.To be sincere, most times, I also hate him for this reason, and always ponder how I even accepted him let alone fallen in love with him. I actually never said yes to him, I just fell in love with his personality.
Now my problem is how do I tell him that everyone thinks he is ugly? How do I tell him my mum,siblings, aunt who he so cherishes think he is ugly? How on earth will this sound to his ears? What do I do, should I just put all this behind me and go on with wanting 2 marry him? And face the fact that I will be mocked by friends and family? He has a great future, he is focused,responsible,determined, but if not for the saying that no one is perfect I would have said he is a “perfect gentle man”.

Please I need your advice.