8B — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
College graduate seeks ways
to boost English vocabulary
DEAR ABBY: I am a 26-year-old col-
lege graduate. I immigrated here in 2001,
so English is my second language. I have
no accent, and I have been doing well
in my life overall, except I
score low on reading and
written communication
when I take exams.
I’m intelligent and a
quick learner, but my vocab-
ulary is kind of limited, and
it makes me feel stupid, especially when
I don’t score well on exams. I try to read,
but I don’t always have the time. Do you
have ideas on how I can improve my
vocabulary or do better on exams?
— SMART BUT FEELS STUPID
DEAR SMART: I know someone who,
like you, immigrated to the United States
in her early 20s after having spent her
fi rst 17 years in Russia. From there she
went to Italy, where she learned to speak
Italian. From there she came to the U.S.
When I asked her how she learned
English, she told me it was by watching
American television. If there was a word
she didn’t understand, she would look it
up in a dictionary. Not only can this be
fun, I have heard others say that’s the way
they learned English, too.
She also read books in English with a
dictionary by her side. Audiobooks could
be helpful, too. An adult education class
might help you not only improve your
vocabulary, but also help you sharpen
your written English skills. Please con-
sider it.
DEAR ABBY: My 11-year-old niece
sometimes calls my 7-year-old son
fat, which hurts him to the core. He’s
very close with his cousins, and we get
together a lot. I have talked to my sister
on numerous occasions about it.
My son knows it’s not OK to make fun
of how others look, and he doesn’t under-
stand why she says these mean things to
him. She’s old enough to know better.
I don’t know how to get through to my
sister that this behavior should be repri-
manded when she doesn’t seem to care.
— FED UP IN WISCONSIN
DEAR FED UP: Your sister’s par-
enting skills appear to be questionable.
Because she refuses to teach her daughter
consideration for the feelings of others,
or reprimand her when she’s cruel and
hurtful, see less of the two of them and
TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2020
COFFEE BREAK
spend more time with the other cousins.
DEAR ABBY: When I take my dog for a
walk, I always carry little doggy bags and
pick up his business. I live in a residen-
tial neighborhood with alleys
behind the houses. After my
dog does his business, I pick
DEAR
it up and often throw the
ABBY
tied-up bag in a trash can
along the alley. Is this rude?
Is it illegal to put things in
other people’s trash cans? My dog may
make several stops along our long walks,
and I don’t want to carry his waste with
me the whole trip.
— CONSIDERATE IN COLORADO
DEAR CONSIDERATE: Whether
it’s illegal in your community is some-
thing you should check locally because
there may be an ordinance that forbids it.
While I can’t speak for everyone, some of
the homeowners those trash cans belong
to would strenuously object to someone
throwing dog doo-doo into them. That’s
why my advice is, “When in doubt
— DON’T.
DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have
been married nine years and have two
major issues in our marriage:
1. He feels I spend too much money.
2. I think he spends too much time
away from home doing things he wants to
do.
We have fallen into this cycle of him
being away from home, so I spend money,
which results in him spending more time
away from home. Should we have sepa-
rate bank accounts? Should I make him
cancel some of his weekly activities?
— STRUGGLING IN ST. LOUIS
DEAR STRUGGLING: Separate
bank accounts might be a good idea,
provided you don’t use yours to mask
the fact that you’re spending more than
you should. As to “making” your hus-
band cancel some of his weekly activi-
ties, I don’t think it would work to your
benefi t.
A better solution/investment would
be for the two of you to talk this out in
the offi ce of a licensed marriage and
family counselor, because it appears
you’re spending as a way to punish your
husband for his absence, which is not
only not constructive but destructive.
Doing activities outside the home
TOGETHER might also be helpful.
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