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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2015)
FEATURES 8A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, APRIL 21, 2015 Please write positive reviews Tomorrow’s horoscope Dear Annie: I am a small-business owner. It’s chal- lenging, but I have wonderful customers who seem to like our service. So, I’d like to ask your readers a question: Is there a business establish- ment that you enjoy going to? A restaurant that is part of your life? A store where you always are treated well? You can help them stay in business by writ- ing a positive online review. It’s human nature to com- plain when things go wrong, but it’s rare to post something to let people know when things go right. My business has only a few online reviews, and they are negative posts from cus- tomers who were not happy with some small thing. I al- ways try to make amends, but even so, the review is never re- moved. For every bad thing that happens in my business, there are so many good things and so many happy customers. They thank me over and over, yet they don’t write reviews, even when I ask. So, please, if you like a business, let the world know. “Like” them on Facebook. Post a review on Yelp or TripAdvi- ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’ll be called on to lead. Take your time with decisions. Find just the right words to instruct. If you have to criticize and redi- rect people, think carefully about how to execute this. TAURUS (April 20-May 20). You’ll be asked to sit on a committee, join a board or be part of a group. Maybe this will take up some of your weekend, and it may even be quite boring, but it will be much better than the alternative: being left out. GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Confron- tation doesn’t bother you as much as it does some, and you can use this talent to your advantage. You don’t mind play- ing “bad cop” to someone’s “good cop” if it keeps the peace in the end. CANCER (June 22-July 22). You strive to acquire exceptional skills beyond what is required of you professionally. Cultivat- ing an exciting hobby will serve to make you stand out in many different arenas. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Love will soft- en your heart for the whole world, not just for the person you happen to love. Your patience will increase, and your compassion will double on itself. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). A mistake of the past still makes you cringe in the present. That’s because you haven’t let it go yet. Do try. A quick mental process may be all that’s needed, but a letting go ritual would be even better. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). Whatever the physical and material borders that currently hold you back may be, you can and will transcend external limitations to define your own scope of possibility. Annie’s Mailbox Creators Syndicate Inc. Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar sor or Google. You don’t have to write a lot, just a couple of positive sentences. It will make more difference than you real- ize. — Business Woman Dear Business: It’s human nature to write only when you have a complaint or a disagree- ment. (We should know.) When people are satisfied with the service they are getting, they rarely think to say so, but you are right that small businesses depend on good word of mouth. Please, folks, if you have had a pleasant experience with a business or service, say so in an online review. It means a great deal to them. Dear Annie: When I was growing up, the rule was that if you had to cancel an appoint- ment, you would call to let the person know that your plans had changed. Now that every- one has cellphones, it seems that the rules have changed. A couple of friends stood me up on my birthday because my cellphone was turned off. They said they didn’t come over be- cause I hadn’t called to verify that I was actually going to be there at the appointed time. But we had already made these plans a week before. I thought I only needed to call if I was NOT going to be there. Am I out of touch with how things are done now? — Sad Birthday Girl Dear Birthday Girl: It was wrong of your friends to as- sume you had canceled, but even if they apologize for their rudeness, it won’t change how they respond when they can- not get ahold of you next time. The problem is, so many plans are transient these days. Peo- ple expect to be able to reach you at any moment of the day or night in case something changes at the last minute. But it also means people need con- stant verification to be sure the plans are still on. We think they would be happy to reschedule, and we hope you will let them. FRANK AND ERNEST BLONDIE THATABABY SALLY FORTH STONE SOUP B.C. LOLA DILBERT SIX CHIX BIZARRO MUTTS NON SEQUITUR BABY BLUES WIZARD OF ID ZITS ROSE IS ROSE By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You are smart enough, good enough and talent- ed enough to do exactly what you want to do. If you work hard and keep believing, you will get there. Today will bring a glim- mer of hope. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You give your whole heart to another person, and yet what this person experi- ences isn’t the grand music of your love. It’s the sweet, lighthearted tune of daily practicalities. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). These days you’ve been taking on either big projects or massive ones. Regardless of the scale, everything happens with a se- ries of small action steps. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). You are empathetic and open, perhaps too much so for your own good. Place an imagi- nary bubble around yourself for deflec- tion and protection against other people’s projections. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You com- pletely accept your love for the person he or she is, and there is no higher way to honor your relationship today. Your rela- tionships will make you truly happy. WEDNESDAY’S BIRTHDAY (April 22). There’s a sense that you and your group are in it together, and you’ll learn to rely on each other to do what none of you could do alone. In May, you’ll use new tools to get what you want. The learning process will be the most fun, and you’ll make friends, too. You’ll ink a deal in July. September brings travel. Pisces and Aquarius people adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 3, 29, 14, 38 and 17.