Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 4, 2015)
FEATURES 6A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, AUGUST 4, 2015 Wife chooses troubled son over spouse Tomorrow’s horoscope Dear Annie: My wife and I have been married for seven years. She has a son from a previous marriage who got into drugs as a teen. Four years ago, my wife put her son in rehab, but he had a re- lapse and briefly ended up in pris- on. The effect it had on my wife was devastating and she began to drink. My dislike for her son in- creased exponentially. Last year, my wife put her son in rehab again, this time in another state. He finished the program, but while there, met another addict in a halfway house for sober living and she got pregnant. They mar- ried two weeks ago, and my wife returned from the wedding exu- berant and giddy. She demanded that we allow the couple to live with us so she could give her son a second chance. I told her “no.” In response, she removed her wed- ding ring. My wife now plans to move out of state to live with the couple and take them out of the halfway house so she can care for the baby and rekindle her relationship with her son. I have spoken to numer- ous addiction experts and they all agree that the couple should re- main where they are. My wife is defiant about it and has resolved Annie’s Mailbox Creators Syndicate Inc. Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar to leave me. She thinks her son’s problems are all behind him now. I love my wife and don’t want to lose her. — Crestfallen Hus- band Dear Crestfallen: Your wife is living in a fantasy, and her rush- ing in to take over her son’s life could undermine his recovery. But she believes she is helping and to some extent, that’s true. The prob- lem is, her son needs to know that he can stand on his own feet first and he hasn’t completely done that. Would she speak to the ad- diction experts about this? Do her son and new daughter-in-law un- derstand the downside of moving out of the halfway house too soon? If you cannot convince your wife to change her mind, and you want to stay married, we recom- mend that you be supportive. This could work out. Having a baby together might encourage the cou- ple to be more committed to stay- ing clean. Your wife’s assistance could allow them to find decent jobs. Tell her you are on her side and consider this a temporary sep- aration. We hope it is. Dear Annie: After relocating in retirement, I find people cor- recting or commenting negative- ly about my pronunciation. In 70 years, I cannot recall one incident of people doing that where I pre- viously lived. Recently, a woman I thought of as a friend turned to another wom- an to comment on my pronuncia- tion. While this has happened only a few times, it has made me un- comfortable and I have started to withdraw, keeping to myself. What can I say to people who do this? Or should I just stay home? — Hurt and Unwelcome Dear Hurt: Please don’t stay home and isolate yourself. If you have moved to a new area, it’s likely that you have a regional ac- cent and others simply need to get used to it. If someone says some- thing hurtful, politely reply, “This is the way I speak. I’m sorry you find it so offensive.” We hope they will fall over themselves apolo- gizing for their rudeness. 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. ARIES (March 21-April 19). The dif- ference between the way you are and the way you want people to think you are is a discrepancy for the ages. Give yourself a break. It’s a human condition. TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Your best friends challenge your views and influ- ence you either to take a stronger stand or change your mind. Bonus: The heat- ed conversation starts an evaporation process for your troubles. GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Pay at- tention to the people who cause you irritation, because they have something to teach you about your beliefs and atti- tudes. There is something necessary in this lesson -- otherwise you wouldn’t be bothered. CANCER (June 22-July 22). You’ll make a stunning first impression with whomever you meet. So why not intro- duce yourself to someone who has the power to hire you, promote you or buy what you’re selling at top dollar? LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Celebrate and enjoy the ease of communication that comes with this cosmic passage. To be heard and understood is a wonder- ful occurrence and not as common as it should be. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). The facts that stressed you out yesterday may still be the same today; however, your reac- tion will likely be quite different. It turns out all the stress was optional. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You will feel that you haven’t done enough, that you could do better. Sure, there’s room for growth. There always is. And yet you are perfectly in sync with the universe. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). It will be both easy and necessary to change the dynamic of a certain relationship. All you have to do is agree with the other person. Once you’re in agreement, the other person will listen to you. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Pa- tience is like bodybuilding: the muscles tire and tear in order to grow stronger. The ones who wear down your patience are also the ones who build it up. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). You’d like to give grandly to loved ones, but chances are what they really need from you isn’t grand at all. It’s small, specific and something only you can deliver. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). The nature of fun is that it’s somewhat un- predictable and can’t be totally con- trolled. If those two qualities don’t exist in the situation, you’ll be bored, and it won’t be your fault. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). When you’re where you want to be, you close your eyes and minutes fly by flash-and- blur style. When you’re where you don’t want to be, the second hand drags. WEDNESDAY’S BIRTHDAY (Aug. 5). The sun turns up your already unfair powers of attraction. Draw your bound- aries and stick to them. Fall will be tricky: You’ll feel like you’re behind the ball, when really you’re ahead of the game. Get a friend or mentor to point out the big picture. What you earn in October will help you with a big purchase. Virgo and Sagittarius people adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 6, 40, 12, 18 and 25.