FEATURES
6A
Friends, or business partners?
Dear Annie: I am a real estate
agent in a wealthy part of Southern
California. In my part of town, every-
one knows everyone, especially in
real estate.
I have my group of mom friends.
Some of us work. Others do not. All of
our kids go to the same school. We see
one another multiple times every week.
My best friend in the group is a
designer. She’s relatively new to the
real estate world, but she has a great
eye for design.
Another friend in the group is a
inancial adviser. She is a brilliant
woman, so I hired her to manage my
money, and I’m actually her Realtor.
I sold the money manager a
house. I referred designer to money
manager. Can you guess where this
is going?
Long story short, money man-
ager and designer had a huge fall-
ing out. Money manager claims she
ired designer. Designer claims she
walked off the job. Needless to say,
they both think they are right.
I really don’t care what hap-
pened between the two of them.
I’m more concerned with my busi-
ness. Was I stupid to refer designer
to money manager? Should I ind a
different money manager so that we
don’t have a falling out? I like doing
business with friends because I trust
Dear Annie
By
Annie
Lane
Creators
Syndicate
Inc.
them, but I don’t want to lose any
friends if business relationships go
south. — Referral Referee
Dear Ref: Good real estate
agents, designers and inancial advis-
ers are a 10-second Yelp search away.
Good friends, however, are a lot
harder to ind.
It’s too late to repair the relation-
ship between your two friends, but
it’s not too late for you to avoid a fall-
ing-out of your own. Hire a new per-
son to manage your money. Explain to
your friend it’s precisely because you
value your friendship that you want to
stop doing business with her. If she’s
as smart as you say she is, she’ll get it.
Dear Annie: I feel like a cliche. I
feel so stupid. It wasn’t supposed to
be like this.
I’m 34. I graduated from one Ivy
League university and got a master’s
from a different one. I don’t look like
Scarlett Johansson, but I’m above
average in the looks department. I
get my hair highlighted. I work out.
I dress well. Yet I’m single.
I told myself it wouldn’t bother
me. I leaned in to my career. I went
on dates, but no guy ever felt like the
one. I had a few casual relationships
but didn’t do the whole “he’s OK for
right now” thing. If I wasn’t super into
him, I let him go. And I really haven’t
met a guy I’ve been super into.
I never did the online dating thing.
I just wasn’t focused on it. I have a
friend who is obsessed with it. She
downloads every app and talks about
it nonstop. She talks about dating the
way men talk about fantasy football.
I was supposed to have it all —
to be happily married with children.
I don’t want to leave my career, but
I am 34 and want a family. I don’t
want to settle for some schlub, either.
— Cliche Cathy
Dear Cliche: You’re not wait-
ing for Mr. Right; you’re waiting for
Mr. Perfect. There’s no such thing.
Why haven’t you been into the guys
you’ve seen in the past? What’s
been missing? There’s a difference
between having some basic criteria
(e.g., “respectful,” “employed,” “not
Norman Bates”) and having an elab-
orate, Westminster Dog Show-style
rubric. Be more open.
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JULY 5, 2016
Tomorrow’s horoscope
By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). You can think of
quite a few things that are best paid for with
compensation other than money, and today
you can even put “meals” in the category, as
your home efforts will go much further than
anything you could purchase.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). When the en-
ergy is off, everything else will be off, too. Do
what it takes to get your mind, body and spirit
into the right conditions for creating what you
want. Even if this takes a few hours, it will be
worth it.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). When the rituals
you rely on to feel normal get interrupted, that
shouldn’t displace your entire sense of pur-
pose. If it does, it’s a signal to come up with a
purpose that’s stronger, with deeper roots.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). If you pretend
to be someone else and they love it, you’ll be in
a pinch, with lots of pressure to keep pretend-
ing. On the other hand, if there’s no act, you’ll
never have to drop it.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). At the core of this
day is an innate drive to create something
unique from your experiences. After all, no one
ever has or ever will walk this world in quite the
same way you do.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Before you
would have reacted strongly to frustrations
like today’s, but you’re a lot more patient now.
When you feel frustration, you know it won’t be
long before your strong sense of reason takes
over.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). What you’re in-
volved in now isn’t really a competition, though
it may be presented that way. Furthermore,
you can believe in yourself wholeheartedly
without dismissing the efforts of others.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). You can’t help
FRANK AND ERNEST
BLONDIE
THATABABY
SALLY FORTH
PHOEBE AND HER UNICORN
B.C.
LOLA
DILBERT
SIX CHIX
BIZARRO
MUTTS
NON SEQUITUR
BABY BLUES
WIZARD OF ID
ZITS
ROSE IS ROSE
but speculate about what might have hap-
pened if you’d arrived on this scene a little
sooner or a little later. This will inform your next
move, but it won’t change where you’re starting
from today.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You’ll
probably feel more like dancing around the
work than actually doing it, and that’s OK, too.
If you keep your eyes open while dancing,
you’ll notice something key that could change
everything.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Given the
luxury of a long stretch of time, all the “may-
be someday” things will be put off indefinitely,
thereby remaining in that same category for-
ever. Want it done? Give yourself a deadline
and do it.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Don’t pre-
sume to know what the others are thinking or
how they are judging the scene. One person’s
refreshingly entertaining enterprise is another
person’s been-there-done-that. You’ll only find
out by asking.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You’re a true
original, a totally unique presence in the world.
So why do you feel like you’re blending in, un-
heard and unseen? It’s a distortion. Change
the dynamic, and most importantly, change
how you think about it.
WEDNESDAY’S BIRTHDAY (July 6). Love
in reciprocation will be the joy of this solar cy-
cle. Of course you’ve loved and been loved
back before, but there’s something special
about the way this occurs this year. Something
you’ve waited for will be yours within 10 weeks.
September brings the right teacher to develop
your moneymaking muscles. Pisces and Cap-
ricorn adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 46,
5, 8, 21 and 10.