FEATURES
6A
Date was saved for nothing
Dear Annie: Three months ago,
my husband and I received a save-
the-date card for a wedding. At one
time, we were very close to the bride’s
parents, but we seldom see them any-
more. The date conlicted with a trip
my husband and I were taking, so we
changed our plans to be able to attend
the wedding.
After a few months, we learned
through mutual friends that wed-
ding invitations had been sent out
— but we never received one. I can
only assume they needed to trim the
guest list and we didn’t make the cut.
I wouldn’t have been offended to not
be invited to the wedding if we hadn’t
received the save-the-date card. Plus,
we changed our trip plans to accom-
modate them, and our trip is now at a
less convenient time.
Is this a common practice? We’ve
never had this happen before. I run
into the bride’s mother several times
a year. Should I say something?
— Uninvited
Dear Uninvited: It’s not com-
mon to send a save-the-date card and
never follow up with an invitation.
What is common is things getting lost
in the mail. If they took the time to
send you a save-the-date, they were
probably pretty sure they wanted you
at the wedding.
Ask the bride’s mother whether
Dear Annie
By
Annie
Lane
Creators
Syndicate
Inc.
she can check with her daughter to
see whether you’re still invited to the
wedding; leave her an easy out by
being understanding. Don’t ask and
you risk their assuming you blew off
their invitation. Do ask and you risk
their feeling slightly awkward for
a few minutes as they let you know
they had to trim the guest list. The
irst scenario would look much worse
on your end.
Dear Annie: We built a custom
home back in 2005. Even though we
checked out the contractors before-
hand, they walked off the job and
took all of our money. We were cer-
tain that we would win a lawsuit and
took out loans and cash advances to
try to inish the house.
Long story short, the house was
never inished, and our lawsuit never
went to court. Our attorney advised
us to ile for bankruptcy and then dis-
charge it to stay in the house longer.
Our creditors are sending 1099s to
the IRS. Their thought is that if we
didn’t pay off the debts, we must have
used the money as income.
My husband and I disagree as to
what to do. Should we make arrange-
ments with the collection agencies to
pay off the debts, seeing as we did run
up these amounts, or should we just
wait until the 1099s show up? Pay-
ing off the debts would not change
our credit scores. If we were to leave
where we are living now, we wouldn’t
be able to pass a credit check to rent.
We are seniors on a ixed income
and don’t know what to do. With the
bad contractors, bad choices and bad
legal advice, we don’t seem to have a
future. — Not-So-Golden Years
Dear Not-So-Golden: I know
you’re under extreme duress right
now, but it’s not so dire as you
think. There are nonproit resources
for seniors in your shoes. Your
best option is to enlist the help of a
credit counseling agency, which can
help you determine the best way to
approach your situation. Consult
the National Foundation for Credit
Counseling at debtadvice.org to ind
one. Stay away from any for-proit
agencies, which are typically pred-
atory and would only worsen your
situation.
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 2016
Tomorrow’s horoscope
By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). When a per-
son doesn’t make your preferred choice,
you take it in stride and keep your response
drama-free. This could be a test. How you
behave at this time will crystalize someone’s
opinion of you.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). You’re emo-
tionally independent. You know how to make
yourself happy, and when you feel that life
isn’t naturally going in that direction, you
shake things up, take back the reins and
steer back toward your happy place.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Something led
you to wonder, and now your mind is busy
creating a version of the story that connects
the dots you know, but you don’t know every-
thing, and this is not the whole story — or
even an accurate one.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). Like a
well-prepared celebrity on a talk show, you’ve
rehearsed your “talking points” and you’ve
been warned not to go off script... you know,
where all the juicy stuff is. Will you make an
exception for that charming so-and-so?
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Everyone pays
dues and proves usefulness. Don’t let anyone
treat you badly, though. Stand up for yourself.
Social and professional standing won’t be au-
tomatically given; it has to be claimed.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). It’s a subtle
thing, but you stand taller, make yourself
longer and become more connected to your
environment. You have the overriding feeling
that you belong exactly where you are.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). That difference
between your job and your work will become
more obvious today, as a thought process in-
volves you deeply: What you love about what
you do may have very little to do with the job
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
itself.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Crying can
be the start of healing, a physical stress re-
liever that makes us feel better. But it can be
other things, too — manipulation, the entry to
an emotional pain loop, habit... Interpretation
is key.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Some-
one you love may need you to put your spar-
kle, charm and expertise to the task of taking
the intense, embarrassing or pressurizing
focus off of his or her latest mistake.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). Stress
causes people to disassociate with the pres-
ent flow and become a self-conscious wit-
ness to their own interactions. Your job will be
to make someone comfortable in an uncom-
fortable situation so this person can shine.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Usually, you
love more or less unconditionally. However,
right now, if you were to think of yourself and
your attention as a kind of prize, it would ben-
efit all. Make them earn it — if only so they’ll
appreciate what they have in you.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You’re as in-
terested in the questions posed to you as you
are in your answers to them, which will come
from such a deep place inside you that they
may actually surprise you.
TUESDAY’S BIRTHDAY (Aug. 9). Char-
acter is destiny. Your integrity is ultimately
what will bring you success. Whether you
turn left or right, if you “do you” at every turn,
you’ll meet with the highest and best fate.
September’s financial decisions will have
far-reaching, positive results. Love is a thrill
ride through the end of the year. Libra and
Aquarius adore you. Your lucky numbers are:
9, 30, 22, 28 and 13.