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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 19, 2017)
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, JULY 19, 2017 FEATURES Obsessed with internet stars Dear Annie: I’m young, and and ways to stop myself, such as most young adults do, I have as putting my phone down, dis- an interest in musicians, authors, connecting from the Internet for artists, etc. For me, especially, I hours or getting outside to be find myself engrossed in You- active, but at the end of the day, Tubers. These are kids who are I’m still hooked. No matter how around my age, 18 or 19. They hard I try to turn my obsession make funny videos and into a “positive addic- DEAR do ridiculous things that tion,” it always seems to fail, and I’m then keep me entertained for ANNIE hours. sucked into my phone This is where the and watching videos problem comes in. I again. Every time I try found that I’m always to address the issue with drawn to be obsessed my therapist, I become with people who are too embarrassed and Internet-famous. I feel as change the subject. Lane though I may be this way Annie I want to help myself Creators Syndicate Inc. because of my lack of because I’ve become so actual friends, so I think depressed about these I understand it. But understand- obsessions, but I’m just not sure ing the problem doesn’t neces- what to do. — Obsessed and Tired sarily help me sleep at night. Dear Obsessed: Celebrity All my life, I’ve been bat- tling being an obsessive person. “obsessions” and fanaticism As a preteen, I would become have been a normal part of ado- enraged if someone pointed lescence since the advent of out my interest had become an mass media. But the Internet has obsession. Now that I’m 18, made celebs seem closer to us I’ve changed my reaction from than ever. We not only can spend enraged at the other person to endless hours reading up on the just plain irritated with myself. details of their lives but also I feel as if obsessions are taking may even get a chance to inter- act with them on social media. over my life. I’ve tried countless times This is even truer for Internet celebrities, who inherently have close relationships to their fan bases. With this sort of access, it’s easy to see how a young per- son could get carried away. But there is so much good news in your letter. You have a thorough understanding of your issue. You realize it’s impact- ing your life negatively. You want to change. And you’re in therapy — which brings me to my ultimate point. Talk to your therapist about this. Knowing the full details of your life and background, he or she can help address the underlying problems that are driving your obsessive behavior. And I promise your therapist won’t judge you. Dear Annie: This is not a question, only a comment. I have read advice columns in the paper for 40 years. In that time, I have never seen advice given that is as appropriate and impressive as yours. It is without a doubt the best column in the paper. Thank you! — Dale B. Dear Dale B.: Thank you for making my day. It’s an honor to have this platform, and I’ll keep doing my best not to disappoint. I hope to keep you as a reader for years to come. 5A TOMORROW’S HOROSCOPE By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc. ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’ll be making a pitch. Once someone has decided, it is use- less to continue the explanation. If it’s already sold, you don’t need to sell it. And if it’s already ruled out, there will be no way to sell it. TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Know and enforce your own rules about who gets close to you and how close they get. There may be no way to keep negative people out of your life, but you can certainly keep them out of your inner circle. GEMINI (May 21-June 21). Confusion is often a matter of labeling. For instance, “my problem” and “your problem” is one that people often get wrong. So is “actionable” and “nonactionable.” Call things what they are and life becomes easier on the mind. CANCER (June 22-July 22). Be wary of those who make more announcements than moves. Action often needs no announcement. What’s happening is news. The rest is paid advertisement. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Once you join the group, it is likely that the group dynamics will influence you more than your own internal process. So, deciding whether or not to join will be the crucial juncture. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). This is probably a good time to avoid the temporary escape from other people’s social media and the more lasting snarl of your own because, the thing is, you need to get so bored it forces you to deal with a problem head-on. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). It’s not the right thing to do every day, but right now it will help you mightily to simply ignore the worrying facts, especially the inevitable ones. Live this day as though it were made just for you. 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 SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). We like to think we’re tracking with each other, but sometimes we assume to know a little more than we actually do. Don’t let the gray area stay gray today. Spell it out. Make sure you’re on the same page. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Is it better to learn from the mistakes of others, or from those of your own making? The first type of knowledge is more easily won and sooner forgotten. The second will be costly and permanent. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). You’re tough, and you can extract the good out of criticism. The leader is harder on people with potential. The one who calls you out for mistakes is also privately noticing all the right things you’re doing. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). The sad truth is people can be pretty shallow. As much as you could use some appreciation and acknowledgment, you’ll mostly be judged on how you make others feel about themselves. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Self-confi- dence leads to the win. Preparation leads to self-confidence. Plan ahead and practice the plan and you’ll head in the direction of success. TOMORROW’S BIRTHDAY (July 20). Be- lieve in yourself. You are much deeper, wider and greater than you sometimes give yourself credit for. You already know the direction. When you push harder, you’ll be amazed at what you can do. You’ll lead a trend in September. November brings an investment opportunity. April brings travel and excitement. Capricorn and Virgo adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 8, 2, 22, 28 and 45.
