6A
FEATURES
Sloppy emails at work
Dear Annie: I have and am often insulted by
noticed a shift in common them.
communication skills over
When did it become
the past few years in the accepted practice to slip into
workplace that I believe what I consider a sloppy
has been caused by texting, style of communication on
and it has quickly
the job? In my opin-
DEAR
become a pet peeve
ion, people are enti-
tled to communi-
of mine.
ANNIE
cate in any way they
I work for a large
please outside the
insurance company
workplace;
how-
on the East Coast.
ever,
slang-style
I have noticed that
writing is unaccept-
work-related emails
able in a profes-
are becoming less
sional setting.
and less profes-
Lane
Thanks for let-
sional, to the point Annie
Creators
Syndicate Inc.
ting me get this off
where some are so
my chest! — No Tex-
vague that I wonder
whether the sender realizes ting, Please
Dear
No
Texting:
how the end product looks to
the receiver. I need to point Though our society is as
out that I am a 20-something advanced as it has ever been,
woman, and I do my fair it often seems like a dark
share of texting. However, age for manners. Shine a
when I receive an email light by your good exam-
from someone in a profes- ple. The next time you get a
sional context, I expect to lax email from a co-worker,
see more than “tks” or “u” respond extra professionally
or “mtg” in the body of the — with a formal salutation,
email. When I see those a well-formed paragraph and
abbreviated words, I give a proper closing. Often this
the emails less importance is enough to shift the tone of
the whole correspondence.
It seems that today a lot
of people — too many —
have trouble differentiat-
ing between what’s appro-
priate at home and what’s
appropriate at work. I, too,
believe that in professional
emails (or even text mes-
sages, if you find yourself
texting a boss), it’s import-
ant to maintain a degree of
formality. No one ever lost a
job for erring on the side of
politeness.
Dear Annie: I enjoy your
take on advice, for the most
part, as well as your concise
answers to writers’ issues.
Could you, however,
consider dropping the term
“caretaker” in favor of
“caregiver”? Many of us
older folks think of ceme-
teries when we hear “care-
taker”! The latter is so much
warmer. — Russ
Dear Russ: Goodness
me. You’ve got a point. I’ll
go with “caregiver” in the
future (unless, of course, I’m
responding to a letter about
cemetery maintenance).
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JULY 20, 2017
TOMORROW’S HOROSCOPE
By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). People have different
paces, and those with a slower pace than yours
(most people) will trigger impatience. The biggest
challenge of the day will be keeping impatience
in check.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). You might be sur-
prised what causes other people stress. You’ll get
a glimpse of it if you’re paying attention. Someone
dealing with things beyond your knowledge will be
trying to act normal around you today.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). To fall in love is to
be lucky and unlucky at the same time. Love is
risk. As in most all gambling, if you stay in long
enough, sooner or later the house will win. But if
the game is fun to, you’ll find it worthwhile even
when you’re losing.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). Remember that
change is the only constant. Whatever’s going on
now, for better or worse, it’s not going to last. So
why not be strong through it? You want to look
back and be proud of yourself.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). There are people you
trust so wholeheartedly, if they were ever to let
you down, you’d instantly forgive them and blame
yourself. This is a closeness you feel with some of
the people you’re dealing with today. It’s a secure
feeling.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). Your circumstances
are where you are, not who you are. Some envi-
ronments are harder to escape than others. Today
you’ll have to wriggle and fight to unclench the
talons that hold you in a place.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). It’s quality over quan-
tity in most things today, but in order to work out
that math problem you need intimate knowledge
of your values. Focus on your own life, happiness
and vision; consider what you like about being
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
you.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Absurdly, life con-
stantly demands that you simultaneously embrace
and detach from it. Whether you march forward,
stumble forward or fall forward, “forward” comes.
The thing about life is, it goes on.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Take your
ideas to many people. The general public will have
ideas that you’ll have to weigh carefully. But a
good friend can get you going in ways and direc-
tions you wouldn’t have thought to travel, much to
your benefit.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). No one knows
what’s in the head and heart of another, and yet
you feel you have a pretty good idea of it in regard
to your nearest and dearest. Still, seek confirma-
tion before acting on what you merely suspect to
be true.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). While there are
popular notions, there isn’t one single mean-
ing that intrinsically exists. Yours is as good as
anyone’s! Go on and construct the meaning that
works best for you.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). Children are often
more outwardly concerned with who they sit next
to than adults are. It’s because they, like you, are
wise to the fact that you can have a totally different
experience sitting next to a preferred someone.
TOMORROW’S BIRTHDAY (July 21). A better
work/life balance is the aim and you’ll find it this
year. You are poised to create powerful and posi-
tive relationships. The next seven weeks bring an
intensive study. You’ll trade your work and charm
for good fortune in September. Re-invest a finan-
cial bonus in November — this one could be your
legacy. Capricorn and Sagittarius adore you. Your
lucky numbers are: 4, 49, 22, 1 and 7.