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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (July 3, 2018)
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JULY 3, 2018 FEATURES Should I edit my journals? Dear Annie: I need some ments about the difficulties advice on what to do about I went through dealing with my daily journals. I keep a his drinking but also informa- daily journal and have for tion about the family’s nor- many years — including mal daily life — for exam- during a time when my hus- ple, children’s sports games. band was an alco- I’d like to save my DEAR holic. He’s been sober journals in case my for 27 years. (We are grandchildren or ANNIE in our late 70s.) great-grandchildren In those journals, would like to know, in I wrote about the the future, what their times he got drunk grandmother’s or — of his stumbling great-grandmother’s around in a drunken life was like, but I stupor, of his pass- wonder about the wis- Lane dom of making it pos- ing out in his lounger Annie Creators Syndicate Inc. sible for them to read with our children sit- ting in the room, of about their alcoholic his lying about going to Alco- grandfather or great-grandfa- holics Anonymous meet- ther. Should I leave the jour- ings and instead going to the nals unabridged, or should I club and drinking for hours. take only the good excerpts I wrote about all these times from them to preserve my and more, describing the fam- husband’s sober image? His ily’s embarrassment and frus- grandchildren only know him tration and adding my own as a loving sober man. I don’t angry comments. know whether our children Now that he’s been — so have ever enlightened their thankfully — sober all these own children about how their years, I’m wondering what to grandfather used to be before do about those journals from he stopped drinking. I have a the times when he was not. hunch they have never said They contain not only com- anything about it. So, what do I do? At my age, I’m thinking that if I’m going to change anything, I’d better start doing it now. — Deliberating Diarist Dear Deliberating Dia- rist: Your family’s strug- gle with alcoholism is not something you or your hus- band should feel ashamed of, and it might actually be help- ful for your grandchildren and great-grandchildren to be made aware of it — when they’re old enough — as they may be genetically predis- posed to the disease them- selves. Even if they’re not at risk, they will inevitably face some hardships of their own. How special it would be for them to be able to look to the pages of your journal and remember their heritage of perseverance. You’re passing these journals down because you want your descendants to know what your life was like, so let them know what it was really like: thrilling, exasper- ating, challenging, fulfilling, maddening, awe-inspiring — not always pretty but ulti- mately still beautiful. 5A TOMORROW’S HOROSCOPE ARIES (March 21-April 19). Greed is the black hole of sins. It always wants more. It cannot be satisfied. It can, however, be combated. It will happen today by way of a reversal. Greed will be broken by generosity. TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Repeating a thought doesn’t make it more true or more likely to become reality. Looping thoughts need inter- ruption, which can be achieved by distracting yourself with a task that requires a high level of concentration. GEMINI (May 21-June 21). You now under- stand that you don’t need what you thought you needed. In fact, you can get by with less and/ or different. You may be able to make a trade today. CANCER (June 22-July 22). If you’re not looking after yourself properly, it will be like opening a door to negative thoughts and low self-esteem. What do you wish your fairy god- mother would do for you? Whatever it is, do it for yourself. It’s an excellent start. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). Conflicting advice will be part of today’s challenge, and also part of the fun. How will you know what to choose? There’s no right or wrong choice; it’s a matter of taste and fit. And you’re the expert on what you like and what feels good to you. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). If you can eliminate the absolutes from your vocabulary today, all of the things you “always” or “never” do will be off the table and you can focus on the lovely shades and specifics between extremes. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You’re in the busi- ness of making things happen. However, it will be very beneficial to put that business aside for some time because it will be in the moments in between, when nothing happens, that you will 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 feel most fully alive. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). The magic combi- nation is roughly the same as it was yesterday. With the right attitude for the job, the amount of effort necessary to make things happen and reasonable expectations, you will continue to succeed. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). Let the cynics make fun of the world; you’d much rather make fun of yourself. People will appreciate your honesty and vulnerability. You’ll make them laugh as they relate to your story. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). This thing you want is going to take more work than you thought. A coach can help you work smarter and faster. Unambiguous feedback is what you’ll need, and you’re tough enough to hear it, too. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Know what can be done and what cannot be done. These are facts; it’s nothing personal. But as you do what can be done, more will fall under your jurisdic- tion. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). You have a star- ring role in someone’s thoughts. Though this person’s casting of you may be a bit unrealistic, it’s not entirely off. You’ll have fun stretching yourself into the part, as long as it’s close to who you want to be. TOMORROW’S BIRTHDAY (July 4). There are no limits on your dreams, and your achieve- ments are within your reach. Creating an environment that will consistently support you is a commitment; don’t expect it to happen overnight. Stay compassionate. Get a new coach or teacher to help you transition into your new life. Scorpio and Aquarius adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 17, 8, 9, 33 and 40.
