THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JULY 31, 2018
FEATURES
Mom exhibits gross habits
Dear Annie: My mother is
I love her so dearly, and yes,
82 years old. I love her greatly I know she may have a compul-
and know I’m lucky to still have sion, but I’m to the point where
her in my life. All my siblings I don’t think I can invite her for
live out of state, so my husband dinner anymore. She goes to the
and I have Mom to our house for senior center for lunches during
dinner and games once a week, the week but doesn’t cook, and
we like to make sure she
which we all enjoy.
DEAR
gets healthful food over
There’s an issue, how-
ever, with which I need
the weekend. (We send
ANNIE
your help.
leftovers home with
Mom seems to have
her.)
lost her sense of appro-
These years together
priate grooming habits in
in the latter part of her
front of others. For one,
life should be treasured,
she picks at scabs all the
but I’m being robbed
time, although I’ve gen-
of them, and I feel both
Lane
tly — and then more Annie
angry and guilty for not
Creators
Syndicate Inc.
assertively — asked her
being able to tolerate her
not to. Every time I see
behavior.
her doing this, I ask her to wash
She reads your column.
her hands with soap, but she dis- Maybe you can get through to
misses my requests.
her and others about the inap-
Another issue is that she propriateness of these things.
doesn’t like denture adhesives, Please remind us all of proper
so she usually uses her finger to grooming habits for public and
wipe out food that gets trapped private places. — Wish She’d
in the gaps. Sometimes she’ll Stop
use a fork to try to scrape things
Dear Wish She’d Stop: As
out, which is not much better. your mom ages, she may find it
I’ve asked her to go to the bath- more challenging to complete
room (only 10 feet away), where simple tasks such as shower-
she could remove her dentures ing and brushing her teeth and
and rinse them thoroughly, but hair. Very often, people in their
80s tire more easily or get cold
she refuses.
or hot sooner than the rest of us.
If they have dementia, a multi-
step task can feel overwhelming.
What you are describing seems
less like personal daily hygiene
and more like completely inap-
propriate behavior that must be
addressed. I’d suggest that you
have her assessed for dementia.
If this is new behavior, then it
is pretty clear that she has some
form of mental deterioration that
is causing her to act so inappro-
priately at the dinner table.
Dear Annie: I am very dis-
appointed with your advice
to avoid doing business with
friends. I am a real estate agent;
would you advise me to never
make any friends at all so that
I am free to do business with
anyone? How ridiculous of
you to make such a statement.
Half of my business has been
with my friends over 15 years.
— Disappointed
Dear Disappointed: You’re
right. Though I think it’s an area
into which people should pro-
ceed with caution, it’s possible
and sometimes very positive to
do business with friends. That
statement was a bit rash and
over-generalizing. I’m printing
your letter to correct the record.
5A
TOMORROW’S HOROSCOPE
By Holiday Mathis, Creators Syndicate Inc.
ARIES (March 21-April 19). You’ll say the
words, take the actions, make the commit-
ments that fix things, knowing full well that you
could just as easily, with other words, actions
and promises, blow them apart.
are always a risk. The risk is not that they will
be bad; the risk is that they will be good. To
leave a bad relationship is a rather obvious
choice. A good relationship often brings both
reward and limitation.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20). Methods for im-
provement come and go. So do styles of dress,
food, entertainment. ... Some of yesterday’s
“normal” now seems barbaric. With an eye to
the future, something about your current life
needs immediate change.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21). You feel
like you know what you want, but don’t be
surprised if you get it and find out that it wasn’t
a good fit. Humans are notoriously bad at
knowing what will make them happy. Continue
the experiment, and have fun with it.
GEMINI (May 21-June 21). You become
part of whatever you’re experiencing, and it
becomes a part of you. It’s a truth you’ll feel
today, and it just might change your mind and
involvement with certain environments.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19). You make
the plan and your crew will follow it. You’ll get
both credit and blame, and both are good. You
make life interesting and memorable for those
around you.
CANCER (June 22-July 22). It’s good to be a
little careful about what you say and how you
present yourself, but if you’re too careful it’s un-
comfortable for all. Trust that you’re acceptable.
Accept yourself and they will, too.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18). Your personal
experience with a full range of human error
coupled with the disappointment it has caused
you will make it all the more difficult for you to
believe the best in others, and yet you will. You
are to be commended.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22). The world is shifting
before your eyes today. Someone you admire
is a big part of this. You like how this person
sees the world, and it changes your view,
which changes what you choose to look at.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22). You’re charged
with the responsibility of creating yourself, your
happiness, the meaning you derive from life.
It’s a privilege, a pleasure and a lot. You’re not
always up for it. Rest will refresh you.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23). You’re attractive
whether or not you want to be or try to be. This
makes your life slightly complex. You’ll be in a
position to step lightly, dodge trouble and move
quickly to avoid getting detoured from your goal.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21). Relationships
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
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20). It has never
been hard for you to understand that people
in the general public matter. You may never
see them again, and yet each is an important
individual whom you pride yourself in treating
with the utmost respect.
TOMORROW’S BIRTHDAY (Aug. 1). There’s
quite a history back there, and you’ll put it to
good use. You don’t have to look backward to
do this. Trust that you’ve already learned from it
and you now have everything you need to build
toward the idea you’ve created about what
you’re supposed to be and do next. Go make
your vision real. You’ve got this. Libra and Virgo
adore you. Your lucky numbers are: 5, 42, 10,
13 and 8.