Features
6B / Wednesday, June 16, 2010 / The Sanford Heral DEAR ABBY
BRIDGE HAND
Co-worker discovers man’s double life at nightclub DEAR ABBY: Recently I was at a club with friends and ran into a co-worker. He was dressed in drag and introduced himself as “Glenda.” At work, he dresses like a male and goes by “Glen.” Since that night he has been avoiding me and cutting conversations short, if not ignoring me altogether. Should I let him know I’m OK with his alternate persona, or let it be? I don’t want to risk awkward situations. — SYMPATHETIC IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA
HOROSCOPES Universal Press Syndicate
Happy Birthday: Talk from the heart. Your sincerity will win favors and support. Travel plans should be made for both business and pleasure. Don’t let uncertainties stand in your way. You will be able to turn things in your favor by not backing away from a situation that is teetering. You can stabilize what’s going on around you if you remain balanced and constant. Your numbers are 2, 11, 15, 26, 28, 37, 40 ARIES (March 21-April 19): You need to relax and enjoy what life has to offer. Love and romance are in the stars if you take a moment to be attentive and affectionate with someone you care for. Talk about your plans and how you can turn them into a reality. TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Your actions will upset someone close to you, especially if you try to withhold information. Someone you are close to will have trouble relating to your situation. Make some personal changes to help you feel good about the way you look. GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Your interest in what’s happening with others will bring with it support and popularity. Encounters with new acquaintances will be uplifting. Love is on the rise and time spent with someone special will bring emotional rewards. CANCER (June 21-July 22): Talk to people in a position to make decisions and who can offer up the format for doing things according to regulations. You can be a driving force without being assertive. If you have to push someone, perhaps it’s best to replace instead. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Don’t sit back if someone is adding to your responsibilities. Be forthright about what you can and cannot do. Once you have established your position, you can get on with the things
WORD JUMBLE
that really matter to you. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You will be faced with options that can affect your position, future and reputation. Do what you know in your heart is the right thing to do. Sharing what you know will ease your stress. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): The more you do to help or volunteer, the better established you will become with people who hold the same opinion as you. Romance is in the stars, so enjoy the company of someone who understands you. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Don’t let your emotions get in the way. Just because someone pushes you to make a decision doesn’t mean you should feel obliged to be a follower. A networking event will lead to an engaging encounter. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22Dec. 21): Hooking up with someone who can offer what you lack will make for a winning combination. You must, however, fully understand what’s expected of you before you move ahead. Uncertainty can turn a good thing into something unworkable. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22Jan. 19): Take a close look at what’s being offered and move forward quickly. Your response to deals and what others want will put you in a power position. A business partnership with a friend, relative or neighbor may be tempting but will be dicey. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Get your priorities straight before moving forward. Not being honest with the people in your life will not help you get ahead. Spend more time thinking and discussing what you want to do in the future. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You must offer your very best if you want to be taken seriously. Smart business starts with honesty and integrity. You can think big but offer your ideas simply until everyone is on board with you.
DEAR SYMPATHETIC: I don’t know how large your company is or how much contact you have with Glen. If the answer is it’s a large company and contact is minimal, then let it be. If you have contact with Glen frequently, and his embarrassment is having an impact on your work relationship, then clear the air by letting him know that what happens after hours is his business and you do not gossip. Period. o DEAR ABBY: My sister, “Gina,” recently became engaged to her longtime boyfriend. A few days after hearing about the engagement, I sent her an e-mail telling her my husband and I were free every weekend except Oct. 8, 9 and 10 because a dear friend had asked me months ago to be a bridesmaid in her wedding that
Abigail Van Buren Write Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.
weekend. I have already bought the dress and had it altered. I called Gina to explain the situation after sending the e-mail. Yesterday, I spoke with my father and found out that Gina has chosen Oct. 9 for her wedding day, even though I told her I couldn’t make it then. Gina wants me to be her matron of honor because she was my maid of honor. Clearly, I cannot participate in two weddings on the same day at the same time in different locations. Who do I say no to? — DREADING WEDDINGS IN WASHINGTON, D.C. DEAR DREADING: Let me get this straight. You warned your sister that you would be unavailable on a certain weekend, she chose that date for her wedding anyway, and you had to hear the news from your father? Could there be more going on with your relationship with your sister than you men-
tioned in your letter? Perhaps she felt “obligated” to have you in her wedding party because she was in yours? From my perspective, you should thank your sister for her kind offer and remind her that you had already told her you would be unavailable that weekend. That way, you’re both off the hook. o DEAR ABBY: I work in a small office, and every day a co-worker’s adult child who works nearby comes here to have lunch with her mother. She knows everyone’s business as if she worked here, and we’re forced to order her something when we get takeout. Frankly, we’re tired of it. How can we put a stop to this without hurting anyone’s feelings? — ONE MORE FOR LUNCH DEAR O.M.F.L.: It appears the line between “family” and “business” has become blurred. The co-worker who is closest to the mother should approach her privately and say, “You should know that your daughter coming here every day is creating hard feelings in the office. If you want to have lunch with her every day, then you should be doing it outside the office. During our lunch time, we want to talk about things that are personal, and her presence makes that difficult.”
ODDS AND ENDS Lightning strike sets 6-story-tall Jesus statue in Ohio on fire MONROE, Ohio (AP) — A six-story statue of Jesus Christ was struck by lightning and burned to the ground, leaving only a blackened steel skeleton and pieces of foam that were scooped up by curious onlookers Tuesday. The “King of Kings” statue, one of southwest Ohio’s most familiar landmarks, had stood since 2004 at the evangelical Solid Rock Church along Interstate 75 in Monroe, just north of Cincinnati. The lightning strike set the statue ablaze around 11:15 p.m. Monday, Monroe police dispatchers said. The sculpture, about 62 feet tall and 40 feet wide at the base, showed Jesus from the torso up and was nicknamed Touchdown Jesus because of the way the arms were raised, similar to a referee signaling a touchdown. It was made of plastic foam and fiberglass over a steel frame, which is all that remained Tuesday. The nickname is the same used for a famous mural of the resurrected Jesus that overlooks the Notre Dame football stadium.
St. Louis pet waste removal worker finds $58 in dog poop ST. LOUIS (AP) — This is why your mother says to wash your hands after handling money: A St. Louis worker found $58 — packed in dog poop. Steve Wilson works for DoodyCalls Pet Waste Removal. On a recent call, he noticed money sticking out from doggie doo. Wil-
SUDOKU
MY ANSWER son wasn’t sure what to do, but eventually pulled out the bills, sanitized them, placed them in a plastic zip-locked bag and returned them to the customer. It turned out to be $58. The company said the money was torn, but the serial numbers were identifiable, which means the bills could be returned to a bank and replaced with new money. The Association of Professional Animal Waste Specialists says Wilson is the first person in his profession to find and report money in dog poop.
Mass. town can’t unload house near landfill NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (AP) — A Massachusetts town has lowered the price of a home it’s trying to sell because there’s barely been a sniff of interest. The four-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot home on 2.4 acres of land is right next to Northampton’s landfill. When potential buyers find out about it, they back away. Northampton’s Board of Public Works bought the home as part of a legal settlement with the previous owners, who frequently complained about the landfill’s odor. The home went on the market about a year ago for nearly $479,000. When it didn’t sell, the price was lowered to $375,000. Board Chairman Terry Culhane said the price was slashed again to $290,000 last week. Culhane tells The Republican of Springfield he’d be surprised if someone doesn’t bite now.
See answer, page 2A
The objective of the game is to fill all the blank squares in a game with the correct numbers. n Every row of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order n Every column of 9 numbers must include all digits 1 through 9 in any order n Every 3 by 3 subsection of the 9 by 9 square must include all digits 1 through 9
Billy Graham Send your queries to “My Answer,” Billy Graham Evangelistic Assoc., 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C., 28201
God loves everyone Q: I know you like to say that God loves us, but what about someone who isn’t talented or doesn’t have any money or isn’t successful? Does He love them, too? I’d like to think God loves me, but I honestly can’t see why He should. -- P.L. A: Let me say it as clearly as possible: God’s love isn’t limited to people who are talented or rich or successful! God loves every person on this planet, no matter who they are or what they have done. And that includes you. In fact, people with great ability or wealth often have a hard time turning to God, because their pride gets in the way, and they think they don’t really need Him. A proud person tends to rely on himself when challenges come, and may even think that God is only for weak people. But it isn’t true. The Bible warns, “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18). How do I know God loves you? I know it first of all because God says so in His Word, the Bible. God created the whole human race -- and He loves the whole human race. The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son” (John 3:16). And that’s the second reason why I know God loves you: He sent His Son into the world to give His life for you. If you had been the only person on earth who needed to be saved, Christ still would have died for you. Yes, God loves us -- but we must respond to His love. And that’s what I invite you to do. Respond to His love by opening your heart and life to Jesus Christ today.