Short Answers

By Jeff Johnson and Paula Forman 

UH, OH

Dear Short Answers:
I accidentally sent out an email to the entire company that was very critical of a disabled person who works in the office. Other than my best friend at work, no one has said a thing but I know that everyone has seen it. I am humiliated and don’t know what to do. Should I tell the person that I am sorry? Should I talk to my boss? Should I go to HR?  Please help.
Dying

Dear D:
Apologize to the wounded party and leave it at that. We’ve been there — nothing but time really helps. 

LET IT BE

Dear Short Answers:
My son got engaged last year to a wonderful girl — or so he says. The problem is that she lives in a different city and we’ve never met her. Before COVID, we offered to buy her a plane ticket to come visit but he always found an excuse not to do that. Whenever we ask if we can speak to her on the phone, he makes up some excuse why we can’t. I am beginning to suspect that he’s not engaged at all and that his “fiance” is really a man (I can’t explain why I feel that way). Do I just let this slide and see what happens or do I confront him head-on?
Worried Mom

Dear Mom:
Let it slide. He’ll tell you what he wants to tell you when he is ready. Confronting him is not a solution nor is pushing him into deeper lies. 

ANOTHER DOGGONE DOG LOVER

Dear Short Answer:
My brother is married with three young children. His wife and kids talked him into buying a puppy. The $1,000 that they paid for the dog apparently wasn’t enough. They now spend more on the dog than they do on the kids. I know exactly how much my brother and his wife make and I know they can’t afford this dog. I wouldn’t be surprised if they are using their kids’ college funds to pay for all the fancy things they buy for the dog and the visits to the vet. How can I knock some sense into these people? It’s just a dog for goodness sake.
Responsible Uncle

Dear Uncle:
We’ve seen this before. There is no accounting for love — and puppy love is no different. Leave them alone and let them enjoy the new baby. Dogs bond families together – especially now — and fill in lots of gaps that may not be apparent to you. It’s okay, relax. 

SIT THIS ONE OUT

Dear Short Answers:
What do you do when you absolutely, positively know for a fact that your friend is marrying the wrong person? The girl that our friend Marcus is going to marry will ruin his life, alienate him from ALL of his friends, force him to quit his job and move to a new city. This marriage is wrong and will end in disaster (plus, she is an absolutely horrible person to everyone she meets except for Marcus and he just doesn’t see it). How can we help? All of Marcus’ friends just feel miserable about this.
FOM

Dear FOM:
There is nothing to be done about this. Period. End of Statement.

Life is complicated.  Short Answers isn’t. 

Send a question about whatever is bothering you to [email protected] or go to www.shortanswers.net and a psychologist and sociologist will answer.  A selection of the best questions will be printed every week in KonkLife.

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