DEAR ABBY: Like many others, I work from home.
Today I was completing a complicated procedure between calls from customers and getting conflicting online messages from my supervisor and manager. I uttered a pus word and suddenly got an IM from the manager saying I should do nothing.
I’m at home, in my room, using my computer and pausing so I can not receive a call from a customer, and my manager is listening to me? Was I wrong here?
FEATURED IN TEXAS
DEAR CAUTION: Yes, it was you. If you did something during opening hours that you would not do in the office, you should not have done it at home. (If you want to obscure a few keywords in the future, do so while you are far away from the microphone!)
DEAR ABBY: I have been in my second marriage for almost 20 years. My wife came with two grown children, each having two children. I have tried to be the best family man I could, and a father and grandfather who treated them as if they were my own.
My wife’s daughter “Diana” recently upset everything after I gave her daughter (my granddaughter) some financial advice after she finished college. Diana not only walked on me but also lied to her children about me and has shut me and my wife out of their lives.
I am crushed and trying not to lose the relationship with Diana’s children. I do not feel that I did anything wrong. The advice I gave was sound and nothing a professional would disagree with. Please advise.
INJURIES FROM HELP
DEAR INJURY: You have my sympathy. This can be an unfortunate example of “no good deed goes unpunished.”
Because Diana refuses to discuss the matter, the breach she has created cannot be corrected. If you succeed in maintaining a relationship with the grandchildren, you may eventually find out what set your wife’s daughter in motion.
In the meantime, you and your poor wife need to accept what has happened and do your best not to let it disrupt your life further.
DEAR ABBY: Unlike the rest of my family of omnivores, I have been vegan for decades.
Every time we meet and go out to eat, the person who has booked chooses a restaurant that does not serve anything I can eat. So I end up eating just bread and a little dinner salad.
I’m not asking that we go to a vegan restaurant (though I prefer it), just a vegan-friendly place. Advice?
SUN VEGAN CUT IN CALIFORNIA
DEAR VEGAN CUTS: Give your insensitive relatives a list of restaurants to choose from that are more accommodating to your lifestyle. In California, many restaurants cater to patrons with different needs, so this should not have happened to you more than once. Nothing changes before you speak up.
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or PO Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.
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