www.thehawkeye.com THE HAWK EYE !" BURLINGTON, IOWA Tuesday • April 29, 2014 7C FUN & ADVICE Photo-happy grandparents need to change their view DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been mar- Dear Abby ried for three years and have two beautiful children. Shortly before our first child was born, my inlaws bought a new camera. They bring it along to every visit and constantly take pictures of all of us. Neither my husband nor I likes having our pictures taken. My in-laws have thousands of pictures of all of us already. BY JEANNE PHILLIPS Universal Press The biggest problem is Syndicate that they don’t have a relationship with their grandchildren because of this. They complain that the kids “don’t like them.” They feel they should therefore visit more often, but in reality, these visits consist of nonstop photo-snapping, and no quality time is spent with either of the children. How do I make this stop without causing problems? — OUT OF FOCUS IN NEW YORK DEAR OUT OF FOCUS: A diplomatic approach would be to suggest to your in-laws that they “shoot” only for a limited time when they visit — no longer than the first 10 minutes. Explain that you realize the kids are growing and changing quickly, and you understand their desire to record all of it, but the children need a deeper kind of interaction with their grandparents in order to form a positive bond with them. Then suggest some ways they can relate to the little ones after the camera is put away. If they balk, tell them the reason their grandchildren don’t seem to like them is that children need face-to-face and eye contact, and the camera has prevented it from happening. If they’re smart, they’ll listen. DEAR ABBY: I’m a 43-year-old woman who has been in a relationship with a man I dated many years ago, “Charles.” When we reconnected three years ago, I had a dog, “Frosty.” One year into the relationship, Charles asked me to get rid of Frosty because he thinks dogs are unsanitary. I loved Frosty and kept him, but it caused all kinds of problems with my boyfriend. When Charles and I moved in together three months ago, he insisted I get rid of Frosty and I caved. I miss my little friend so much it hurts. Memories of him are everywhere. I am able to get him back, but is it crazy that I would jeopardize my relationship because I want to keep my dog? — IN THE DOGHOUSE DEAR IN THE DOGHOUSE: I don’t think it’s crazy, and I’m sure my animal-loving readers — who number in the millions — would agree with me. People bond with their pets to such an extent that in the event of a natural disaster, some of them refuse to be separated from their companions. That Charles would insist you get rid of Frosty shows extreme insensitivity for your feelings, in addition to disregard for your beloved pet in whom you had a significant emotional investment. Could Charles be jealous of the affection you have shown Frosty? Not knowing him, I can’t guess. But if you are forced to choose between the two of them, you should seriously consider choosing the dog. ARIES (March 21-April 19) ###" Be Horoscopes aware of the costs of proceeding as you have been. The unexpected will occur with a partner, who could be described as combative. Tonight: Say “no” to an extravagance. TAURUS (April 20-May 20) ####" You’ll beam in more of what you want because of your BY JACQUELINE ability to brainstorm well BIGAR with one specific person. King Features Tonight: Take the lead. GEMINI (May 21-June The Stars Show the Kind 20) ###"Make it OK to be of Day You’ll Have: Dynamic a little less positive at the #####"####"- Positive moment, especially if you ###"- Average want to air out a concern. ##"- So-so You have a strong sense of #"- Difficult direction, but you might want to evaluate the pros and cons of a problem before taking any action. Tonight: Not to be found. CANCER (June 21-July 22) ####"Zero in on what you want. You can’t underestimate someone else’s role in a particular situation. You might not want to face the music; however, if you do, the outcome ultimately could become even more positive and upbeat. Tonight: Where your friends are. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) ###" Verbalize more of what you want. Be direct in how you handle a problem. Discussions will be animated, and you’ll get a better sense of where others are coming from as a result. Tonight: A must appearance. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) ####"Keep reaching out to a friend or loved one who means a lot to you. Your imagination and creativity might not be putting the correct slant on a matter. Tonight: Consider an offer. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) ####" A partner will offer you a myriad of solutions. The issue is deciding whether you would like to act on any of them. Tonight: Togetherness counts. SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) ####" Listen to others; they have a lot to share. You could be frustrated when dealing with a personal matter. Communication will remain active, but you might notice a change of tone. Tonight: Go with a suggestion. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) ###"Pace yourself, and know that you have a lot to do. You could be amazed by what you can accomplish, especially if you funnel your frustration into activity. Tonight: Keep yourself busy. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) ####" Encourage a brainstorming session. You could be delighted by the solution that emerges, as well as by the good will that evolves. Tonight: Where the fun is. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) ####"A stop in the boss’s office will tell you that you have a lot of ground to cover. Demands on the homefront also could keep you more than busy. Tonight: At home. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) #####" You must relax and go with the flow. You could be overwhelmed by everything that is happening and by how much you need to do. Tonight: Make weekend plans. People Dilbert Pussy Riot will attend literary gala Associated Press Non Sequitur For Better or for Worse The Lockhorns Garfield Blondie The Family Circus Two members of Pussy Riot will be attending a literary celebration already includes Toni Morrison, Salman Rushdie and Robert Caro on the guest list. M a r i a A lyokhina and Nadya T o l o k o n - Alyokhina nikova are expected at the PEN American Center Literary Gala, PEN announced Monday. The event is scheduled for May 5 at the Museum of Natural His- Tolokonnikova tory, where Rushdie and Twitter CEO Dick Costolo will be receiving awards from PEN, the nonprofit organization has been a longtime advocate for free expression. Members of Pussy Riot, the Russian punk band, have been arrested on several occasions for protesting against oppressive rule by the Russian government and criticizing President Vladimir Putin, including during the Winter Olympics in Sochi. PEN executive director Susan Nossel said Alyokhina and Tolokonnikova will be making brief remarks during the presentation of the PEN/ Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award, being given this year to imprisoned Chinese writer-blogger Ilham Tohti. ••• Beyonce and husband Jay Z will launch the co-headlining “On the Run Tour” on June 25 in Miami. Beyonce made the announcement Monday. The stadium tour will visit Philadelphia; East Rutherford, N.J.; Chicago; and Los Angeles. It wraps Aug. 5 in San Francisco. Pre-sale tickets go on sale today. Beyonce and Jay Z have collaborated on several songs, including the hits “Crazy In Love,” ‘‘Deja Vu,” ‘‘Part II (On the Run)” and the recent smash “Drunk In Love.” Beyonce released her ultrasuccessful self-titled fifth album last year. Bridge Fast and loose By FRANK STEWART Tribune Media Services Zits Beetle Bailey Baby Blues In another sign (in my view) of the decline of civilization, many schools no longer teach cursive writing. Instead they focus on keyboard skills. Some people live — and play bridge — like they type: fast, and with a lot of mistakes. Today’s West led a spade against six clubs, and South hastily threw a diamond on dummy’s ace, took the ace of diamonds and conceded a diamond. West won and led a heart, and South rose with dummy’s ace, ruffed a diamond and led a trump. If the missing trumps had split 2-1, South could have drawn them in dummy and pitched his last heart on a good diamond. But when West held three trumps, South had to go down. South played too fast. He must play low from dummy on the first spade and discard a diamond on East’s king. If East shifts to a diamond, South wins, leads a trump to dummy, discards his last diamond on the ace of spades and ruffs a diamond. He can lead a trump to dummy, ruff a diamond, draw trumps and go to the ace of hearts for the good diamonds. North dealer Neither side vulnerable