Dear Stella,
I have recently starting dating a guy who I really like. With the holidays approaching, my family has many gatherings and I know that my parents will want to meet him. The problem is, he has tattoos and my parents will go crazy when they see him. They are extremely old fashioned and any tattoos or piercings are a no-no. Any suggestions?
Lucy
Dear Lucy,
You left out one very important element in your problem….How old are you? There is one answer if you are 16 and another if you are 24. In any case, I find that if you introduce him in a neutral place, such as a restaurant, it will lessen the blow. Bringing someone to their house may make them more judgmental and more guarded. If you are 16 and live at home, your parents will probably have the last word on the subject. If you are older and live on your own, you have to decide whom the last word belongs to.
Dear Stella,
A friend of mine asked my advice on her situation. I figured that I would pose the question to you. It seems that she sold an expensive gown for half the price…$150.00. The problem is that she delivered the dress with the promise of payment, but payment was never made. She has contacted the person several times and made several attempts to “drop by” on her way to do errands, but there is always an excuse for nonpayment. What should she do?
In a Pickle
Dear Pickle,
There are people in this world that simply ignore their responsibility with such obligations. Sometimes I think that if they avoid the situation, it will simply go away. I have seen lesser debts wind up in court. Tell your friend to create an invoice for the dress and send it certified mail with a return receipt. If it ever did go to court, she would have proof that an attempt was made to collect the debt. Who knows, maybe she will read this column and react before it gets to that point!