Dear Queenie,
I lost my job a while back and I’ve been hunting for a new one, but it’s hard these days. I don’t need the money, but it’s depressing not having someplace to go every day and not feeling useful.
Queenie, how do I get through all this?—Ex-employee
Dear Ex-employee,
Surely you have skills learned in your former job that would be useful to some community-service organisation. Not only will volunteer work keep you busy and make you feel useful again, it also will look very good on your resumé and you may make contacts that will help you in your job-search.
Dear Readers,
I frequently refer abuse victims to Safe Haven for help and Safe Haven has given me updated contact information to pass on to all of you. Here it is:
24-hour hotline number: 9333 or (721) 523-6400.
E-mail address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Facebook: SafeHavenSt.Maarten
I also take this opportunity to thank the people at Safe Haven for the good work they do.
Dear Queenie,
You have written some columns about people who are miffed because the people they are with are so busy on their cell phones they ignore the people they are with.
Now how about the people on the other end of those cell phone calls?
Queenie, what do you think it is like to be talking to someone on the phone and they keep talking to the people around them like the cashier at the bank or the supermarket checkout clerk?—Cellphone Etty Ket
Dear Etty Ket,
On the phone or in person, it is just plain rude to try to carry on two separate conversations at once.
My advice is for the person on the receiving end of such rudeness: If you are on the other end of the phone call, hang up – with or without saying goodbye. If you are there in person, turn around and walk away – with or without excusing yourself.
And if you happen to be in a restaurant, for example, and your walking away leaves your rude companion stuck with the bill – it serves them right!
Dear Queenie,
This guy I’ve been seeing only calls me late at night when I’m about to go to bed or already asleep. I keep telling him I’d rather he call me during the day, even when I’m at work but he still calls me late at night.
Queenie, how can I get him to call me at a reasonable hour?—Sleepyhead
Dear Sleepyhead,
There is a simple solution to your problem: Do not answer your phone after a certain hour and let the call go to voicemail or, if necessary, just turn off the phone entirely. Then you can call him back at a time that is convenient for you – or not at all if you do not want to.
If he cannot show some consideration for your preferences, he is not worth wasting your time on.
Dear Queenie,
Once you have moved out of your parents’ home and have a place of your own, are you expected to knock on the door when you visit them or is it okay to just walk right in like you have always done?—Visiting Etty Ket
Dear Etty Ket,
Of course, this depends on the custom within your particular family, but the courteous thing to do always is to knock before entering – and wait for someone to say “come in.” Aside from being the polite thing to do, this has the advantage of sparing all parties any unpleasant (embarrassing) surprises.
