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player ready...Dear Ann Landers: In light of the tragic events of last September, my son’s school has drafted some tips that will be helpful for parents with small children in case of an emergency. I hope you will print them for all the parents in your reading audience.
1. Talk to your children, and emphasize how important it is to pay attention to their teachers during fire drills. If you have several children, have them decide on a meeting place where they can assemble in case the situation is chaotic.
2. Give each child a prepaid phone card with $10 or $15 available on it. Practice with your children so they know how to use the cards. Even if the child has a cell phone, service is often overwhelmed during a major emergency. Most pay phones, however, will work.
3. Furnish each child with a wearable ID. There are many types available that can be worn around the neck or wrist. Include the child’s name, your home address, work phone, cell phone and so on.
4. Prepare and laminate a list of phone numbers for yourself, your spouse and your children. List your home number, all work and cell-phone numbers, and e-mail addresses. (Many folks in the New York area discovered they could not get through on their phones, but their e-mail worked.)
If possible, designate an out-of-town relative or friend who will serve as a contact for other family members.
I hope we never see a situation like we had last fall, Ann, but it never hurts to be prepared. These guidelines could help in any kind of emergency. Please pass them along. — New York Parent
Dear New York Parent: Thank you for some sensible advice about a subject that many people are reluctant to think about. Folks, please take the time to follow through on these suggestions — and let’s hope you will never need them.
Dear Ann Landers: This is for “East Coast Misery,” who is having an affair with a married man. She said she knows it’s wrong, but she simply cannot live without him.
My father had an affair when I was 6 years old, and it devastated my entire family. He eventually left Mom to be with this woman. To this day, I have never truly forgiven either one of them.
I will always hold it against his wife that she knew he had a family, yet was so selfish she would not walk away from him. She will always be “the cheater” who wrecked our home.
My father has told me if he had it to do over again, he would not have left us. He is now having the same problems with his wife that he had with my mother. The problem wasn’t his marriage. It was him.
If she is miserable, tell “East Coast” to fix what needs fixing in herself and stop looking at someone else’s husband to make her life better. — Been There in Maryland
Dear Been There: You hit the nail on the head. Too often, people are unhappy with themselves and think some exciting new romance will make everything better. In reality, it only creates another set of problems.
There is no excuse for cheating in a marriage, whether you are the husband, the wife or the “Other Woman.” If there is a problem, fix it, seek therapy, or have the decency to end the marriage honorably. Affairs are never the solution.
Gem of the Day (sent in by Herman Katz of Sierra Vista, Ariz.): Marriage is like the Army. Everybody complains, but you’d be surprised how many re-enlist. — James Garner
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Ann Landers’ booklet “Nuggets and Doozies” has everything from the outrageously funny to the poignantly insightful. Send a self-addressed, long, business-size envelope and a check or money order for $5.25 (this includes postage and handling) to: Nuggets, c/o Ann Landers, P.O. Box 11562, Chicago, IL 60611-0562. (In Canada, send $6.25.) To find out more about Ann Landers and read her past columns, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.