European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 13, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Dear Ann Landers 1 enjoyed the. Talk you gave in a Darien Conn., several years ago and have been Reading you Ever since. I found this old column and a think you ought to run it every few years. Your common sense is refreshing. Mrs. . Herold Darien Conn. Dear mrs. Herold that evening was 12 years ago. I remember it Well. Here a the column. Thanks for asking. Dear Ann Landers a in a a 15-year-old High school Sophomore who has Learned a lot from Reading your column. A while Back you printed some shocking figures about High school pregnancies. I think you said that every year More than a million teen agers have out of Wedlock babies. _ i know of a birth control method that is very effective inexpensive and guaranteed 100 percent of the time. It is the word  of the reasons there Are so Many pregnant teenagers is because someone has sold them the idea that a everybody is doing  Well i can Tell them that the smart ones Are not doing it. A i recently read an article on the. True meaning of sex. One line from that article stuck in my mind and 1 wish every teen Ager would think about it. Here it is. A the More special something is the More we Reserve it for special people special times and special occasions a. A it seems to me a person s body is just about As special a thing As there is in the world. It should be reserved for a special person at a special time and a special place. Holding out in Holland Mic i. Dear holding. In a with you. Another fringe Benefit of saying no is. Peace of mind f every Day i receive dozens of letters front teen age girls who Are worried sick asking if the do it yourself pregnancy kits available in drugstores work. They often Tell me the Date of their last period and the last time they had sex and ask if they could be pregnant. I Hope the girls who write those letters will see yours and learn something. Today teen agers need info Ina Tion More than they need speeches about morality. Dear Ann Landers. Quot i am outraged and totally baffled As to How to handle a family problem that has me completely shaken up. A close relative passed away recently. I was unable to attend the funeral so i sent a Beautiful arrangement of Flowers As Well As a sizable Check to help defray the funeral expenses. A a a. A a. A few Days later i received several pictures of the deceased in the casket. Those close up shots upset me terribly. I am sure to have nightmares for months to come. What is the matter with people who do things like that done to they realize that such pictures can be traumatic now what do i do with them thanking the sender is out of the question. I am so angry at her i can barely see to Type this letter. Quot upset in Lansing Mich. Dear Michigan a a. Put the pictures away. The relative meant no harm. I share your sentiments about photos of the decease but obviously there Are others who think differently. C creators Syndicate a a a Quot. A. / 1 in Fia h tit. R it a 2. In t v v a 1 it the stars and stripes r a Ltd  s r t is a t w am Page 11 a writers recall memorable trip to Dresden the Road to Dresden a As we approached the previously invincible Border at Eisenach we could not help but reflect upon the events of recent history. Just Short months ago the communist Monolith stood firm. Now two american soldiers were about  the Iron curtain for the first time in 40 years. On the 3rd of october the nation of East Germany ceased to exist. We seized the Opportunity to explore a foreign land before it could be tainted by the commercialization of the West. Stories of grass covered autobahn haunted us As the traffic began to., mount. Nevertheless the Border was transparent save the remaining Fence posts and empty guard towers. As we pressed through the Border Region the town of Eisennach loomed on the horizon. For 40 years these people lived in the Shadow of the potential clash of the superpowers. Immediately after pulling off the autobahn it was Clear to us that we were no longer in the Federal Republic of Germany. We found ourselves in the 19th Cen Tury. We cautiously drove through the town at the noise and vibration caused by the Cobblestone Road limited us to 30 Kph. We noted the extensive state of disrepair prevalent throughout the town overshadowed Only by the homogeneous nature of the structures. The town in its entirety was Gray and Brown except for one Small shop freshly painted in electric Blue and White a As if welcoming in the new regime. Tantalized by our vision of wha t was to come we pressed on to Dresden. Armed with our cafes map ice Chest and state of the Art Handi Cam we plunged deep a behind enemy  with Speed limited to the maximum amount of punishment we were willing to inflict on our automobile about 90-100 Kph we traversed the Countryside. In nature there was no difference Between the East and West. However the trained observer could not help but notice the huge fanning tracts most Likely collective in comparison with the private plots familiar to us in the huns pick. Services were quite sparse except for rest stops equipped with portable toilets. There were attempts to capitalize on the influx of tourists by a few Brave entre pen curs with i miss fast food stands. As we passed Chemnitz we were gratified to note that the germans wasted no time in restoring the original name to the City once known As Karl Marx Stadt. The Sun set As we entered the suburbs of Dresden. Without hotel reservations a City map or even a referral adventure loomed on the horizon. As the Needle on the Gas gauge crept into the Reserve we gave a Hacks for the aral station 10 Kilometres West of the City we tried to use our instincts to find the City Center and scanned the horizon for a  by the Lack of tall buildings and corresponding lights we relied upon the Elbe River to guides to shelter. The Cobblestone roads were no longer an obstacle As our Speed was already limited by the extremely dim streetlights. After 10 Kilometres we found our path blocked by the hotel Bellevue. Quot our Joy was Short lived when we were quickly stonewalled by a hotel clerk who spoke broken English. All of Dresden a hotels three of them were booked for a convention. Refusing to leave empty handed we pro cured a photocopied map leading to a Gasthaus guest a on the Edge of town. 1 we struggled through the City without the Aid of Street signs. What few there were were covered with grime to the Point of being barely readable. After almost giving ourselves up As lost we discovered our destination was within meters. It turned out not to be a Gasthaus but Dresden s Only travel Agency a a one woman show. We readily accepted her offer for housing a yet again on the other Side of town. With lodging secured this leg of the Jon Ney seemed much less formidable. That evening we lodged in the basement apartment of an a East German Quot family. The trabant parked in the driveway seemed uncharacteristic of the wealth needed to maintain such a Home. The family was very hospitable and the lodging was on Par with that of local Enst Hauss. Being mistaken for German French and italian we identified ourselves As americans a the first our Host had Ever seen. Thinking of referring him to friends we asked for his phone number Only to find that he had none a the 15-year waiting list was insurmountable. That evening we dined in the Corner pub and found food Quality and prices similar to the West. Cola and Beer were obvious bargains though at half the usual Price. In the morning our 30-Marks-per-head room Tariff included a Are Krast of Coffee meat cheese and bread. In the Light of Day the drive along the Elbe proved fascinating. Condemned roads abandoned vehicles and countless ancient Homes in disrepair told the Story of years of neglect by an inefficient economic system. Dresden seemed to be composed of two types of structures a prewar classic european style and monolithic state built utilitarian shelters. The ancient Beauty of Dresden began to Shine through As we approached the River magnificent mansions and stately buildings lined the Bluffs above the Elbe haying survived their obsolescence under communist egalitarianism. Unbelievably these structures paled in comparison with the 17ili Century City Center. Buildings and structures such As the Albert iridium the British Terrace and the Augustus Bridge indicated the immense wealth of Saxon sovereigns. Among these ancient structures we glimpsed our first evidence of the Allied firebombing of Dresden at the end of ww1i. While one of the buildings remained a Mere Heap of rubble yet another was encircled by scaffolding. After 45 years the refurbishing or rather the rebuilding of these Sites was under Way a probably in anticipation of increased Tou prism. V a we entered the City s principal museum and gazed upon the treasures of the centuries accumulated by the rulers of Saxony who once made Dresden their Capitol. Exquisite craftsmanship worked in Diamond Emerald Pearl and Gold stunned us by its Beauty and sense of lost Art treasures of such priceless value that they might even make a Dent in oui National deficit. Emerging from the museum we found ourselves in the first Elbe main l est held in Dresden. The numerous vendors had clearly caught on to the idea of a free Mur Ket society. We had a final stroll by the opera House and encountered a Host of youths gathered by the Fountain. The engl ish was u n m i s to k a 1 e As l h by e i d i e is by re p e a tech tunes from the -60s accompanied by guitar. It was music to our ears As we entered our car and headed Back to our Garrison on the front lines of Freedom. The cold War was Ove r a we had won. A Arnold j. Abraham. Kirk.  a Germany / a a. All letters to the editor must contain the full printed name and address of the writer and must be sign Cpd pc do not read unsigned letters but we will withhold your name on request and protect your privacy. All letters Are subject to editing the a and european edition circulation 190, col Gene e. Townsend Usan a commander editor in chief a. It.  Gayle w. Fix Usa a Deputy commander editor in chief. A Marie Kominicki Bob Wicker peace b. Mcdermott production manager managing editor circulation manager. This newspaper is an author i de unofficial publication for members of the military services overseas. 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