European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 28, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Credit easy Bucks for deepening the generation debt Erma Bombeck Universal press Syndicate if there is anything that divides parents and their older offspring it is the topic of Money. As a refresher to Young people who grew up in the plastic age and Haven to seen Money in a while it is issued in coins and Bills is used to Purchase items does not take two ids to spend and comes in Green and Silver. A i can remember going to the Bank with my daughter the first year she went away to school. We opened her first checking account. As i put the Book of Cheeks in her hand 1 said a there. For the first time you have responsibility for  six months later she was admitted to the guinness Book of world records for having cashed in a single week More checks under $3, without recording any of them than any other person in North America. She saw no correlation whatsoever Between the Money in her account and the checks she wrote. She said she would be relieved to get a credit card so she  have to fiddle with records. They a do All that dumb stuff for her. Our generation views the Purchase of a House differently than our offspring. We bought houses to live in. They buy houses to live off of. Along with the keys to our first House we had a Slack of payment sheets that when extended looked like the Alaska Highway. Every month we Tore off one Sheet. We drove ourselves crazy trying to pick up payments and toasted one another when we finally paid it off. The House was ours. Today houses arc a Monument to equity. They Are used to finance cars a swimming Pool vacation retreats and a boat but the payments arc a part of your life forever like an ugly carpet. The goals of both generations Are the same to live better than our parents lived. We part company on when we expect this to happen. We Tell our kids stories of How we rented an apartment when we got married lived without a car for two years and did no town a to set or take a vacation for the first five years. They Exchange glances and look at us like they wonder if we needed a connect a Dot colouring Book to Tell us How to conceive children. They come from a generation that wont walk to the altar unless there san answering machine state of the Art stereo Matching racing bikes cappuccino maker car word processor prenuptial agreement and season tickets to the Phoenix suns waiting there. We did no to realize How far apart we were until Christmas when we gave our son a Check. He said he was buying cd. We thought he meant certificates of Deposit. He was talking about compact a  mass Kusby Judith Martin United feature Syndicate dear miss manners How does one respond to a How do you do a gentle Reader the Correct response is a How do you do a it is not necessary to Point out to miss manners that this docs not make sense and that a More logical reply would be a a in be been having a lot of Gas  that answer would be socially incorrect. A How do you do a is a ritual. It might help to think of it As the original answer a question with a question. Dear miss manners regarding your advice that a  or a a ladies is the proper Way to begin a letter to a group of feminists i have no doubt that you know what is proper but i think i can Tell you that these would not be Well received. When i write to such a group i begin my letter with  it is Clear and dignified it uses the term Quot women Quot that feminists prefer for references to adult females and it is the exact equivalent of the term that would be used in writing to a group of men. I have never heard an objection. I Hope miss manners also approves. Gentle Reader miss manners assures you that a a gentlewoman Quot is a proper Clear and dignified Way to address a female group and happily bestows her approval. But she feels obliged to warn against the too Hasty dismissal of other terms of respect. A a Madame or the French plural a  is the exact equivalent of the masculine a sir a As a a ladies is for  both of the male terms arc still in use to show deference. By eschewing the female versions one strips women of a form of respect while allowing men to retain it. Dear miss manners when my family and i re turned Home from vacation we found that our House had been a wrapped a for the week of july 29 Aries March 21-april 19 become Diplomat of expediency. Avoid complacency. Focus on health exercise plan. Keep commitments. Taurus april 20-May 20 done to go overboard emotionally. Expect rewards at work. New relationship requires Energy. Stick to your guns. Gemini May 21-june 20 you inspire friends to grow. Be honest with yourself. Solve mysteries in personal finance. Audit your Good intentions. Cancer june 21-july 22 being with loved ones is reassuring. Use imagination to solve problems. Revise social obligations. Take a backseat to mate. Leo july 23-aug. 22 give Benefit of the doubt. Over analysis leads to paralysis. Others Money woes Aren t yours. Immerse yourself in a Hobby. Virgo aug. 23-sept. 22 take a country Jaunt. Be open to new faces places. Exotic recipes get the nod. Don t turn molehills into mountains. Libra sept. 23-oct. 22 recharge creative batteries. Open yourself to spiritual questions. Stay away irom work intrigue. Be prudent with Money. Scorpio oct 23-nov. 21 ready for a serious relationship7 it s waiting Lor you. Buoyant people had entered our Gate and had strewn toilet paper Over our Hammock our Barbecue pit our hot tub the porch and the Bushes Trees and rooftops. They did a thorough Job. Later a a a Friend informed us that he had driven his daughter and her friends to our Home and posted guards in front of it while the girls wrapped it. He was making sure they were , i was speechless and took it personally that adults a so called friends a had encouraged and even helped their children vandalize our Home while they knew we were on vacation and defenceless. I told our neighbors exactly what i thought of our Welcome Home Surprise. Am t overreacting my husband thinks in a silly. I think it is terribly rude and i do not feel comfortable around people who would do such a thing without offering to help clean up the mess or uttering one word of apology. Gentle Reader miss manners is not amused and does not require you to be so. An action that  and mess a not to mention the fact that it probably alerted potential burglars to the fact that your House was uninhabited a cannot be classified As a harmless prank. However she understands that your husband docs not want to Start a feud with the neighbors. The Way to get around this difficulty is to Appeal to them As responsible parents in the face of prior that they Are not. Since they expressed concern Over the safety of their children you might assume that they arc also worried about the children a characters. Tell them that you suppose they want to teach their children responsibility for their actions and that you would be glad to supervise and provide Light refreshments on the Day when the children clean up the mess. An unwrapping party As it were. The hospitable phrasing of this is not just to make palatable your highly justified indignation. Miss manners believes it would be a genuine contribution to civility for you to show the children that you Are not a disembodied target for their amusement but a person who cares about her neighbors As Well As about her property. Demeanour offsets blues. Return to simple Joys and goals. Sagittarius nov. 22-dec. 20 happiness and sorrow make strange bedfellows speak your mind. But avoid personal conflicts. Be patient in relationships. Capricorn dec. 21-Jan. 19 enjoy minor career gains. Artistic inspiration hits in Waves. Further your education. Make Home  Jan. 20-feb. 18 improvise plans spoil the fun. Your dependability is rewarded. Think about being self employed. Try new work methods. Pisces feb. 19-March 20 business partnerships thrive. Spontaneous sharing deepens friendships. A relationship requires work. Sell yourself on Success. Copley news Servia Page 10 a sunday july 28, 1991