European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 10, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                A Wev Mun a a a or Watt or amp Raum Odds amp ends no Holiday cheer when the flu Bug stings your Home Cindy Chambers columnist you wont catch my family frantically flipping through a enjoy tour brochures this month trying to figure out what we should do Over the holidays. We know we wont be spending a thanksgiving in Dublin $350 per person including authentic sheep bladder dinner Christmas in Capri $425 per person with optional a nude Beach extravaganza or a new years in Athens $525, with complimentary ouzo hangover. No Well be far too Busy doing exactly what we do every year at this time getting sick. Its a tradition with us. Some families Toast the holidays with eggnog we Toast ours with nyquil. Some Don their gayest apparel we Wear Vicks and bathrobes until the Spring thaw. It starts right after halloween when my husband returns from the Field with a Drippy nose and an attitude toward the military that can Best be described As militant. A Why do we Hab to go to duh Field during duh worst weather of dec entire year a he sniffs collapsing on his mud spattered Duffel bag. A we could go in Bay or june like other armies. Bud Nooroo. Web god to Waid until id raids i6 inches and ids so cold your fingers fall off when you try to Stard to cd Crealor a he a looking for sympathy. In a trying to stay healthy. A gee Honey i done to know a i say brightly. A but if you la just leave Home until you re Over that cold i ii research it and get Back to you a then i Burn his Field jacket. Yes i will shamefully sacrifice both government property and marital Harmony in an Effort to keep the rest of us germ free. I dream of the Day when we can celebrate the holidays like a Normal family. In a certain that there is More to Holiday decorating than sticking a red Bow on a sputtering Vaporizer. Just once i want to have a Christmas photo taken without one of us sporting a cold sore so Large it looks like an additional family member. More than anything i want to spend an entire Holiday free of dim Clapp thermometers and buckets next to the bed. But its no use. We still our Way through thanksgiving cough ourselves through Christmas and spend new years eve comparing sputum. Its not a pretty sight. A this year though in a determined to go on one of those fabulous Tours. We Are dragging our broken battered bodies aboard a chartered bids just Lor the health of it. We May not be in any condition to enjoy sunny Spain or elegant Egypt. But l think Well feel right at Home at our duly of Lourdes. They say miracles can happen there and believe me that s exactly w hat Well need to make it through the holidays. Curly Chambers is a military family member in Schwa Furt. Ger Man miss manner by Judith Martin United feature Syndicate dear miss manners As a customer service representative for a distribution company i Deal with customers by Telephone. Once while waiting for information on an account i stalled for time with Small talk asking the woman on the phone How she liked where she lived. She said that she has lived there All her life 60 years but that the area was being taken Over by  Shock was my first reaction. I am half mexican on my mothers Side and my self respect As Well As my respect for my mothers heritage could have made  in a number of ways. But i chose to ask innocent questions a ooh really have they taken a lot of jobs away from the area a she replied a ooh mostly farm jobs because they re willing to work for the lowest  i replied in a Neutral tone a ooh and does that take away a Large part of the Job Market from your Community a she then changed the topic to one of welfare and jobs. After i Hung up i Felt disgusted for this woman a not for her obvious ignorance but for her negligence in not thinking of whom she might be speaking to. In a not telling her How to think and feel a just saying she should be careful whom she shares her opinions with. Some co workers said i should have belittled her by mentioning that i was mexican. I however think about the fact that regardless of my feelings she was still a customer. Therefore i done to feel i was in a position to do that. Gentle Reader although everyone would appreciate your feelings in reaction to such bigotry fewer people would appreciate As miss manners docs your feeling that you could not humiliate a customer. Whatever Small talk you engaged in should have been Neutral and you strictly observed the limits even when your customer outrageously violated them. Yet miss manners is not satisfied with letting such an insult pass. Her suggestion is to maintain the professional role while nevertheless mentioning your ancestry a something along the line of a Well we mexican americans try to do our jobs Well and i Hope you feel i am doing  while this would not belittle the customer miss manners feels it would prevent her at the least from repeating her mistake and it might actually Lead her to question her prejudices. Dear miss manners my husband and i went to a party with friends each in our own car and met in the parking lot. We exited our cars and stood there Chi chatting when i noticed that Mary was still sitting in her boyfriends car. I said a a what a holding up Mary a at that John rushed to the passenger Side and opened the door for her. I thought she carried the door opening tradition too far to the Point of being silly. My husband never fails to open doors for me when we enter a building or our car when the car door is locked. In some instances i open doors for myself and him. Isnit that the Way it is in the �?T90s? what does miss manners think a can etiquette Ever be overdone gentle Reader etiquette is never overdone. The minute it is a As for example when a lady a actions conspicuously reprove her gentleman Friend for his manners a it becomes rudeness. Mind you miss manners is not arguing against gentlemen opening car doors for the ladies they accompany socially nor against ladies sitting Idle just Long enough to give them the Chance to do so. This is still done even in the �?T90s, although neither in business situations nor when it is obvious that the gentleman needs assistance which should be offered then by the lady. But when it turns into a sit Down strike until someone a terms Are met miss manners has to agree that it has become  Scorpio oct. 23-nov. 21 feelings of love and Friendship May build in All areas of your life. Share them with friends and family. Sagittarius nov. 22-dec. 20 a woman can be of help to you at work. You May find a Resolution to a problem in a dream. Capricorn dec. 21-Jan. 19 your friendships Are More intense today. You May have an Opportunity to socialize with powerful people. Aquarius Jan. 20-feb. 18 you can have Success dealing with Large corporations. People will share then resources with you to help your business. Pisces feb. 19-March 20 philosophy May be the topic of conversation with your partner share your thoughts and ideas about life Aries March 21-april 19. If you be been neglecting your health think of ways to improve diet and exorcise Taurus april 20-May 20 take the time to appreciate the visual arts it will inspire you to use your creative talents gemini May 21-june 20 find out what a needed at Home. Help out family members or do work around the House. Cancer june 21-july 22 Surprise your mate with a romantic evening. Getting out of the House for a while can be a Nice change. Leo july 23-aug 22 time to go Over the family budget. Put aside More Money for unexpected expenses Virgo aug. 23-sept. 22 it s a Day for communication. You May hear from a sibling or from an old love spend time with friends Libra sept 23-oct 22 do something innovative with your Home you May also want to entertain new and interesting friends. Copley news servicepa3e 10 a sunday november 10, 1991