Keep cat in the house, don't engage crazy neighbour

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: My neighbour stole my cat. I know because I saw my orange cat looking out that woman's upstairs window. I went over and demanded she give my cat back, and told her I had seen the cat. She tried to close the door on me, but I stuck my foot in. I stopped her, and said I was going to call the police to search her house. She then said, "Well, maybe it wandered into my house. Let me have a look around and get back to you." Just then my cat came whizzing by her big, fat ankles and ran out the door. I scooped her up, called the (witch) a bunch of names and took my baby home, meowing like she hadn't eaten for days. She ate and ate like she's been starving, then puked and went to sleep for hours. I don't want to press charges, for my own reasons, but I don't want her to get away with this, either. What can I do to her to teach her a lesson? -- Spitting Mad, Elmwood

Dear Spitting: People get themselves into big trouble when they take the law into their own hands. And, a dirty trick done in retaliation with a crazy person can start a long, scary feud. For the cat's sake, it's best to keep her in now. This woman is strange and it's manifesting itself around your pet at this point. She may decide to steal your cat back and hide her better. You don't know how weird she is. If you don't own the place you're living in, consider a move to another rental or apartment. Bad neighbours can lower your mood when you are home and raise your blood pressure. Who needs it?

Dear Miss Lonelyhearts: Well, this is the second day of staying home from work and crying. I will drag my butt out of here and go back tomorrow. But, I am so hurt and PO'd. I got passed over for a promotion because I am supposedly "lazy." I know I don't try to look fake-busy when we're not. But I'm a nice person and always show up for work and I thought maybe they'd think they could motivate me by giving me something more simulating to do. I asked the boss outright for the job and he looked at me funny. How can I be expected to work hard when business is slow and nobody's coming in to order burgers. There's nothing to do so I don't fake it. Now, a person who started five months after me has leap-frogged over me and gotten the job I should have had by rights. I am 17 and I'm no dummy. I'm just struggling along, like everybody else. They should be happy to pay me for my being there when it's slow and boring because somebody has to take care of the place. I can't afford to quit. What would I do? I only have Grade 10. -- Very Hurt, Ft. Rouge

Dear Hurt: Business is a whole different world from family. The boss is not worried about making things fair for you, or whose turn it is for a raise or a promotion, or how long you've been there. The idea is to make money from the business and have a staff who look alive and who don't lie around the place and make people think the place is slack. Your boss has decided you are a layabout, so you're lucky you even have a job at all. It's time to start looking for new work and to take on a new attitude. You need work that's very active and you should say that on your resumés. Since you don't have a big education, you should do a skills resumé where you list all the things you can do, from baking a cake to chopping wood for a fire.

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Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition June 5, 2012 C4