RSS Feed

DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend and I have been together for five years, and friends for eight. We share a daughter, who is a toddler. I have a son with my abusive ex as well. Although we are financially stable, we qualify as low-income. (I am the breadwinner.)
My boyfriend had a hard home life and was a troubled youth growing up. He has a criminal history, which is why my family opposed our relationship. He’s a wonderful father and has changed his life, but we have experienced many hardships because of his past. Because of a phone call from my ex, the state picked up his most recent charge from four years ago, and he is now facing prison time for a crime he did not commit.
We are both devastated. He has become withdrawn and is now at a paranoid level of distrusting. I know he has every right to be upset. But after six months of urging him to seek professional help and fearing he regrets being with me, I’m wondering if I’m doing myself a disservice by not seeking happiness elsewhere. I know I should be there for him because he needs me. But he won’t make future plans or seek better job opportunities because of his fear of prison time. What should I do?
IN A CORNER IN WISCONSIN

DEAR IN A CORNER: You are in a difficult situation, but don’t cut and run just yet. Advise your boyfriend that reclaiming his future may require the help of a criminal defense attorney. Then help him find one who will take his case and defend him if the need arises. And while you are at it, maintain as much distance as you can from your vindictive ex.

DEAR ABBY: I’ve had a male friend, “Herb,” for more than 35 years. He has helped me a lot with things such as repairs at my home. Many years ago, I became pregnant, but the baby’s father and I didn’t end up together. When Herb offered to marry me and raise my child as his own, that’s when I realized he had feelings for me. I explained that this was a kind offer, but I could not reciprocate his feelings.
Over the past 10 years, Herb has become touchy-feely, and it makes me very uncomfortable. He will kiss me on my forehead or come from behind me and hold me or hug me while rubbing my back. I have told him how it makes me feel and he laughs it off. He also makes remarks like, “Oh, I’ve never been in your bedroom,” or while we’re on the phone he tells me he is in bed and we are having pillow talk. What can I do? He’s been a good friend, and I hate to lose his friendship, but I really don’t know what else I can say to him to make him understand how he makes me feel.
TOO FRIENDLY IN OHIO

DEAR TOO FRIENDLY: Try this: When Herb gives you an unwanted kiss or hug, tell him you do not enjoy it when he invades your personal space and you don’t want it to happen again. If he brings up the subject of your bedroom or alludes to pillow talk during a phone call, get off the phone immediately. (“Gotta go now!”) Frankly, what he has been doing is creepy. If it continues, you will have to end the relationship and hire a handyman.
***
To receive a collection of Abby’s most memorable — and most frequently requested — poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $8 to: Dear Abby — Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447.

Renard Burdis, Jr., a resident and native of Houma, La., passed away on Saturday September 19, 2021.
Visitation will be observed from 12:30 p.m. until funeral services at 2 p.m. on Saturday, October 2, 2021 at Jones Funeral Home chapel, 230 S. Hollywood Road, Houma, La., 70360. (All visitors are asked to adhere to the CDC-local regulations by wearing masks and practicing social distancing.) Burial will follow in the Gardens of Memory Cemetery in Gray.
Memories of Renard, Jr., will forever remain in the hearts of his parents, Renard Burdis Sr. and Angela Van Buren; siblings, Damein Burdis, Latoya Van Buren, Brittany Van Buren, and Rayona Burdis; grandfather,, Isiah Toussaint; two nieces, one nephew, eight uncles, eleven aunts, other relatives and friends.
Renard, Jr. was preceded in death by his grandparents, maternal grandmother, paternal grandparents, and an aunt.
Arrangements entrusted to Jones Funeral Home of Morgan City-Franklin-Jeanerette and Houma. Visit www.jones-funeral-home.com to send condolences to family.

It wasn’t the average City Council meeting.
Lots of people attended. Some of them were kids. There was cake.
Tuesday’s Morgan City Council meeting was, in fact, a celebration, and a time to honor a favorite son.
Mayor Pro Tem Tim Hymel, also the Morgan City High principal, and Mayor Lee Dragna presented a key to the city to Vernon Norwood, an MCHS grad and winner of gold and bronze medals at the Tokyo Olympics.
“Today’s the day I can finally say I’m from Morgan City,” said Norwood, who moved to the city with his family from New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Morgan City had ample reason to be proud of Norwood even before the Olympics.
A late-comer to track, who took up the sport as a Morgan City High junior, he went on to win National Junior College Athletic Association titles at South Plains College before transferring to LSU.
There, he became only the seventh athlete to win both NCAA indoor and outdoor titles in the 400 meters.
In his introduction of Norwood, Hymel said a hamstring injury kept Norwood out of the 2016 Olympics, and then COVID-19 forced the postponement of the 2020 games.
But the Olympics returned this summer. And Norwood anchored the 4x400 mixed relay team that won a bronze medal.
And he was a key component of the men’s 4x400 relay team, helping the team qualify for the finals. There, the 4x400 men’s quartet won the gold.
Norwood became “our gold medalist from Morgan City, Louisiana,” Hymel said.
Dragna described him as “a very humble young man, and very talented.”
“I just want to thank the entire city of Morgan City,” Norwood said. “Your support for me has been very, very strong.”
He talked about one aspect of his newfound fame: frequent requests to sign pictures.
“I’ve never seen some of these pictures,” Norwood said. “Where did they get them?”
But he remains thankful.
“Thank you all for supporting me,” Norwood said. “God is good.”
“He represented Morgan City, Louisiana, St. Mary Parish and, of course, the United States of America,” Hymel said. “And you can see how humble he is.”
Also at Tuesday’s meeting:
—The proposed 2022 general fund and capital budgets were introduced.
The budget anticipates revenue of $42.9 million, up slightly from the current year, and about $42.9 million in spending.
A budget workshop for council members is scheduled for 4 p.m. Oct. 13.
—Gerald A. Thibodeaux Jr. of Kolder, Slaven & Co. presented the audit of city finances for 2020.
The audit report was positive. It identified only a technical departure from accounting rules resulting from the separate budgets for the city court and city marshal.
“I’d say the city, as far as financial strength, is steady,” Thibodeaux said.
—Dragna praised city department heads and employees for their work during and after Hurricane Ida. Look for more in a story Thursday.
—Positive Image awards went to Clarion Inn, which took in utility linemen and offered extra food and laundry services during Ida’s aftermath, and Grace Eisenmann of The Market. Eisenmann turned an old supermarket building into a place for craftspeople to display and sell their products.

The mask mandate imposed by Gov. John Bel Edwards last month will remain in place at least through Oct. 27, Edwards announced Tuesday.
He said the COVID-19 statistics for the fourth wave of coronavirus infections are improving, but the entire state remains in the highest of four CDC risk categories for community COVID spread.
On Tuesday, the Louisiana Office of Public Health reported a pandemic total of 8,354 COVID-19 cases in St. Mary, up by only 49 since Friday.
The St. Mary COVID-19 death toll stands at 209. One death was reported Tuesday, the first fatality since Thursday.
Through August and into September, the parish averaged more than one COVID-related death per day.
The fourth spike in COVID cases that began in early July has claimed 62 St. Mary lives.
Statewide, the OPH reported 1,031 new COVID-19 cases Tuesday along with 54 deaths.
The number of COVID-positive people in Louisiana hospitals was at 989 Tuesday, down by more than two-thirds from the peak of over 3,000 in August.
The burden on hospitals from the new COVID wave, just as Louisiana schools were ready to reopen, led Edwards to call for the mask mandate for people in indoor public spaces, including K-12 schools and colleges and universities.
The fourth wave of infections has been blamed by public health officials on the highly contagious and potent Delta variant of COVID-19.
First confirmed in Louisiana in early July, the Delta variant quickly became the dominant form of the disease. Public health officials eventually warned that Delta is so contagious that people face a choice between vaccination and infection.
St. Mary Parish’s vaccination rate has climbed from about 29% to 37.95% since July, according to the OPH dashboard as of Tuesday morning. Louisiana’s vaccination rate is at 45%.
The OPH says 86% of new cases, 85% of hospitalizations and 81% deaths from COVID-19 in Louisiana are among those who are not fully vaccinated.
The question of booster shots has also become controversial recently.
Currently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance says the effectiveness of vaccines has been shown to decrease over time.
Currently, people who have received the Pfizer vaccine and are 65 or over and people 18 and over who have health conditions that make them vulnerable to COVID, or who live or work in high-risk environments are eligible for a Pfizer booster shot.
Public Health Officer Dr. Joe Kanter said the effect of the fourth COVID wave on children and pregnant women has been “depressing.”
Since July, COVID has been linked to 14 problem pregnancies. Those cases resulted in the deaths of six mothers, all unvaccinated, and 10 fetal deaths.
Seven children have died of COVID-related causes in the fourth wave, nearly as many as in the first 15 months of the pandemic, Kanter said.