Dear Abby: The letter about club drugs really hit home. I would like to warn all young women about the potential for their drinks of being 'dosed" with these drugs without their knowledge.
I went to a neighborhood bar over Thanksgiving weekend and found myself feeling very woozy and overintoxicated for the amount I had to drink. I had left my drink on the bar while I went to use the ladies room, and when I came back, it tasted strange. Since it was a new drink, I assumed the bartender had mixed it differently.
Shortly after consuming this drink, I became sick to my stomach and light-headed. A fellow I had chatted with — and who coincidentally had offered to watch my drink — started asking me questions about how I felt and if I wanted a place to crash. I have no doubt he had less than innocent intentions.
Fortunately, two gentlemen came to my aid. They stayed by my side, talking to me, keeping me alert, calling a car service for me and making sure the other guy didn't bother me.
I left the bar before thanking them; so, Abby, please let me thank them now.
Ladies: Do not leave your drink unattended, no matter what! And if the drink tastes "funny," don't drink it! While most of these drugs are tasteless and odorless, others have a salty taste. Just be careful! — Christine in Midlothian, Va.
Dear Christine: You are a lucky young woman. You had a very close call. The young man who doctored your drink is a predator.
Your comments about never leaving a drink unattended are important. I hope young people will pay attention. It may seem like a cold reality, but it's part of being streetwise and self-protective.
Dear Abby: I am a volunteer at a local animal shelter, and I'm deeply concerned about pet owners who do not take full responsibility for the safety of their pets. Every day dogs and cats are brought in off the streets without tags or identification. Many of them are wonderful, loving pets who belong to someone who didn't bother to put identification on them for one reason or another. As a result, thousands of these wonderful animals are put to death every year because their owners can't be located.
Abby, it is heartbreaking to have to euthanize healthy animals due to lack of shelter space and available homes. Please inform your readers of the importance of putting ID tags on their pets. It could save a lot of heartache. — Animal Lover in Bend, Ore.
Dear Animal Lover: I'm pleased to publicize this important reminder to pet owners. Dogs and cats are curious creatures who often like to wander. If the animal is picked up, proper identification can literally mean the difference between life and death, so please don't procrastinate.
Dear Abby: After reading the letters about obscene phone calls, I thought you might be interested in the one I received the summer of my surgery. When I answered the phone I heard heavy breathing. Then someone with a deep voice said, "I've been watching . . . I've been watching you getting undressed every night."
I started to laugh because I knew it couldn't be true. I was in a body cast from underarms to hips — and confined to bed for four months! The caller then asked, "What's so funny?"
I said: "You'd better get glasses; I'm in a body cast."
There was no comment after that, just silence on the other end of the phone. That was the end of my one and only obscene call. — Still Amused in Canada
Dear Still Amused: Although few people would welcome a call from a self-identified Peeping Tom, you appear to have handled yours quite well. Thank heaven for caller ID, the feature that makes it difficult for obscene callers to get through without exposing themselves, and for call-blocking, which cuts them off entirely.
Dear Abby: Some friends of ours had a good solution for the folks who had "Mr. Uninvited" show up unexpectedly for dinner. They had a problem with a couple who regularly arrived just in time for dinner.
After dinner was over, they calmly put their plates down on the floor and let the dogs lick them completely clean. Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, they picked up the plates and put them away in the cupboard! The uninvited guests never showed up around dinner time again.
Cleanliness is next to dogliness. — Eliot from Portland
Dear Eliot: Cleanliness may be next to dogliness, but I'm praying that yours was a shaggy dog story. If it's not, there's no telling what you've unleashed.
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