Up & Coming Weekly

OCTOBER 7-13, 2009 UCW 31 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM ADVICE GODDESS Lien on Me My 31-year-old boyfriend has the best clothes, cars, electronics, takes me to the nicest restaurants...you get the picture. He told me he was "an investor," working for himself, making online investments. I eventually asked how he could afford his lifestyle in this economy. He said he "comes from money," and has a trust fund. To me, the fact that his father's a doctor only confirmed there was family money. After six months, he took me to meet his parents. I assumed we'd pull up to a mansion, but it was an apartment complex reminiscent of college housing! I'm not materialistic. I'm from a blue-collar family and have worked since I was 15 (I'm 27). But after a year together, I'm wondering whether he's a liar with tons of debt. Asking questions is hard because I don't want him to think it's the money I care about. I love him and believe he may be "the one," but may rethink that if he's carrying a million in debt. — Worried If you don't get to the bottom of this, little things you take for granted — like being able to afford the bologna portion of your bologna sandwich — could become a really big deal. Suddenly, "grabbing something at the store" means running out fast enough to elude the fat security guard. You're way overdue for figuring out whether this man and his means are living apart — probably because you're kinda jazzed by all the things money can buy, and feel guilty because of it. Sure, if this guy is on the level, just by being with him, you could eat daily at a fine restaurant, and not because management is nice enough to feed you before your shift. Keep in mind, you weren't looking down the bar with tiny binoculars to see which guy whipped out a platinum card. You're a hardworking girl who fell for an "investor" with no apparent means of support — unless you count his daddy, supposedly a doctor with piles of money who's living like he just completed his residency to be a lawn doctor. Your boyfriend may have a trust fund of sorts ("Trust me, Pops, this is the last time you'll have to bail me out"). Even if he has a permanent pipeline to serious family money, can you really respect a 31-year- old man who's still living off Mommy and Daddy? After all, it's not like he's doing it to bring clean water to poor villagers in Africa. I'd guess that he's day-trading, a profession that works for many like that old joke about how to make a small fortune in aviation (start with a big one). Unfortunately, it's human nature to keep believing that your big score is just around the corner — the corner you hurry your girlfriend by when you're trying to pass off the repo man as a valet with a tow truck. Appearances can be deceiving — especially to girls too needy for love and fearful of disapproval to say "Yoohoo, what's that red flag over there?" Early on, you get information by giving it: talking about how you grew up and how you see money, and drawing his background and values out of him. You look for incongruities (especially outrageous ones) and ask about them until you get satisfactory answers. That's what you need to do now — after laying out your feelings for him and your fears. If he explodes or just stonewalls, the truth is probably what you suspect: A fool and his lines of credit are soon parted, and sure, you'll be able to take your kids to the dentist — as soon as you find a buyer for your left kidney. Amy Alkon WEEKLY HOROSCOPE THIS WEEK in the STARS www.Astrology-101.com ARIES - March 21 thru April 20 Positive developments are indicated as Full Moon moves thru your sign. Condi- tions are right for getting cooperation in the months ahead in furthering goals. TAURUS - April 21 thru May 21 An attitude is just as important as a fact. Full Moon may bring answers to questions. Your hunches are reliable as to whether or not you're on the right track. GEMINI - May 22 thru June 21. Visualization combined with positive thoughts help to bring ideas to reality as Full Moon moves thru your sector of Hopes and Wishes. CANCER - June 22 thru July 23 Community and career fulfi llment are in your stars as the Full Moon moves across the top of your solar chart. A fresh viewpoint can make all the difference. LEO - July 24 thru August 23 Your interests may turn to spiritual or educational updates as the Full Moon moves thru your sector of long and ambitious undertakings. VIRGO - August 24 thru Sept 23 Favorable planetary forces work in your behalf as Full Moon moves thru your Financial sector. New Opportunities may soon demand more of your time. LIBRA - Sept 24 thru Oct 23 Favorable Full Moon aspects light the way for newer and more meaningful relationships. Times of change bring improved conditions. SCORPIO - Oct 24 thru Nov 22 Introduce talents at workplace. An op- portunity to realize your ambitions could be coming sooner than you think. Being adapt- able to change will open new doors. SAGITTARIUS - Nov 23 thru Dec 21 Full Moon moves thru your sector of Romance and Creativity, Changes for the better are part of your picture now. New contacts bring new opportunities. CAPRICORN - Dec 22 thru Jan 20 . Domestic sector plays host to Full Moon. You'll be on solid ground if you're thinking of developing a profi table Home sideline. Your talents are money-makers. AQUARIUS - Jan 21 thru Feb 19 Full Moon favors interests in nearby places. The old adage is true! If at fi rst you didn't succeed, try again! This is a time to follow up on people you've been with before. PISCES - Feb 20 thru March 2F0 Be alert to the increased benefi ts new technologies can bring as Full Moon moves thru your Money sector. Ideas should come to those who are creative. NEWS OF THE WEIRD A male Swedish college student, Ragnar Bengtsson, 26, has begun pumping his breasts at three-hour intervals in a 90-day experiment to see if he can produce milk. If he succeeds, he said, it could prove "very important for men's ability to get much closer to their children at an early stage." A professor of endocrinology told the daily Aftonbladet that male lactation without hormone treatment might produce "a drop or two," but suggested that men instead consider offering their breasts to babies as a matter of comfort and warmth, rather than as food. Bengtsson, who will report regularly on his progress via Stockholm's TV8 channel and the station's Web site, acknowledged that his timetable would sometimes require that he pump during classes. [The Local (Stockholm), 9-2-09; Aftonbladet, 9-2-09] Compelling Explanations Improbably Successful Pick-up Line: In September, school offi cials in Australia's Queensland state said they were investigating an incident earlier in the year in which two teenagers had consensual sex that they recorded on a cell phone camera. The girl reportedly said she was convinced to lose her virginity out of fear that the world would soon end as a result of the scheduled re-start of the Large Hadron Collider near Geneva, Switzerland, later this year. [Courier-Mail (Brisbane), 9-2-09] Police in Deer Lake, Newfoundland, decided in August not to press charges against three boys whom they had previously believed had harassed a young moose so badly that it had to be put down. A fi nal piece of evidence against prosecution came from the father of one of the boys, who vouched that the three could not have committed such a crime since they had been busy at the time, vandalizing a nearby church. [Canadian Broadcasting Corporation News, 8-12- 09] My Fault: A 60-year-old highway worker was injured when struck by motorist Catherine Stotts, 62, who was speeding down a blocked-off road construction lane near Willits, Calif., in July. The worker required hospitalization, but Stotts complained about receiving a traffi c citation, telling offi cers that the man could have jumped out of the way faster. [Willets News, 7-10-09] Alexander Kabelis, 31, was arrested for slashing tires on almost 50 vehicles in Boulder, Colo., in May, but offered several explanations, including being overwhelmed by radiation from the nearby Rocky Flats nuclear facility and having been forced by his mother to wear braces on his teeth as a child. [Denver Post, 5-22-09]

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