Abuser tries to turn over new leaf to save family
DEAR ABBY » My wife and I have been married for five years, with two children. I have been putting my hands on her in such a bad way that she’s saying we are no longer a family and she wants a divorce.
I’m currently going to church and Sunday school and Bible study. I will do anything and everything I can to get my family back because I don’t want to lose them. What can I do to get them back?
— Learning a Lesson
in Nevada
DEAR LEARNING » A good first step would be for you to gain some insight about what triggers you to act out violently. A course in anger management could help you break this destructive pattern. Search online for a program near you. After that, if your wife sees you are making a sincere effort, she may trust you enough to risk reuniting. A warning, however: Do not pressure her. This will have to be HER decision.
DEAR ABBY » I have a new job in a small office. I have never been comfortable meeting new people or learning a new job, so in order to appear friendly, I’d chime in to the office conversations. Later, I found out the owner audio records the office. Everyone
else knew it, but I was NEVER informed. Abby, is it a common and legal practice for employers to bug offices?
DEAR BIG MOUTH » This is a question you should ask an attorney who specializes in employment law. In several states, it is illegal for an employer to record conversations without first informing all the parties involved. You should have been informed at the time you were hired that this was company policy.