Ask Emily
By Jeremy Fogt on May. 01, 2008
Dear Emily: My mother is extremely overweight, and I worry about her health. She refuses to go to a gym because she is too self-conscious of her appearance. Plus, when I ask her about exercise, she just gets mad that I’m “nagging” her. Is there anyway I can help my mom, or is she just going to have to learn to help herself?
— Weighing options
Dear Weighing options: You’re just in luck. Mother’s Day is right around the corner, and what better gift is there than helping your mom add years to her life? Sign her up for a gym and buy her a new exercise outfit and snazzy water bottle as a way to get her excited about starting something new. Most gyms have classes, so include a schedule of them in her gift package, with the ones highlighted that you think she’ll enjoy. Try choosing ones with mostly females and people in her age bracket so she feels more comfortable. You can’t force your mom to go to the gym, and I can’t guarantee she won’t see this gift as just more nagging, but it will definitely show you care and maybe even guilt her into working out!
Dear Emily: I am a high school student who wants to “go green” and do more for the environment like
everyone else, but I feel like there is not a lot someone my age can do, besides recycle. Any ideas?
— Here to help
Dear Here to help: Good for you for taking an initiative! There is plenty you can do yourself, and plenty you can get other students to do as well. If you don’t have an environmental club at your school already, talk to your science teacher about starting one up as a way to spread the word about “going green.” As you mentioned, you can recycle, but you can also ride your bike to school once a week instead of having your parents drive you. Also, ask your mom and people at school to try and buy products made of recycled paper. Other things you can do include volunteering to clean up a stream or park, planting some trees, or boycotting products bad for the environment.
Dear Emily: I am very upset about your response last week to “God is great.” You told the writer to ignore a confrontational co-worker who was belittling his faith and not to waste time trying to teach this person something about faith because she “obviously is a close-minded individual.” How are you justified in calling someone close-minded just because they don’t share the same religious beliefs as you do? >— Irritated over insult
Dear Irritated over insult: Thank you for your response. However, the problem with your argument is the assumption that I am calling someone close-minded “just because” they don’t have similar religious beliefs as I do. I believe I am justified in calling this belittling, co-worker close-minded because she was unable to accept that there are opinions out there that differ from her own. She couldn’t see past her own beliefs to realize how insulting she was being to the other individual (a Catholic), by making fun of the Pope and saying adults were acting like star struck teenagers in his presence. So yeah, I think that qualifies as close-minded. J
--Have a question on love, life, or etiquette? Don’t be shy — Ask Emily at or write in care of The Burg, P.O. Box 10129, Lynchburg, VA 24506. Then go to http://www.the-burg.com and leave a comment.
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