Blind Justice And Then Some
Dear Ann Landers: Do you dare print one more letter about a goofy judge? I hope so because this story is extraordinary. The article appeared in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. - J.N., Golden Valley, Minn.
Dear J.N.: It is indeed “extraordinary.” Thanks for sending it on. Does anyone in Wisconsin have an explanation for this? I am totally baffled. Here’s the story:
“A golf course was mostly at fault when a golfer, who drank eight beers and five mixed drinks, fell as he left the clubhouse, breaking his jaw and shattering his teeth on a brick path, a Wisconsin court ruled.
“The 3rd District Court of Appeals upheld a Marathon County judge’s decision that found Indianhead Golf and Recreation Inc. of Mosinee was more negligent because of its 14-year-old ramp of terra-lock bricks that led from the clubhouse bar.
“Gaps in the bricks were an ‘initiating factor’ in causing Dale L. Larson of Schofield to fall, even though Larson had ‘a significant amount of intoxication,’ the panel said. A doctor testified at the trial that Larson was in a stupor, with a blood-alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit to drive. Larson was awarded $41,540 in damages.”
Dear Ann Landers: We are well into the cold and flu season, and I am once again appalled by co-workers who insist on coming to work coughing and sneezing, sicker than dogs, not only with severe colds but contagious conditions such as strep throat. They don’t seem to care that they are spreading their germs all over the place.
Are they really that indispensable to warrant exposing an office full of people to a serious illness? Ann, this is a workplace with sick leave benefits and understanding bosses, so that is not the problem.
How do I get the message across? I have expressed both concern and frustration, to no avail. I’ve got kids at home and we all need to stay as healthy as possible. I think you should publish this letter - maybe some people will recognize themselves when it is posted on office bulletin boards everywhere. - Healthy Co-Worker in the U.S.A.
Dear Healthy Co-Worker: There is no way you can force a co-worker with a rotten cold to stay home if he or she insists on coming to work. Stay as far away as possible from “Typhoid Mary” and “Freddie Flu Bug,” and perhaps the chill of isolation will work.
Dear Ann Landers: I am not writing to ask for advice - I’m writing to give it. This is for all the nurses who read your column. Put it in big letters, please.
DO NOT MARRY YOUR PATIENT. I did, and it was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done. My husband is a confirmed hypochondriac. If he has the slightest ache or pain, he goes to bed and I am expected to take care of him. He also has the idea that nurses are physicians, as well. He wants me to prescribe medicine and call a doctor friend to OK the prescription.
We have three kids, and I’m stuck, but I wish I had read a letter like this 10 years ago. - Lawrence, Kan.
Dear Kan.: I wonder if this is an isolated case. I’d like to hear from other nurses who married their patients. Please write and tell me if you have any regrets and if your spouse thinks you are a doctor, too.