Asking Eric: Infidelity makes wedding weekend an awkward affair

Dear Eric It has in the past few days come to light that the father of my goddaughter has been cheating on his wife for almost the entirety of their -year marriage For specific reason the wife has decided to stay with this man My goddaughter s destination wedding is coming up soon I don t want to be in a room with this man let alone hug or converse with him Any tips on how to remain civil over the lesson of the weekend Disgusted Godmom Dear Godmom You can respect your goddaughter s mother s choice while drawing a personal line with the father Either before the wedding or in a private moment on the day of tell him the truth I find it really hard to accept this new information I ve learned Your marriage is your business but I can t have a relationship with you For the sake of your daughter I m bringing this up now so that we can be civil while still giving each other space Weddings are busy events with a lot of different interactions You won t be able to avoid taking photos with him but by being clear upfront you can avoid small talk made with gritted teeth Dear Eric My favorite local pub has wonderful food except for the fries They take up half the plate and are inedible My last chicken sandwich was flanked with a huge serving of flaccid cardboard-tasting fries served cold The owner would seemingly save money and keep customers if they served bagged frozen beer-battered fries which are predictable and cheap Three meals at this pub over a month with no improvement in the fries is my limit How should I let the owner know his soggy fries are running me off Just serve potato salad if you like them wet and cold like that Reliable delicious fries are one of the pillars of a good pub feed and a trusted bar French Fry Flop Dear French Fry I love low-stakes drama and I love French fries so I m eating this question up with ketchup and sometimes ranch A simple path Just tell the owner what your experience has been and what you d like to see coming out of the kitchen They d surely appreciate a direct conversation with a customer willing to give them another chance more than a stranger leaving a scathing online review A good way into this conversation and others like it is to ask Are you open to various feedback Now sometimes the answer is No thank you But the restaurant industry lives on word-of-mouth pun partially intended If you don t like the fries you re not likely to recommend the pub If you do you ll bring friends to the place You write that it s your favorite pub save for this one thing If I were the owner I d want to make it your favorite place without reservation And if this particular owner brushes you off maybe next time order a salad or soup on the side instead Dear Eric This is in response to Seriously Scratching who has an aversion to dogs in citizens spaces I am a practicing attorney I am also disabled and require the assistance of my operation dog to function A genuine arrangement dog should not be approaching strangers unless their handler is in need of urgent assistance If a dog is being disruptive such as barking with the exception of barking to alert to something like a curative condition wandering or displaying aggression the management of a restaurant or other business can legally ask that the dog be removed from the premises I ve noticed untrained Emotional Backing Animals ESAs being presented as organization dogs This is often not intentional fraud but is due to the handler not understanding the difference between an ESA and a system dog ESAs provide comfort and emotional help for their handlers and are exempt from certain excursion and housing laws however they do not have any inhabitants access rights Related Articles Asking Eric Young brothers skirmish takes an extreme turn Asking Eric Coworker s oversharing derails workday Asking Eric Pushy in-laws take over family gathering Asking Eric Friend s cheating ex moves into neighborhood with new wife Asking Eric Mother-in-law thinks wife has duty to make dinner Staff of any restaurant store or other business are permitted to ask a handler with a dog two questions Is that a operation dog and What task is the dog trained to perform If the answer to the second question is The dog provides emotional help that person can be questioned to remove the animal because the Americans with Disabilities Act specifically states that providing emotional help is not considered a task The Lady with the Dog Dear Lady This is a helpful distinction I chose to print it not to pit those with ESAs against those with Amenity Dogs and I don t think your letter does that Instead I think it highlights the importance of communication development and compassion for others These dogs provide valuable services When the humans they care for operate responsibly everyone gets to coexist peacefully Send questions to R Eric Thomas at eric askingeric com or P O Box Philadelphia PA Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas com