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Then today while driving, I saw a man fall while trying to cross the road. No one stopped to help him, and when the light turned green the car in front started to beep their horn at the man to get out of the road! I couldn鈥檛 help but was shocked no one else did.

And then just when I thought it couldn鈥檛 get any worse, I saw a man almost get run over by a moving van on a side street downtown. The scariest thing I have ever witnessed.

Is it me?

Full Moon or what?

A Happily, it has nothing to do with you. It鈥檚 just an unfortunate coincidence you have been witness to all these unfortunate incidents in a very short time span. No one has that kind of control over their environment to alter the course of other people (and animal鈥檚 lives) subconsciously. To believe you have that power is called ‘magical thinking,’ which is defined as聽鈥渢he belief that one’s thoughts, words or actions can influence the real world, even when there’s no logical connection between them.鈥�

You can blame it on the full moon if you like, however, there is no scientific proof a full moon has any effect on humans or animals alike. It is a myth, and it persists because of what鈥檚 referred to as an ‘illusory correlation,’ because our brains are wired to find connections between events even when none exist.

The only correlation between what you have witnessed, the full moon and how you feel may be due to a lack of REM sleep , which could then be affecting your overall mood and the way you鈥檙e reacting to these incidents. My advice? Go back to bed.

Q My company has insisted we start working more from the office. I don鈥檛 mind as my children are in school full-time, and I can arrive and leave when it suits me.

My issue is there are other people in the office who don鈥檛 seem to understand that an ‘open office’ conceptually means that everyone can hear everyone else, see everyone else and smell everyone else. Many of the 20-somethings come in and out reeking of various types of smoke, from tobacco to fruity vape to pot. They鈥檙e loud, they sing, they laugh, which is all fine except I can鈥檛 concentrate on the work I need to get done.

I understand the younger generations have all figured out how to live with undiagnosed ADHD (since COVID, who doesn’t suffer?) and can handle a barrage of sensory information all at once. But I鈥檓 in my 40s and can鈥檛 handle it.

How do I manage this?

Too Much Distraction

A Talk to your supervisor, manager, boss whomever you feel can help you. Perhaps there is an office behind closed doors you could occupy? Perhaps there is a boardroom you could utilize a few times a week. Perhaps you could request to work from home one day a week, or even two, if you can impress upon them how much more productive you are there than in an office surrounded by so many other people.

Worst case scenario, you could get noise-cancelling ear plugs, but that鈥檚 not very office-friendly and then paints you as anti-social and unapproachable.

FEEDBACK Regarding aging parents (June 16):

Reader:聽鈥淭he sons should ensure that the parents have made valid and legal Powers of Attorney for health and financial affairs and a will.

鈥淗aving gone through a traumatic 10 years with my mother-in-law, this is essential.聽Two of her children changed POA to themselves from another sibling, without notification. At 91, they had her take out a mortgage on her mortgage-free home so they could purchase property, in their names.聽

鈥淭he other siblings only found out after it was too late.聽

鈥淭here are limited things that can be done to protect elders from abuse by family members.聽I know because we tried everything.

鈥淭he family is broken and those not involved in this scam were denied access to my mother-in-law, even on her deathbed.聽It鈥檚 a blessing she never understood what was happening, but a tragedy for the other siblings.鈥�