Short-Sighted Plans

 

Happy New Years Eve! Wishing all the best for 2021. Maybe have some long-term plans, but also short-term ones are good. I haven't seriously considered Lasik, but it would be nice to not need glasses. I use to wear contacts most of the time, but since the Lockdowns started I have been sticking with my glasses. No sense putting in contacts if I'm just staying around the house? But contacts are nicer when wearing a mask since they don't fog up. 

Text:
A: Why did she tell me to Lasik my plans?
B: I'm guessing they're short-sighted.

Meeting Review

 

I misheard something like this at work and it fit. Normally called a recap, but after some meetings it's better said this way. I'm grateful for remote work where you can doodle without people watching you (and also you can do some code review when the topic isn't relevant to you specifically). But many meetings are good and helpful and it's nice to know what all the company is doing, even if they go to a level that's not specifically relevant to me. 

Text:
A: As we wrap up this three hour meeting, let's take the last fifteen minutes to recrap what we've covered so far.
B,C: *frustration*

Rhino Virus

 

Today I learned that rhinoviruses are named from the Greek 'rhinos' which means 'of the nose' and that makes sense. At least 'horn erupting from face' is not a common symptom of the common cold! I wonder if cases of colds have gone down this year since so many people are staying indoors, away from people and the weather. I'm sure someone has the data on that, but I don't know how it's calculated since so many people (many of them children) get colds and just tough it out, so there wouldn't be records of them.

Text:
A: I wasn't feeling well, then this horn erupted on my face!
B: Ah, classic rhino virus. 

Mary Knew

 

Merry Christmas Eve!

One of my friends on Facebook posted basically along the same lines, that yes she knew. She didn't know all the intricate details, but she wasn't going into this blind. The song being referenced is "Mary, Did You Know?" which asks that question many times. Also, new to me, someone re-wrote the lyrics borrowing phrases from the Magnificat to show that she did know, and I kinda like it. I get that the original song has its charm, but it does kinda paint Mary in a clueless light. She couldn't know everything that would happen, but she did know quite a bit. 

Text:
A: *singing* Mary, did you know -
M: YES! An angel literally appeared and told me! Also, I know my Messianic prophesies.

SCALE

 

The characters are Nestor the Long-Eared Christmas Donkey (not to be confused with Dominick the Donkey, who has average-sized ears), Jumbo Jr. (Dumbo), and Pascal.  Wow, how many hyperlinks can I include? The pun in there which I'm quite proud of is that the group's name has the initials 'SCALE' and is for cartoons with abnormally large ears, and Pascal has scales but no ears (since he's a chameleon). Will I make a follow-up about the group Pascal is headed to? No promises since I haven't thought up a proper pun for it yet. 

Text:
Banner: Society of Cartoons with Abnormally Large Ears
Nestor: Sorry Pascal - you're in the wrong group.

Silent Night on Percussion

 

I don't recall what sparked this one but now that I think of it, I have not heard such a rendition. I think the song is better fitted for a strings rendition, maybe a harp. Hand chimes would be nice - I played them in high school as part of the hand bells chorus. That was enjoyable. I played in college, too. Also, I am now imagining these characters are the announcers from Holey Moley.

Text:
JT: Our next contestant is a drummer who will play "Silent Night."
RR: Well, that's unexpected.

Jingle Bell Rock

Sometimes coming up with holiday themed comics is hard. Sometimes it's because I came up with them then put them in my holiday folder and didn't think to look there until after the holiday. Thankfully I didn't file this one away, so that's good. Hey I should check that folder and whaaaat I found some Christmas comics.
Wasn't sure the best way to draw a rock but it turned out more like a lump of coal and that's Christmas themed so that's good?

AAHAHHHHHHH Christmas is in a week and that is super close and I need to finish my crochet projects. And wrap them up. And probably make cookies. 

The song is Jingle Bell Rock, which is all about the secular side of Christmas and not the actual reason for the season. 

Text: The classic Christmas song
Image: Three jingle bells and a rock

Team Names: Beta

 

Another list of team names! To explain, "beta" is used in tech to signify a new feature that isn't fully ready to the public - usually just released to a small set of users to get a feel for how it works and get feedback to make it ready for general release. The fish names were picked because Beta fish are loners (have to be in a tank by themselves and yes they can live in small quarters but no they should not, give them space), Marlins have pointy noses (i.e. sharp, cutting-edge), and Goldfish are known for their short memory span. 

Text:
A: Would you like to join the Beta team?
B: I do like cutting-edge stuff.
A: Oh, that'd be the Marlin team. Beta is our solo projects. Goldfish is short-term projects. 

Team Names: Mobile

 ... We don't know what the Mobile team actually does. I realized as I'm scheduling this that I didn't explain what that team did, so I'm rolling with we just don't know.
To explain the pun, "Mobile" could be read as either "handheld computers and similar technology (i.e. Android/iOS)" or "a city in Alabama (i.e. Birmingham/Montgomery)". The other cities are all in Alabama, showing that the team names are just places in Alabama, not related to the technology handled by the teams. 

Text:
A: Would you like to join the Mobile team?
B: I do like Android development.
A: Oh, that's handled by the Birmingham team. Montgomery is the iOS team. 

Cloud Issues

 A classic what you say vs what they hear. I do think it's humorous to draw parallels between physical clouds and data clouds. If it's raining when you have a cloud issue, clearly the two are related. Also using the word 'nebulous' to describe cloud concepts is peak humor. Which reminds me of a word jumble game that we use to play (can't remember the title but it was on the original iPad) and we had the letters "bmnii" and could not figure it out - it was nimbi, the plural of nimbus. Well, I learned a new word that day and now maybe you did too!

Text:
What you say: The site is experiencing a cloud issue
What they hear: The data is out of alignment... due to the storm. 

Bicycle Built For Two

 I thought this one up a while ago but getting it down on paper (hah, rather on screen since I don't do the pencil-ink-erase-scan-crop-post anymore) took a while. Getting the bike to look like a bike was difficult until I gave up on free-handing and just used shapes. 
Down at my grandparent's beach house, there was a proper tandem bicycle and it was fun to ride as a kid because it was a free ride :) legs too short to contribute. 

Text:
Woman on man's shoulders: Who says this bicycle ISN'T built for two?
Man riding bike with woman on his shoulders: me. 

Probiotic vs Probionics

 

I think this comic was sparked by the probiotic vs antibiotic "debate" which has plenty of funny comics to it. I think bionics have come a long way and are an amazing advancement for all those who can use them. Probiotics are good too and you can get them from non-dairy yogurt! I know this because the labels say so. I don't know how they get the probiotics in there but apparently they do.

Text:
Title: Probiotics vs Probionics
Probiotics: Happy Tummy!
Probionics: Look at these legs! (holding bionic legs)

Sterile Environment

 

Happy early Birthday to my eldest sister! 
I feel like most people prefer seedless grapes but that could just be an assumption. Seedy grapes (that doesn't sound right) remind me of going to my Great-Grandmother's house because she liked them and I quickly learned to eat around the seeds but that's the only place I really remember having grapes with seeds. I liked going there and have many happy memories from my childhood with GG. Back to the comic, when thinking of hospital food only Jell-O comes to mind. I'm sure they have more food than that but it's the classic. I have not had Jell-O in a while - there is a family recipe for pretzel salad which is a 9x13 dessert and has Jell-O, strawberries, whipped cream, and a pretzel crust and is quite good. I also have a recipe for Dr. Pepper Jell-O salad which has Jell-O, fruit, and of course Dr. Pepper. I should make that again - it's quite good.

Text:
A: Why are all the grapes seedless in the hospital cafeteria?
B: It's a sterile environment! 

Vitals Taken

 

Happy December! Stay healthy out there. I thought this up after a doctor's appointment and thinking through the phrase 'taking your vitals' because yeah that'd be bad if taken (haha) literally. This comic layout is similar to one I drew a while ago about 'not dying on my watch' - oh here it is. Hah, a while ago is apparently eight years. That was near the beginning of my blog - it's interesting to see how my style has changed. And the layout between the two comics isn't overly similar but I guess it was the 'one person laying down' that triggered the link. Also not sure about the grammar in this one - should it be 'are' or 'is'? Neither seemed correct so I just picked 'are' since it's two items. Grammar is hard. 

Text:
A: Why are your blood pressure and temperature so low?!?
B: The nurse... took.... my vitals.

Silent Reflection

 

Our pastor gives a time for silent reflection at the beginning of our 11am service. I think I've done something like this comic in the past, might have been with Disney Princesses, possibly Jasmine or Snow White but I'm not totally remembering and I need a better way to organize my comics :) I kinda like how the reflection worked out. But seriously, it is a good thing to quiet your soul and focus when you are going to read from the Bible, so you can really absorb what is being shared. If you're looking for a solid, Bible-focused church, I recommend mine which can be found here with the sermons posted here. 

Text:
Princess looking at mirror: Mirror, Mirror on the wall - Please give me a moment of silent reflection.

Pick Your Battles

Happy Thanksgiving!
This is not an entirely original post, as the wording is from a text post I saw on a social media site. I just really wanted to draw it. It's true with children and also adults.
With the holiday that really starts The Holiday Season happening today, please keep in mind that you very rarely can change someone's mind through an argument. Listening with empathy, and the realization that you could change your mind just as (not) easily as they could, is important. Don't cause stressful situations and also remove yourself from said stressful situations if you find them starting. I like to bring a crochet project along and if topics are broached, I just go crochet. Focus on my pattern and creating beautiful things. It's nice to have an out, rather freeing actually, and I crochet even when it's not stressful so it's just a nice calming thing to do. 

Text:
A: Pick your battles!
B: *thinking*
A: No, wait....
B: *taking all the items symbolizing battles*
A: That's too many battles - put some of those back!
B: *walking away with all*

Thanksgiving Preparations

 

Thanksgiving is this week! Whaaaaat that means I really need to finish up my Christmas gifts that I plan on making and also start ordering things that are gonna take a longer time to ship. 

I was up visiting family a week or two ago and my mom made a turkey and it was in the salt soak and I thought up this comic. Also, I have a salad to prepare for Thursday. Totally not connected to this comic - Mark and I make a really good salad. And desserts too! And we've hosted plenty of dinners at our abode and, to our knowledge, nobody has gotten sick or anything. We actually are both rather good chefs. It's not that hard to know your limits and select straight-forward recipes and just follow the directions. We are responsible for introducing our previous neighborhood to tater-tachos. They are super good - it's just like a taco salad but you use tater tots as the base layer instead of chips. 

Text:
A: Are you ready for Thursday?
L: Yep, I have the bath salts for the turkey brine.
A: Actually, can you bring a salad?

Chicken Egg Bush Saying

 So many sayings about birds. The blended sayings are "Don't count your chickens before they hatch" and "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush." But when it comes to chicken eggs, I hear some chickens like to hide them all over the place so you definitely want more in your hand than in a random bush. 

Why is this comic so special? WELLLLLLL it's the cover image for True Story Volume IX! Yep, 2020 marks my ninth comic book. It'll be under trees this Christmas. I use Mixbook for my publishing and making books with them is fairly straight-forward and they have lots of deals in October and November, trying to beat the Christmas rush. If you're looking to make anything with photos, I recommend them!

Text:
A: You know that saying about chickens, eggs, and counting...
B: You need more in your hand than in the bush?

Jurassically Awesome Names

 Those names are really a mouthful. Are you familiar with Archaeopteryx or Ichthyosaurus? Archie (I'm not going to keep spelling those, I'm not sure which is more difficult - spelling or saying them) was a small flying dinosaur and Theo was a swimmer who was recently in the news for a fascinating fossil showing one swallowing a meal nearly the size of itself (it might have choked). 
For some reason, and I know I've said this before, my sisters and sister-in-laws don't take my name suggestions. I think they're great names, with thought-out nicknames, and so unique. But they come up with great names on their own so I guess I can't hold this against them. 

Text:
P: Here are my kids, Archie and Theo.
F: Nice.
A: Our full names are Archaeopteryx and Ichthyosaurus. 

Biblical Names on a Theme

One of these names is much more popular than the other. Actually Esther's Jewish name, Hadassah, is probably more popular than Vashti. Nobody really wants to name their kid after the deposed queen. It's always good to know the history of a name before naming a child, pet, or object. If you're unfamiliar with the Biblical story, Vashti is the queen in the first chapter of Esther but the king asks her to do something which she refuses to do, and so she is deposed. Her removal leaves a vacancy which Esther is able to fill, and this elevated position gives Esther the leverage needed to save the Jewish people from Haman's plot. The whole book is an epic, dramatic adventure with sub-plots and intrigue. I highly recommend reading it - it's only ten chapters and one has only three verses and the plot really moves the whole book quickly. 

Text:
A: We wanted Biblical names, but on a theme.
B: So that's why your daughters are Esther and Vashti. 

Philippian Names

Another entry into my naming series - search on "names" to get the others. The passage this is inspired by is Philippians 4:2-3, where Paul (and Timothy) entreat these ladies to get along. Neither of those names are currently popular and there are probably several reasons why. But Euodia seems like a Sherlock-style name. The latest movie, Enola Holmes, gives their mother's name as something similar and now I need to look up what it was - Eudoria. Not quite Euodia, but probably inspired by it. 

Text:
A: My kids are always fighting.
B: What did you expect? You named them Euodia and Syntyche. 

One Time At Five Guys

 

A few weeks ago, a group from my church went to a Corn Maize. On the way there, we stopped at our usual Chick-fil-A only to realize they didn't have seating available due to Covid restrictions so we looked where else locally we could eat. We settled on Five Guys and this super helpful conversation happened between me, my husband, and my brother-in-law (both who fully know I'm lactose intolerant). And my husband knows I don't normally eat hot dogs (I honestly can't remember the last time I had one) - kielbasa is so much better. I had a really good wurst last week at a local German place which is know for their schnitzel (but all their food is delicious). But at Five Guys I had a little hamburger with some toppings and the five of us split two fries. 

Text:
Title: FIVE GUYS
L: What should I get?
M: Bacon cheese dog!
N: With a milkshake!
L: You know me so... little. 

Sequel to Saved by the Bell

 I thought this up before the sequel/reboot was announced and I think my title is better. Actually I just looked this up and I realize I had "Saved by the Bell" and "Boy Meets World" confused but apparently both are getting revivals/spinoffs (also I haven't watched either of the originals or follow-ons). And having the follow-on show called a "revival" is actually perfect for this comic. I kinda want to rework the comic to work it in, but nope just gonna post as-is.
As for the puns, as a Baptist you get baptized (full immersion) after you profess Christ (salvation/saved) and also revivals are a thing that were really popular in my childhood. 

Text:

A: They're making a sequel to "Saved by the Bell" -
B: Yeah, I heard.
A: "Baptized by the Bell"
B: ... no.
A: You'll get totally immersed in it.
B: *facepalm*

Weather From Alexa

 

This happened a few weeks ago. I was heading out of the house, wondering if I needed my jacket (that's what I'm holding in the comic), and my helpful digital assistant wanted extra info from me. Really I just turned her down because I was on a time crunch and needed to head out without further ado, but it is Mark's device and I didn't feel the need to be added to it. But I do like when she plays my playlist for me (it's called "For Lauren" and it's from Mark and we can both add songs to it in Spotify). 

Text:
L: Alexa, what's the weather?
A: *Weather update* Also, we have spoken before but I don't know your name. Would you like me to learn it?
L: No thanks, bye. 

Overheard in a Corn Maze

Full disclosure that this was scheduled before the election so don't read too much into it. But maybe read a little into it. 

I went with a group from my church to a Corn Maze (or Corn Maize haha) up in PA - Maize Quest. While my group was trying to find our way through the massive corn maze (each group gets a flag and if you're ready to give up you wave it over your head and they come and get you and thankfully we've never had to do that), we passed a group of younger kids who loudly said (while going in the opposite direction of us) "We're independent - we don't follow the smart people!" To our great amusement, because we did not know where we were going. We finally caved and actually looked at the map and figured out we were halfway through and just needed to find a given bridge to make it out and we did! It took about 1.5 hours. That was not our best time, but we had fun. And were thankful for bringing a flashlight because it was getting dark by the end of our quest. I totally recommend visiting Maize Quest and their associated Maple Lawn Farms. They have really good apple cider donuts!

Text:
Title: Overheard in a Corn Maze
Youths: We're independent - we don't follow the smart people!

Fake Gnus Part 2

 

ELECTION DAY: For my American viewers, please do your research and cast your vote!

I don't think we can take any more fake gnus (also I think this joke has been stretched pretty far since I made it into two comics). As stated in the last comic, a Gnu is an African Wildebeest. A Jersey cow is the most generic cow I could find - I was looking for what you'd see back in my old hometown in CT in the fields at the base of my parents' street. The kind that I definitely didn't tip because those beasts are huge and wow those fields are covered in cow pies. Ew. And it's not good to tip the cows - they could get hurt. 

Text:
A: That sign says the enclosure is for African Wildebeests, but those are just Jersey cows. 
B: Fake gnus!

Fake Gnus Part 1

 

A coworker of mine likes to claim Fake News so after Scrum one day I drew this up. Just in time for the election! Why is it a Part 1? Could there be a Part 2? You'll find out on Tuesday (or by hitting the "Next" button if you're looking at this after 11/3/2020). 

What is a gnu? It's a wildebeest! Have I crocheted one of these from my Pattern Book of African Animals? Surprisingly no, it has a pattern for African Buffalo and I thought that's what a gnu was but I was mistaken. 

Text: 
Sheep: Fake Gnus!
Jersey Cows with slopped horns on their heads: *confused silence*

Animal Costumes

 

I drew this after Halloween last year AND stored it in the proper folder AND remembered to check said folder before the holiday passed by again! I feel like I need a sticker or something. Maybe a sticker to remind me to check my holiday folders when a holiday is approaching. The deer's costume would be the spots since adults don't have those but maybe judging from the size it's a little fawn so therefore he did nothing for his costume, and I tried drawing the classic Zorro hat on the fox but it just didn't look right so I left it off. Also totally forgot about the rapier but I'm not sure how I would have worked that in anyway.

FYI "zorro" is Spanish for "fox". I feel like everyone should know Bambi and Zorro but if you don't, please click the links and learn about them. 

Text:
Deer: You can't make fun of my Bambi costume if you're a fox dressed as Zorro. 
Fox: *wearing cape and mask*

Ghostly Scare

 I don't usually draw faces but ghosts need eyes to show they are not just weird bags of some sort, and after I drew the mouth I just really liked how happy he looks. I like both of their expressions. I've considered learning how to draw people better, but I think I might stick with what I know. Or maybe you will see more expressive cartoons in the future! No promises. What would it take to scare a ghost nearly to life? I have no idea.

Text:
Ghost 1: You nearly scared me to life just now!
Ghost 2: *happy*

Gourds

 

"Either way, you are gourdeous!" 

This is my attempt at drawing a butternut squash and an acorn squash. But the butternut could be more of a oblong gourd because I think I drew it a bit too skinny. I'm pretty sure I've done a comic about a pumpkin being gourdeous but I can't find it just now, so either I forgot to upload it or I didn't label it properly. Oh well. I like gourds! Pumpkins on my porch, squash roasting in my oven, doing some pumpkin carving at some point, Autumn is excellent!

Text:
Butternut: What's up, pumpkin? *heart*
Squash: I'm an acorn squash.

Tattooed Snake

 Instead of a snake tattoo, let's flip the story. So there was a book I read (actually listened too because audio-books are great for long car drives) where there was a character (Frank) who could shape-shift into animals kind of like Beast Boy in Teen Titans. I think it would be unethical to tattoo a snake so don't do that but since most snakes are identified by their markings, it would make things quite difficult for those who study snakes.

Text:
A: You're dating a diamondback?
H: No, Frank just got inked. 

No Hoodies

 

This is not my best drawn snake, but trying to get the angle of the head with the sign was difficult. Certain snakes have hoods and there are reasons, but cobras are the most famous for them. Where I grew up in CT, there is the hognose snake which is famous for looking like a cobra but are actually harmless. They pretend to be a cobra to deter threats but if the threat is not deterred, they play dead. They play dead so well that if you flip them right-side up, they will flip back to be belly-up to prove they are dead. I think that is humorous. 

Text:
Sign: No hoodies
Cobra: I'm offended.

Favorite Feature of the New House

True story - I think our snake count at the townhouse was 7 when we left. We were in the house for about six years before they started showing up, then they just kept showing up. Only had one professionally removed by Critter Control - the others we either evicted ourselves or found them post-mortem stuck to sticky traps (eww). At the beginning of the year, I told my Mark that if we found another snake, I was ready to move (he had wanted to move for a while). At the beginning of the Pandemic, we started cleaning out the random corners of the house that just accumulate stuff and we don't frequent and yep, we found another snake. So we listed the house and started our search. And no snakes in the new house!

Text:
A: What is your favorite thing about your new house?
B: The complete and utter lack of snakes!
A: ... What?!?!

Forest World Problems: Swan

 It's been a while since I revisited this series, but to finish out this bird-filled week we're looping back to Forest World Problems. Do swans live in forests? Well, they live on water and there is water in forests so sure. I'm pretty sure the Swan Princess was set in a forest, where she was hidden away after getting stolen and cursed. I don't actually remember the whole plot of that movie. I do recall the animal sidekicks because they were great. There was a puffin, a turtle, and a frog. 

Text:
Title: Forest World Problems
Swan: I'm not that good at diving.

Robin vs Cardinal

 

Now that I've looked up the Catholic Church hierarchy for the last comic, I realize the cardinals are rather high on said organization chart. So the robin is aiming high, which is usually good, but not very realistic depending on how literal the forest church is about their cardinals. Birds of a feather flock together, so I'm not sure he can fly with that crowd... 

Text:
Robin: I want to rise through the ranks of the Catholic Church!
Cardinal: Robby, you will never be a cardinal.

Forest Church

 

It must be an important church if it has a cardinal! I don't actually know how the Catholic church hierarchy works (I'm not Catholic) but I'm pretty sure each church doesn't get a cardinal. But if your church is in the forest, who knows how many cardinals you would have. Now I'm thinking about the Three Musketeers - I'm pretty sure there was a cardinal involved. Yep, Cardinal Richelieu. 

Text:
Blue Jay: How goes the forest church?
Cardinal: So many deer saints.

Hold Your Alpacas

 

An update to an old phrase - let's see if it catches on. Alpacas are nicer than llamas I believe, but not as nice as horses. But you can't get yarn from horses as far as I know, so that's a cool bonus for the llama/alpaca team. I have a ball of alpaca yarn but I'm not sure what I'll make with it - it's pretty soft so maybe gloves or a toy. Maybe make a little llama out of it! That'd be meta. 

Text:
A: Hold your alpacas, squad.
B: What?
A: Horses are so last century. 

Hold Your Horses

 Happy Anniversary to my sister and brother-in-law!

I was going to have one person holding more than one horse, but that was not coming together smoothly so I simplified to just one horse. It's also surprising how large horses are but I think I made this one too big, so we're gonna say these are preteens. Or it's a Clydesdale. But the feet aren't right for that, so maybe it's just Ganon's horse from Breath of the Wild (it's the huge one that's rather difficult to ride/tame). 

Where did this phrase originate? Per Wikipedia, "A number of explanations, all unverified, have been offered for the origins of the phrase"

Text:
A: Hold your horses!
B: Ok! *Hugging a horse*

Coin Shortage

Happy Birthday to my nephew! And maybe my niece too, not sure when she'll make her appearance. 

Not to make light of a national issue, but that's what I'm doing here. I really like collecting coins, and smashing coins, and I have a metal frame on my wall (the frame is wood but the center is metal) and I mount all my smashed pennies (and a dime and quarter that were smashed too and some unsmashed foreign pennies because those are cool too) by gluing a magnet to the back (I got a roll that I can snip little strips off and it has adhesive but it's not very strong so I add gorilla glue) and I should hang that frame up again but I need to get all the coins on it and I want them in order (we put the foreign ones in one place, then national parks together, and then beaches all together, and so on). But we have a place on the wall for it so that's good. 

Another national issue is people being resistant to change, but I'd rather talk about coins. 

Text:
A: Why is there a coin shortage?
B: Maybe because people are resistant to change.

Captain Crochet Hook

 I was quite happy to come up with this. It would make sense to have a crochet hook attachment since he spends so much time out on the sea; could be a great way to pass the time. Also, I don't really like how his mustache turned out, but I was going for the classic Disney interpretation of the character. 

Text:
Tinker Bell: So, are you Captain Crochet now?
Captain Hook: It's still a hook!

Great Dismal Swamp, Page 2

 

Happy almost birthday to my brother!

I think I will try to comic our adventures, as it is helpful to remember all the small moments as well as the big ones. We had a short weekend away, but plenty of happy memories from it. 

Text:
Panel 1: VA Beach Boardwalk
L: Let's never get to the socks-and-sandals stage of not caring
M: Agreed.

Panel 2: 
M: Duck Donuts on the Boardwalk
L: An upgraded Pastries in the Park Sunday.

Panel 3:
M: I see a lot of red and orange ahead.
L: I only see some red cars, no orange.
M: On the map - it's slow ahead.

Panel 4: Flower Flamingos in the Botanic Garden

Panel 5:
M: Actual archaeologists unearthing Jamestown!
L: Cool!

Panel 6: Cactus Jack's - always a delicious meal.

Panel 7:
M: Look at all the history around us!
L: So many Pokestops!

Great Dismal Swamp, Page 1

Over the Labor Day holiday, we took a trip down to VA to see the Great Dismal Swamp. I heard about this park on a blog I follow and it was a nice trip. There were a lot of bugs in the swamp but that's expected in a swamp. We did not spend the whole weekend in the swamp - we went over to Jamestown and VA Beach and a garden as well. We drove by the creepy church twice because Google Maps tried to take us through someone's yard to get to the swamp. 

Text:
Great Dismal Swamp, September 4-6, 2020

Panel 1:
M: Let's start this weekend right - with a proper Friday evening!
L: Board Game Arena with the Hong Kong relatives!

Panel 2: 
L: New First Baptist Church, why do you have an angel in a field surrounded by cherubs??
M: Creepy

Panel 3: That is a Very Large Bug attacking our car

Panel 4: Lake Drummond
M: This is the blackest lake I have ever seen.
L: The waves look like iced tea.

Panel 5: Black Bear Trail, so many mosquitos

Panel 6: 
M: Where is my mask?!?
L Check your face, my love.

Uneven Vs Odd

 

Happy Birthday to my Grandpa!

As for this comic, maybe I should have added ties to my figures so you could tell more clearly this is a job interview. Yes, the interviewer is putting the resume in the trashcan. He does not understand non-linear thinking. DOT is Department of Transportation; sometimes abbreviations are regional like MVA vs DMV but I don't think DOT is one of those. Around here it's the Motor Vehicle Administration because Delaware/Maryland/Virginia is DMV (but the MVA has DMV in their urls so....). 

Text:
Interviewee: Instead of "Uneven Lanes", why not just say "Odd Lanes"? 
Interviewer: Yeah, I don't think you're a good fit for this DOT position. 

Garden State

 I thought this up on one of our many trips between MD and CT. We try to avoid Jersey, but it's hard sometimes. We also try to avoid the George Washington Bridge but every mapping software is in cahoots with them and steer all traffic through the GWB. It's annoying. One of our drives through NJ, I believe we were on the Garden State Parkway and we had the windows down and that was a mistake. So many power plants. So much stench. 

Text:
A: Why is NJ called the "Garden State" but smells so nasty?!
B: Because it has all the plants.

Modern Horror Story

 I forget what spawned this comic, but I originally thought I'd come up with a series on it. Still working on the series. I don't recall my cell phone ever ringing - it has been on vibrate its whole life. I'm not overly fond of computers making any alert noises - I have my alarm set to a playlist I made on Spotify and everything else is just vibrate or silent. I vaguely remember my old phone saying "Hello Moto" unexpectedly and I did not like that. 

If this turns into a series, it would be called MHS and would be way better than AHS which if you don't know what that is, you are NOT missing anything. I wish I didn't know what it is but sadly Netflix had it in the opening spot for a while and I never wanted to see it. I'm not a fan of the horror genre. 

Text:
Title: Modern Horror Story
A: This one time, I heard ... my phone ... RING!!!
B: WHAAAAT?!?
A: I don't know how the ringer turned on!
A: I didn't even know what my ringtone WAS!

Captain America 3

I wrote this one a while ago (clearly as this movie came out four years ago) but I thought I'd post it today because it's the best day of the year and Captain America is my favorite superhero. Why is this the best day of the year? Well, you are just missing out if you don't know. Actually I am missing out if you don't know because that means you probably didn't send me a card or present or wish me anything on social media. Oh well. Drawing the iconic shield was a bit difficult but I was able to use some basic shapes to make it - free-handing was just not working out. 

As a comic explanation, one of Captain America's catchphrases is "Avengers, Assemble" because he's usually leading the fight and that's how he gets his group together. In Captain America 3, stuff happens and decisions are made and due to the decisions that mainly Captain America and Iron Man make, the Avengers team splits apart and it's kind of a low point in their team spirit. 

Text:
Title: Captain America 3: Civil War Summary

CA: Avengers, Disassemble.

Toad Stools

 I thought this up when we were looking for stools for our new kitchen - we have a center island which has an overhang on one side that works perfectly for a breakfast nook. We did not find any toad stools but we did get some nice cherry ones from Wayfair that match our kitchen cabinets. We looked at Ikea but the one we wanted was out of stock (actually they had one but we wanted at least two and if you want them to match, you gotta buy them together).
And yes, I know what a toadstool is. Well actually I thought I did - I thought it was a red mushroom with white dots BUT it turns out all mushrooms are technically toadstools. And they got their name because mushrooms seem like a great place for a toad to take a seat. The more you know...

Text:
E: Hello, Chair Emporium, we have the seats.
P: Do you have any frog-shaped, backless -
E: FOR THE LAST TIME we do NOT sell toadstools!

Hobnob

I thought this up when a coworker was describing some parents at his kid's school but I forget the specifics. I'm not sure if this is the image he was going for, but it's what I got out of it. But I think both a monocle and top hat are needed to truly hobnob. Apparently hobnob just means to associate with or to drink sociably, but in my mind it means a fancy sort of that. 

Text: 
A: Why are you wearing a monocle?
B: I'm off to hobnob. 

Flash Mob

I was watching CW's The Flash when it was airing (it wrapped up the last season early and who knows when the next season will drop) and thought up this one. The Flash is a super-speedster, meaning his superpower is that he can move fast, and he wears a red suit with a lightning bolt on the chest. A flash mob, per Wikipedia, is "a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform for a brief time, then quickly disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment, satire, and artistic expression."

Text: 
A: Why are you late?
B: The streets are packed with people dressed in red with yellow bolts on their shirts!
A: Ah, a Flash mob. 

The Game's A Foot

 

Happy Birthday to my Mom!

So, I had to look up Sherlock's hat because I couldn't remember where the bills were. I don't recall what sparked this one - I watched BBC's Sherlock way back when it came out with those short little seasons, but I am familiar with his phrases due to pop culture referencing them. Also, The Great Mouse Detective was an excellent take on the stories. 

The key is that Sherlock likes to say "The game's afoot" when he puts together the important clues and runs off to apprehend the villain. I played on that to make a game about feet, so the game is a foot. 

Text:
JW: This game is lame - it's all about hooves and paws and -
SH: *heart*
Game name: "It Behooves You"
Comic title: The Game's A Foot