#34: Up, Down, Left, Right, Out
Hello navigators,
It’s another Thursday. Now. As in, right now. Meaning it’s time for another round of cartoons.
This week, a surgeon seeks direction, a sandwich seeks sauce, and a company seeks to do what companies do best.
Bringing down the house,
Chris
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Caption: “No, no, you want to take a left, I said a left, at the aorta. If you hit the spleen, you've gone too far.”
Sometimes everyone needs a little direction.
You know how it is. Google is telling you one thing, but it’s not lining up with what you’re seeing. So you stop at a roadhouse or a gas station and ask a local exactly where you are, and how you get where you need to be. They then give you a set of complicated instructions that you might only just remember.
And now imagine it’s your surgeon.
A little artist’s note: Ooooh boy, would you look at the detail on this one.
I had the idea for this months ago, but I could never quite nail the delivery. It always just seemed a little off. (And have I nailed the delivery now? A problem for another time). There were instances where the attendant was in the surgeon’s thought bubble while he was in surgery. And other instances where the attendant was with him in surgery.
The end result, which you see here, proved to be the most challenging of those options, because roadhouses have an awful lot of stuff in them, especially the part of the roadhouse where the attendant is. And, it seemed like every time I thought I had enough detail, I looked away and looked back to find it needed just a little more. It’s possible I’ve gone too far. And that it could be pared back, but hopefully it gets the silly idea across.
Caption: “No sudden movements.”
I’ve never rode a tandem bike before, but I kind of imagine my experience would be like this.
You know how it is. You’re on your bike. Going through rough terrain. And then, suddenly, you feel like a sandwich. And then you think, well maybe this sandwich could use some sauce. And then, after all that, you ask yourself: where did the sandwich come from?
Perhaps you can relate?
A little artist’s note: Phew, what a bike.
And not just a bike, but a double bike. This one took quite a lot of staring at reference photos and, if I’m honest, it has given me a great appreciation for how complicated these bikes are. Everything from the frame to the wheels to the location of the very long chain, all took quite a lot to get right. But now, look at it, just look at it.
Beyond this, I brainstormed a lot of different options for what the man would be working on. Everything from juggling knives to building a model house but, in the end, it seemed like making a sandwich was the right way to go. You know, if you were going to be doing anything on a tandem bike.
Caption: “Think of it as a great opportunity to be exploited by this company.”
I think we all know a company like this. Some of you may even work for one.
You know, they come across all supportive of their staff, and then they wind up making you work disturbingly long hours with no overtime for little pay. Repeatedly. It’s a pretty horrible situation.
We’ve all been there and sympathy for those who still are.
A little artist’s note: A nice simple one to end on.
As usual, the setting and composition of this one went through quite a few revisions. There were times when the person was looking out onto a office full of people, and others when they were sitting in an interview. But I decided to keep this one simple. To me, the real stars are the older manager and the younger employee with the latter realising his fate as he leaves the manager’s office.
Again, very relatable, very accurate, and a little sad. But it sure looks pretty.
Thanks for reading MiddleSquiggle!
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