Hello space cadets,
It must be another week. I mean, how could it not be? And what better way to enjoy the week than with some cartoons.
This week, we repeatedly second guess ourselves, and we see a very specific kind of anxiety.
Rolling and tumbling,
Chris
Like what you see? Follow me on Instagram (@chrisshorten), or talk a friend into following me on Instagram. Or, buy some prints from my website.
Caption: “I've finished it early, giving me extra time to second guess, tinker, and undo all my good work.”
This one goes out to all the Virgos (myself included) who had birthdays this month.
Because. Finishing early is a thing. Rethinking your work is a thing. Changing your work to the point where it is worse and no longer resembles the original work is a thing. And doing it repeatedly, as if it’s a character trait, is most certainly a thing.
Can I get a show of hands, Virgos?
A little artist’s note: I’ve never been a big believer in star signs. It all just felt too out there for me. But… so in my day job, I’m an editor. And being an editor requires a certain personality type. And all us editors have it. And a lot of us also have birthdays around the same time. And we’re also all Virgos. And, well all of that can’t be a cooincidence, right?
Visually, there isn’t much to this one, although as always I went a bit nuts with the bookshelves. I just can’t resist bringing in all those details, even if they would just be ignored. But, at least you know it’s a library.
Caption: “His anxiety is general, and sometimes very very specific.”
We all have anxiety. And, sometimes, that anxiety involves protecting our pets by duct taping them to our hands, right? Right?
Because, anxiety shows itself in all sorts of weird and, uh, wonderful ways. I’ll admit, this one should probably go in the weird week pile, but I just love the strangeness of it. And the extremes it takes.
We’ve all been there, haven’t we?
A little artist’s note: This one really is bonkers.
But there are two reasons for this. The first is that when I came up with the caption, I tried to think of the stupidest way to show it. And the first thing that popped into my head was a man duct taping his dogs to his hands to keep them safe. Is it realistic? No. Is it fun? Yes.
The second reason for this is because I just really wanted to draw it.
Thanks for reading MiddleSquiggle!
Follow me on Instagram @chrisshorten for new cartoons every Tuesday and Friday. Or subscribe below for a weekly email every Thursday.
😮