#8: A nailbiter, a protester, and a grocer
Hello adventurers,
This week’s cartoons are full of turmoil.
There’s a cartoon about the things that, rightly, stress us in middle age — a club I recently joined. There’s a cartoon about a protest — the kind which has garnered some very impressive signs. And there’s a cartoon about grocery deliveries — particularly the times when you don’t get what you asked for.
So, you know, this week is as coherent as usual, really.
Hold on tight,
Chris
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Caption: A middle-aged nailbiter.
I never used to be like this…
But at a certain age, I started to care a lot of about getting clothes dry. I think it was a gradual thing, or perhaps it happened gradually and then suddenly. But whatever the journey, I now seem to look at the weather app a lot when I do the washing. Do I care more about washing now? Did I care less before? Or have my priorities in life shifted in a very noticeable way? Perhaps it is all three.
This cartoon came from a text conversation with my friend, Kat. We were trying to set up a time to catchup and, naturally, that weekend’s dismal weather became a point to plan around. We then realised that we were both watching our respective weather apps to see how long we could keep clothes on the line before the rain would hit. It was a ‘middle-aged nailbiter’, as she called it.
A little artist’s note: Aside from the serious amount shading going on with this one, the key thing of note is the map. And while you might see your beloved city there, almost as if it is a Rorschach, it’s actually the great city of Melbourne. The lines in the real one aren’t quite so wonky, but the sentiment is all there. And, looking at it now, it’s actually missing the river that runs through the middle, the Yarra, which I clearly didn’t think was important at the time. You can’t win them all, I guess.
Caption: "We got protest signs from Colbert writers at 11, Meyers writers at 12, and Oliver writers on Sundays."
There’s a writer’s strike in the United States.
Writers are rightly asking studios for better pay, better conditions, and a host of other very worthy things. It’s a battle for their livelihood, and one of the more immediate victims of that battle has been late night TV talk shows — such as shows from Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers and John Oliver — all of which have gone dark. However, it’s also created an interesting situation where the striking comedy writers are now putting their skills and some very clever jokes on some pretty amazing protest signs.
They’re funny, cutting, and a very good reason why writers should be paid what they’re owed.
A little artist’s note: Observers will note that this particular cartoon is shaded a little differently to the others. There is also a lot more emphasis on white space, and the background uses a grey to bring contrast with the foreground. I think it looks better and simpler, and it’s the style I’m favouring at the moment. But why is it hanging out in-between two cartoons, both in a different style to this? Because this cartoon was drawn a few days ago, whereas the others were drawn almost a month ago. So, uh, who knows what the cartoons will look like a month from now.
Caption: "Weird. They said they gave us a substitute for the honey."
Have you ever had your groceries delivered and when you opened the bag you found that what you ordered had been substituted with something completely, utterly, inexplicably different?
We’ve had this experience, where the supermarket were out of stock and so suddenly we found ourselves with something that was nothing like what we asked for. But at the other extreme we have also had the situation where we ordered, say, some multigrain bread and found that instead of providing a substitute, we were simply given no bread at all. It’s all a gamble, and I guess that’s part of the fun. Except if it’s bread you’re after. Or honey.
A little artist’s note: First, let me say that kitchens are a lot of work to draw. There is just so much stuff in a kitchen and everything requires more detail than you expect. For the longest time after I drew this, I wondered why the sink didn’t look right. It was only after a while that I realised that it looked weird because it didn’t have any taps. Second, this is perhaps inspired mostly by the absurdity of Gary Larson’s The Far Side cartoons. This is intended through the contrast of the situation, where you have the man outside the window stuck dealing with a beehive that was the substitute for the honey, and the calm innocence of the mother and daughter in the kitchen.
Thanks for reading MiddleSquiggle!
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