Almost a feel-good Friday

I admit that I stared at today's strip for a few moments, uncomprehending. Wow, I thought. So today's strip is just giving credit to someone doing something nice? That's...kind of cool, actually. And it would be. Most of the topics are about the tiny, petty little things that tick people off. What a great change of pace, to have a strip like this! Of course, upon examination of the strip, I found that while it's partially a "Good job!" strip, it's also a subtle complaint against the people who gave the PILES of presents that need assembly. Do that many toys really require assembly? Would a steam shovel like that be something that someone puts together at home? I don't know. Instead, I'll ignore the complaint, as it's a bit subtle, and focus on the cake. Mmm, cake.

Yesterday's strip is also a bit confusing. Once again, it's not the concept that I have a problem with ("They can sleep through a loud tv program, but not a bug flying around the room!"), but the execution. The top panel is the real culprit. Is that kid sleepwalking? And just have the mom be sleeping, not yawning. With her eyes closed. But for content? I don't really have a problem. I should say that I don't really see an issue of sleeping through a tv show but being bothered by a mosquito (which, duh, yes, kill it!). Things like that happen to me not infrequently.

And I'd like to point out that this is at least the third Fifi Meisner-submitted strip (the other two). I really should look her up.

Apparently that bistro isn't the best

I don't get yesterday's strip. I guess the submitter is just confused by advertising in general?

I'm disappointed that Al doesn't explicity state that the Barfos are in a bistro in today's strip. (And also, I thought "Barfo" was the first name.) Now, I know that I've seen this strip before, but can't seem to find it in my archives. (I really need to go back and tag all of my entries.) Anyway, I'll give Mr. Barfo a pass, as he just says that the food isn't as good as it used to be. That doesn't necessarily mean that the food is bad; it just isn't "as good." Mrs. Barfo, though? Not cool. However, I'd probably eat mediocre food over trying to figure out what to cook for dinner, too. Probably, ha. I totally have. Though I don't loudly comment about how bad the food sucks before I ask for a box.

Lu's mom is as busy as my grandmother

Parts of today's strip make sense...but parts just confuse me. Really just one part--the "and often" in the bottom panel. I guess Mom frequently guilts Lu into calling, but also has a social life. I guess I just don't see the disconnect there. I wish my sister would call more, but that doesn't stop me from going out with my friends. Of course, I also don't leave her messages like that. I think Al should've had the message include the mother saying something like, "Is it asking too much to call your poor mother, all alone? I sit around and look forward to talking to you, etc." It would've come together much better, I think.

And Al, you don't "turn on" your "voicemail," particularly when by "voicemail," you mean "answering machine." Lu isn't on a cell phone, dialing into her voicemail. She's hitting "Play" on her answering machine. There's a difference. Al, feel free to drop me an e-mail, and I can go over the details.

(Although, honestly, it's stuff like that that makes reading this strip so charming.)

It was the poor schools that led to the vandalism

Clearly I've just been trying to avoid TDIET lately.

I feel like I'm the one missing something about Wednesday's strip. I guess it's upsetting that schools need money? More money than they received from a lottery? Are we supposed to get worked up about asking for more money for schools?

Yesterday's strip just completely blows me away. I'm kind of gobsmacked. Have we ever seen juvenile delinquency like this before? Al is clearly still in the 1950s--when was the last time anyone had to write lines? (Other than Harry Potter in Order of the Phoenix.) Seriously, the vandalism. It just keeps throwing me off. It's idiotic, though; Hekkie should be using a pseudonym (like the rash of "Borf" graffiti in the DC area a while back) (hmm, I should look to see whether "Borf Hates Bush" is still up next time I Metro into the city). What's getting to me is the color, honestly. The bright red and yellow of the graffiti just really stands out. I definitely think Al should do more criminal-themed strips.

I'm not sure what to make of today's strip. Clearly we're supposed to take Fignewt's side. It looks like Annoyia is wearing a robe--but it could be anything, really. And she does go back on saying that she wouldn't care. It looks like she very well may be the type of woman that you look at and go, "Well, no wonder he wants to stay late at the club." (And are there "clubs" like this anymore? I'm sure it's where Fignewt hangs out with other members of the Loyal Order of the Caribou, but why not just say "bar"? ...Because bar = bad and club = respectable, of course. What was I thinking?) Does he go out every night? Why? And how late is late? I really feel like I need the full history here. And also, don't use "friend wife."

Rerun: Eating out after shopping

Interested in today's strip and my thoughts about it? Why don't you go and check out the strip and my comments from February 1.


I will say that (a) those kids should help put away the groceries, and (b) if Dragbutt wants a feast fit for a king, he can feel free to make it himself.

I don't want my car to have a specific make, Al!

In today's strip, we learn that people treat themselves differently than they treat their cars. Shocking. I guess it's bad because Barfwell treats his car better than he treats himself? Eh. I don't understand why Mrs. Barfwell is all, "How could you?" I mean, he's eating a lot--and randomly (oysters, chili, hot dog, and custard pie? Barfwell's going to live up to his name real soon)--but it's not something to get that worked over. I guess it'd be a concern if he always ate like that, but it almost seems like Mrs. B is more upset about him looking gross in public. That could just be my take, though.

And shouldn't it be "What kind of gas and oil I put in this car"? It's not like you put gas or oil in a car; you put in both.

Also, "din-din" is what a dog eats. Most of us humans have "dinner."

Kids and repairmen these days

Not surprisingly, yesterday's strip is essentially a repeat, though I can't find earlier incarnations at the moment. I call foul on this, though. Admittedly there's already a pile of dishes there, but in this case, wouldn't it make more sense to order pizza or go out or something for dinner? I mean, why dirty more dishes when you know you won't be able to wash them? But yes, we get it, repairmen never come when they say they will, inconvenience, blah blah blah.

I can only assume that Wombo, in today's strip, is graduating from 5th grade, because that's about how old he looks. OK, maybe middle school. But readers, get ready for a shocking revelation: Sometimes people look different in pictures than they do in person. I know! I wouldn't believe it, either. Particularly when the photo in question is a formal shot like a graduation photo. What, you mean Wombo doesn't always walk around in a suit with neatly done hair? I am shocked and horrified! (Well, I am kind of horrified by his shirt--what boy who's older than 5 will willingly wear a shirt with a teddy bear on it???) I'm just going to ignore the, "Like yo, you guys!" Al, stop trying to write slang. It doesn't work.

It's nice that someone was transcribing the birthday party

While I'm not a huge fan of today's strip in general, I am impressed with Al playing around with the format a bit. The flashback? Very nice. As for the content...it's strange. I kind of understand where Migraina's coming from; when you get a present, you don't open it and say, "Yuck! How awful!" On the other hand, she could've just said, "What a lovely top! Thanks so much for thinking of me" instead of detailing what she dislikes. And honestly, the clerk at the store doesn't really care why she's returning it. Is it in any way torn/stained/etc.? No? Then he doesn't care. I admit that sometimes I feel the need to justify why I'm returning something, though. But I'm weird like that. And I doubt Migraina is acting out of guilt, which is why I do it. (I have an overactive guilt complex. No, I'm neither Catholic or Jewish.)

In fairness, that is an awful shirt. But honestly, I'm not going to knock Migraina too hard. She was polite to her family members and not particularly rude to the clerk, so I'm good with her.

Side effects for TDIET include nausea

In today's strip we learn that side effects of medications are scary. My solution to that is to just not look at the side effects. Seriously. I'd comment on the potential side effects, but that'd just get annoying. I honestly can't read them all at once, because my eyes roll too much and that doesn't do good things to my contacts. Although I will say that pizzaitis of the pepperonitis doesn't sound bad. Mmm, pizza.

I will also give kudos. The wife's comment in the background is a pretty good one.

What's up with the blue seat in my car?

I love the guy in the top panel of today's strip who's so enthusiastically saying, "It's so easy to read!" Wow, thanks, random guy! Otherwise I wouldn't have been able to figure that out. And of course it's easy to read. It's a town sign. The problem in the bottom panel isn't with the sign itself; the problem is with the grass blocking it. The expo boxes acknowledge that; hence the condemnation of the town for blowing big bucks. And I kind of hope it was the town that spent the money, not the county.

I feel bad for the kids in that town, unless the schools aren't "Dorksburg Middle" and "Dorksburg High." Can you imagine the rivalries? Poor traumatized children.

And hey, Trumbull should be lucky that the sign is that big. From what I remember of the "Welcome to Ridgefield" signs when I lived in Connecticut, they weren't nearly as easy to read as that sign is.

Can you make goulash out of a hide?

The most confusing part of today's strip is the heading "Grounds for you know what". No, actually, I don't know what (not personally, anyway! *rim shot*). Divorce? I wouldn't really call this grounds for divorce. That's extreme. And why the heck was Drusilla making appetizers? It'd be one thing if she thought the boss was supposed to be coming to their house, but that doesn't seem to be the case. (Also, Al, don't use the name "Drusilla" again, as it only makes me think of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Dru would clearly do something insane in revenge, which would be entertaining, but doesn't really fit with the strip.) I mean--look at all that food. That's only for Drusilla and Knotop? That just seems extreme.

If Knotop had any brains, what he would've done is come home and lied. He should've said that as he was leaving, his boss invited them over for dinner, and of course Knotop couldn't say no. Everybody wins (unless Drusilla says something about a "last-minute invitation" while at dinner). At least Knotop looks a bit sheepish. I would, too. Look at all that food! Well, at least Drusilla can bring the pie with her as a hostess gift.

Really, do women spend their whole days preparing a meal just for their husband when it's not something like their anniversary? Also, Al, a side salad doesn't take very long to whip up.

Except Brian IS perfect

Today's strip illustrates why people who are infatuated shouldn't marry anyone. No sane person believes that they like everything about a potential mate. And what is it with introducing a fiance/husband to the parents so late in the game? But really. If you seriously think "I love everything about this person," you're not mature enough to get married. Nobody's perfect. I mean, I'm sure that even though I currently think Brian Roberts is perfect** (cutest boy in the world!), when the day comes that we actually meet, then proceed to fall in love, etc., I'll find out that he has some habits that bug me. (Probably.) And I know that my parents each do things that annoy the other, but they're coming up on 40 years of marriage.

Anyway. I understand that Al is going for the contrast with "love everything about him" but all of those "hate"s in the bottom panel are a bit disturbing. I guess I should just be happy that she isn't telling him directly that she hates him--just all of his habits.

I can't feel too much sympathy for Nudnik, though. Clearly this was rushed, and he should've paused at his fiancee using the "love everything about him" line. He was just as deluded, and doesn't get any sympathy.

**I'm kidding. I know that he isn't perfect. If he were, the Orioles would probably be doing a bit better. Not that a .314 BA is something to scoff at. That being said, if any of you know him or have ties to the O's, send him my way! We're clearly Meant To Be.

Dumpy lawn, dumpy clothing

I kind of love yesterday's strip. It rags on the submitter and has snarky neighbors. Awesome! Honestly, though, if that happened to me and the talk of the neighbors was getting to me as much as it seems to be affecting that guy, I'd just suck it up and bring all the trash back to my garage. (Well, OK, I might leave some of the furniture out there. That would only look slightly dumpy.) And honestly, what was this guy doing that he was throwing all this stuff out? I can only assume that he just thoroughly cleaned and evaluated his house. Well, good for him. But hee hee. Judgmental neighbors. Love it.

And how awesome is Al's portrayal of "casual" work attire in today's strip? The only real difference between what Ragweed is wearing and what everyone else is wearing is the jacket. The other men (because women don't belong in the office, of course!) (except as secretaries) all have shirts and ties on, but the ties are a bit loose and the shirts untucked. That's not casual. Khakis and a golf shirt is casual. And I love the fuzzy pink sweater for casual Friday. I'm kind of torn on how I feel about the bottom panel. If this were a normal situation, I'd be all, "Well, tough, Ragweed, you shouldn't have ignored the e-mail." But this is TDIET, Land of No Computers, so it's quite possible that he just literally didn't get the memo about J.P. Honcho visiting. I do feel a bit bad for him; it does seem the sort of thing that could happen to anyone. Though again, we don't need to diss his coworkers. It easily could've been "Ragweed always makes an effort to look his best, but on a normally casual Friday..."

Return of the killer squid (casserole)!

What's bizarre about today's strip is Al's need to point out that Dragbutt is recently retired. It really has no bearing on the strip, which is more about a married couple and a division of labor. Maybe he needed to say this, because otherwise his readers would get up in arms at the thought of a working husband having to clean up a kitchen. (Of course, this is patently untrue, as it appears that the readership of They'll Do It Every Time consists of Comics Curmudgeon readers.)

So why did Catastra have to use all those dishes to make a casserole? Honestly, if she did dirty all those making the casserole, then it's not "simple" and she and Dragbutt are about even on the labor division, I'd say.

Seriously--where did all those pots come from? The more I look, the more I wonder. And if they've been left there for ages as part of a nefarious plot to get Dragbutt to wash them...well, good for Catastra. Dragbutt deserves it if he hasn't been in the kitchen for that long.

Mmm, meatball sub (not hero)

Today's strip is a sad one, as it appears that something's wrong with my car. Boo! That being said, P. Manchester, you didn't pull into a "service station," you pulled into a "gas station." Not all gas stations do repairs. It's possible that every single gas station used to do repairs; I don't know. I do know that you can very quickly tell whether or not you can get your car serviced somewhere because places that do repairs have a shop.

And Al and P. Manchester, there is nothing wrong with a gas station also having various snack foods. If you don't agree, then clearly you've never been on a road trip of any length.

And if this were an actual sign of the current times, you would not see a gas station employee in a uniform like that.

A pinnacle in TDIETland

I am in love with today's strip. It's not that I can't relate to wanting someone to break up with their current partner; I totally get that. I do think it's a bit much to sit there and be all, "Good riddance!" as they break up. Particularly when it's your child. She's probably going to be upset about this, Mom and Dad. Of course, she looks way too old to be living at home, so she deserves some judgement from the folks.

But there is nothing that is not awesome about the guy she brings home. First off, that they're married! Excellent! He's writing an autobiography! They're going to live at home! He's, like, 70! He calls them "Mom ol' gal" and "Pop person"! He has a ponytail! I really hope that this is the first time they've met and it's 2 weeks after she broke up with the guy in the top panel.

Kudos all around.

At least he's not bashing his wife's food

We find ourselves back at a bistro in today's strip, where Al continues to show that his idea of a bistro and mine are quite different. I'd actually be pretty disturbed by Luglow's behavior. Not necessarily the swinging from "Love it" to "Hate it" on the food, but more how much he loves/hates it. That's just scary. He seems a bit bipolar.

But then, so do many of the people in these strips. They just go insane over the smallest things. Scary.