Happy Days I Fear Again

Which is better?  Living in good times in which you anticipate bad times?  Or living in bad times in which you anticipate good times.  Or living in good times and anticipating better times?  Or living in bad times and anticipating worse times?

Or anticipating at all?

Talk among yourselves.

Trashtitos: Share Something Shared

As bad as things have been over the last couple of years I don’t see anyone starving soon.  First of all, food is relatively cheap compared to prices in the Great Depression.  Second of all, most Americans (including me) have layered on a more than enough extra pounds to get them through this lean period….

…between lunch and supper.

 

Brother Can You Spare Some Mouse Spit?

This vacation week of reruns ran about two years ago.   What’s depressing is that it’s just as timely now as it was then.

I think I’ll just leave it at that.

Certain Uncertainty

Over the Hedge:  Unprofoundly profound since 1995

The Tree That Knows Verne

This is a rerun, but for the life of me I have absolutely no memory of writing this.   I’ve written over 5500 Hedges so I guess it’s not surprising that I don’t remember all of them.  Or some of them.  Or even the ones I wrote last week.

And I thought Verne went camo.

Over the Hedge Animation: How to Reproduce

Another RingTales Hedge animation.

Always follow the Prime Directive:  Protect Hammy’s innocence.

A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Microwave

The controversy over the last couple of days of Hedge rages on over at comics.com.   A lot of  cranky readers are offended that I might not agree with their world view.   Or more specifically, that I dare inject my world view into their favorite comic strip — as though who I am is somehow incidental to what Hedge is.

It’s been my long held belief, born of years of experience, that the more personal a work of art (even bottom of the entertainment food chain comic strip art), the better it is.   I once wrote a comic strip called, “When I Was Short.”  It started strong, yet eventually failed, I believe, because it wasn’t really, “When I Was Short.” It was, “When A-Generic-Child-Who-We-Hoped-Would-Have-Mass-Appeal-Grew-Up-in-the-Sixties Was Short.”   Big mistake.  Generic is bland.  Personal is specific and well… personal.   I think we’re all voyeurs on some level and we enjoy entertainment more if we believe it’s authentic.   Authentic does not mean biographical or literal.   Authentic is a combination of personal and fictional.  It’s truthfulness.  Not truth.

Look, if you want to read antiseptic, bland, boring, tired, so-tired-their-original-creator-is-dead, comic strips there are plenty out there.   But if you want to read an earnest attempt to entertain an audience with a daily, honest, heart-felt, kinda dark, but in a  funny way, then read Pearls Before Swine.

The rest of you are stuck with us.

Potbangers Ball

“Life is what happens when you’re making other plans.”  

“Time you enjoy wasting, isn’t wasted.”

“Will the people in the cheaper seats clap your hands? And the rest of you, if you’ll just rattle your jewelry. “

“You may say I’m a dreamer,
but I’m not the only one.
I hope someday you’ll join us,
and the world will be march as one.”

-John Lennon

The Immortal Hammy

This theory about the immortality of consciousness is based on quantum physics.  When you start talking about quantum mechanics all bets are off.   Actually, I’m wrong,  all bets are on because literally anything has a probability of happening anytime.   I confess I am not smart enough to grok this concept.   How can light be a particle and a wave AT THE SAME TIME?   Can Hammy be a squirrel and a star child at the same time?  Can I be a man and a doughnut at the same time?   
Can Jason Bieber be an elf and the second coming of Donny Osmond at the same time?   

My head hurts.  

Everywhere and always.