Author Archives: stripfix

Monday, October 17, 2011

Lynn's Comments: When I had my first baby I was living in a close-knit neighbourhood where neighbours really took care of each other. I've been lucky that way! I came home with Aaron to a freezer full of home made meals prepared by the ladies around me. I didn't know how much I'd appreciate having these dishes to fall back on when I was too tired to think, too frazzled to shop and too sore to work in the kitchen!

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Vancouverites always have an umbrella somewhere handy - ready to use at a moment's notice. My folks had a stand in the front hall full of them. We used them as swords, canes, and crutches. We filled them with water and we let the wind blow them inside out. I was always surprised by how much abuse they could take and still do the job. Much like mothers, umbrellas are always there when you need them!

Saturday, October 15, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Katie learned how to press Aaron's buttons long before she could speak. With subtle looks, sarcastic expressions and covert sabotage, she kept him on his toes. One thing she could do was cry on demand. This gave her a distinct advantage. Who could resist the tears of a sweet innocent when a fight broke out? Aaron's friends were his greatest allies. Nobody can figure out little kids... like another little kid!

Friday, October 14, 2011

Lynn's Comments: ET was the best thing to happen to the movies. Kids loved this fantasy character. Everything about this story was wholesome and positive and with the new technology of video tape, my kids watched it over and over again.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Aaron seemed to roll in dirt. I would send him out clean and tidy and in seconds, he would return with sand in his hair, stains on his shirt and knees the colour of swamp crud. We didn't have a dog at the time, but with a son who brought in as much dust as Aaron did, we didn't NEED one!

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Lynn's Comments: As a new single mother, with nobody around to give me advice, I often turned to the one instruction manual I was familiar with: "How to Train Your Puppy". This booklet got us through much of Aaron's toddlerhood and I don't think it warped his psyche too much. He grew up to be a fairly normal adult... he still does, however, stop and point when he sees ducks.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Lynn's Comments: One of my childhood neighbours had a dog that was specifically trained to defend his owners. The result was that their young daughter would march down the road, dog in tow, and insult us all - knowing that we'd be unable to touch her. She was particularly mean and so was the dog. Eventually this family moved, but even with them gone, we kids were very nervous around large dogs for a long time to come.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Lynn's Comments: The MaGoon family did live on McVeigh Avenue in Lynn Lake. The funny part of this strip was that their dog was the size of a chipmunk and sounded like a squeaky toy, no matter how furious he was!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Any intimate partnership must pass the "sick" test before it can be called a serious relationship. Cohabitation requires us to accept, endure, and be considerate of our "significant other's" health concerns. Your partner's audible woe is an opportunity: every sympathetic gesture, every coo of understanding, and every expression of concern that you offer, are bankable brownie points to be redeemed when it's YOUR turn to be sick. And misery, as we all know, loves company!

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Lynn's Comments: This is an example of how to fill the audience in on a lot of information with one strip. If I didn't have time to show the audience what had transpired, I could trust one of the characters to "tell all" in a sequence like this.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Lynn's Comments: My kids regularly invited friends in for dinner- and THEN told me we were having guests. My lectures about proper household etiquette included the rule: "Ask first before inviting someone for dinner" but they knew I would always have enough food to serve and an extra kid at the table was always welcome.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Some of my childhood friends were only children. They often told me how lucky I was to have a brother. From my standpoint, I'd have gladly traded places with them - or exchanged my brother for something more practical, like a bike or a movie projector. The only time Alan and I really got along was in the face of a common enemy. We might have belted each other about, but we always came to each other's defence.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Lynn's Comments: I was so excited when I first saw my work in print I didn't know how to channel my energy. I danced around the house. I read my work in the paper over and over again. It was hard to believe what I was seeing, even though I had worked so hard to get there.

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Lynn's Comments: I have always welcomed question from my kids; It's an opportunity to share knowledge and to show them that I value their intelligence. It's just that they always seemed to ask me stuff when I had no time to answer. It didn't matter what I was up to; they always wanted an answer NOW! Do kids do this because they want our undivided attention all of the time, or because they enjoy hearing the often ridiculous, spur of the moment responses that we come up with? Either way, it drove me crazy.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Lynn's Comments: In the 80's there was still an "attitude" about women working. "The little lady" was a secretary or receptionist and the more responsible positions went to the "tough broads." Even though attitudes had relaxed and most men accepted and encouraged women in the workforce it was not uncommon to find serious discrimination. We're still fighting this. Despite a change in the "fibre of society", we're not out of the woods yet!

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Lynn's Comments: My method for writing strips was to stretch out on the couch with a lined pad of paper on my lap and imagine myself in the Patterson kitchen at suppertime. It didn't take long for the characters to begin a conversation and I would listen in. Like a tape recorder, I could run the commentary back and forth, change or modify the answers, and if luck was with me, I'd get a funny line. I remember being particularly happy with this one and wondering again, where the idea had come from. It was too good (I thought) to have come from ME!

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Lynn's Comments: It amazes me still to think that after the hard work and "discomfort" of giving birth, we go back and do it again! My friends and I supported each other afterwards. We discussed episiotomies, backaches, lack of sleep, lactation, depression and so forth. One topic was brought up again and again: would there be more children in the world if the men produced the babies and the women puffed cigars?!

Friday, September 30, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Aaron did ask why we didn't have another baby and my explanation was that we had sold the crib. In a way it's true. If you have even the slightest positive thought about having another, you store the stuff. With this in mind, however, I have friends who kept everything "just in case" and are now offering cribs and jolly jumpers to their married, adult children!

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Lynn's Comments: No matter what, your baby is the most beautiful thing on the planet. I remember looking at mine as soon as they were out of the chute and thinking "miracle!" Red, blotchy and crying, they are the culmination of 9 months of concern, protection, discomfort, worry and joy. They are also a grunt to produce. I often thought that if it was an easy process, we might not love them and want them as much as we do!

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Lynn's Comments: When Katie was born, Aaron did ask why she was so small. Having just pushed her out of my nether regions and with walking and sitting still a quivering thought, I told him it was extremely good engineering and that was that. I don't think I gave a full explanation until he was much older!

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Star Wars (one of my all time favourite films) was a phenomenon when this strip was done. Every store carried something relating to this wonderful fantasy and Aaron was caught up in it, too. What he wanted was a pet and he said if we got one, he'd call it Luke Skywalker. To me, it sounded like a good name for a housefly!

Monday, September 26, 2011

Lynn's Comments: I was introduced to the Lamaze method of childbirth when I worked at McMaster Medical Center. Dr. Murray Enkin was head of Obstetrics. He initiated practices which at the time were considered far too innovative! Murray believed childbirth was not an illness, that fathers should be allowed in the birthing room, and that midwives were a practical and welcome addition to his team. What was he thinking?

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Lynn's Comments: This is another example of something I just made up. In fact, I don't remember my husband taking the kids to buy groceries - this was my job and I enjoyed it. This is a gag that I knew had been done by other cartoonists, and yet, I did it again.

Saturday, September 24, 2011

Lynn's Comments: When I was about to have Katie, it was important to spend as much time as I could with Aaron to reassure him that even though a new baby was coming, he was still the first, and was very special. I told him he would be a big brother, that he'd be the older one and be able to teach his new brother and sister all kinds of things. What he remembered most, however was that his friends said he might get presents!

Friday, September 23, 2011

Lynn's Comments: We didn't get a Porsche, but we did buy a second hand Volkswagen. This is an image reminiscent of a time when we crammed three chums in the back seat and went for a drive. Needless to say, it was a short one.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Lynn's Comments: My first ex husband always wanted a Porsche. Although we never bought one (a house came first) we went often to look at them. It occurred to me at the time that this was not the kind of vehicle in which one could fit groceries, nor would I fit if I were 9 months pregnant. I was being practical... and Porsche and practical aren't usually found in the same sentence!

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Lynn's Comments: Here is where my imagination took me for a ride. Running out of gas on the way to the hospital appealed to me. Typically, I had no idea what the outcome of my contrived situations would be, so this was like living through the real incident: "What happens now?"

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Lynn's Comments: My friend, Audrey, was as nonchalant as could be when it came to delivering her baby. It was her husband who panicked! When she said she thought it might be time to leave for the hospital, Mack ran out to the car with her overnight bag and almost forgot her. Then he backed into a post on the way out of the driveway. Audrey ended up driving to the hospital and checking herself in. We laughed when she said she'd told the orderly to put Mack in the wheelchair for the ride to the room!

Monday, September 19, 2011

Lynn's Comments: I don't know where this idea came from. Sometimes things just happened without a real memory or situation behind it. As Elly Patterson, I just supposed this would be a natural neighborly gesture and allowed my imagination to go from there.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Lynn's Comments: We were living in a log house and having renovations done. A number of workmen, strangers to me, were coming and going at the time. One night the phone rang. The receiver was on my side of the bed. I answered, expecting it to be the Dental "on call" service, but a man's voice said something I couldn't quite understand. I had been in a deep sleep and wasn't prepared for a conversation. "What??" I said. He repeated whatever it was but I still couldn't understand. He said something vaguely suggestive, but I wasn't able to pick up the thread. He eventually gave up and asked if I knew who it was. I said I did not and he seemed surprised. At this point, I just wanted to go back to sleep, but he asked again if I recognized his voice and I said I didn't. Satisfied that he'd remain unknown, he hung up. The next day I was convinced it had been one of the guys who was working on the house. One, in particular, was a bit of a wild card and I wondered if it had been him. It amazed me to think how vulnerable and anxious I felt, even though the call had been clumsy and short. Somebody was "watching" me in an unhealthy way and it made me nervous and wary until the project was over and the strangers were gone. I tried to imagine what someone who had been seriously threatened would feel and how long, if ever, they would take to get over it.