Author Archives: stripfix

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Lynn's Comments: Having someone new come into a family is an enormous adjustment. Aaron and I had been a team before I married Rod--and even though Rod adopted Aaron and gave him his last name, their personalities were never really compatible. I wanted Lawrence and Connie's story to be a happy one--one in which everyone adapted and the relationships worked. Having this kind of control over their lives was like playing God!

Monday, January 5, 2015

Lynn's Comments: I tried to imagine what it would be like for Lawrence to stand outside his old house in a neighbourhood that he loved. He must have felt a sense of loss and confusion. Children have no choice when it comes to enormous decisions like moving, so I assumed he would stand there, wondering why he was now living somewhere else!

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Lynn's Comments: I have always had fun with sound effects and radio broadcasts, labels and names. Jim Borecki is the name of a good friend, with whom I have lost touch. I tried to contact him by putting his name in this strip, but so far I have not been able to find him.

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Lynn's Comments: My dad talked a lot about the war, and any time the subject came up in the strip, I received letters from veterans happy to see it mentioned.

Friday, January 2, 2015

Lynn's Comments: One of the good things about Michael and Lawrence's friendship is that it comes from the heart: two boys with much in common, nothing more. In a few years Lawrence will tell Michael that he is gay, and it doesn't matter. What does matter is their affection for one another. I had no idea when I drew these strips that Lawrence would realize this about himself, and so it was a surprise to me too. Looking back at these two boys, enjoying what will ultimately be a life-long friendship, I'm proud of the story that evolved.

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Lynn's Comments: It seems funny to me now to see that I saw myself as "old" when I did this strip. When I look in the mirror today, the 67 year old me looks very different from the face I saw then. I have had to adjust to creases, folds, furrows, jowls and bifocals. I also have a slight tremor, so my head shakes. You gotta joke about this stuff. I like to say, "It's a good thing my head shakes from side to side. If it nodded, I'd be agreeing to everything I'm ever asked to do!"

As teenagers, my friends and I made fun of "old folks" Senior's homes we called "Wrinkle City" or "Menopause Manor"--well, I'm there now, and the picture looks different from the other side. When my grandfather said it took courage to be "old," I believe him. And the best laugh of all is: to my aunt Monica who is 85, --I'm a youngster!!

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Lynn's Comments: This strip was missing for some reason. All we had in our archives was a newspaper clipping, and it had been edited down to fit into smaller format. Eventually, we did get our hands on a print with the top panels included. I redrew the whole thing (so Kevin could do the colouring and send it to the syndicate) and took the liberty of changing the punch line. What I wanted to do was connect "rat race" and "running through a maze" (like a mouse) with CHEESE! The original punch was weak: "We're having cheese". I mean, other than a rodent, who makes a meal out of just cheese? I think the new ending works better, but it's still a stretch! This is an example of when I had a workable idea but couldn't quite figure out how to word it!

Friday, December 26, 2014

Lynn's Comments: It was fun to give Connie a new look. A big change in your life affects you mentally and physically, and it seemed to me that after ridding herself of the annoying Ted, Connie was renewed, refreshed, and recharged.

Thursday, December 25, 2014

Lynn's Comments: This is something that didn't happen but should have. Brought up in the Anglican Church, I endured countless hours sitting through painfully dull sermons and kneeling as the litany droned on. I would have given anything to see a kid launch a toy down the aisle--and I'm sure the adults would have appreciated it, too!

Monday, December 22, 2014

Lynn's Comments: One of our traditions at Christmas was to clean out the fireplace. This was a good thing. We'd have forgotten otherwise. This is a pretty accurate illustration of our living room in Lynn Lake--complete with the crud on the rug.

Friday, December 19, 2014

Lynn's Comments: Aaron and my dad had a hard time playing board games. Aaron wanted to learn and Dad wanted to teach him, but they both wanted to win!

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Lynn's Comments: I think I was in grade three when I was cast in a school Christmas pageant as a wise person. I was told to wear my bathrobe as a costume, but my mom was so upset by its frayed condition that she hurriedly made me a new one out of striped material--much like the robes worn in Christian-Hollywood flicks. Though my behaviour wasn't particularly saintly, I wore my pageant bathrobe for years, pretending I was right out of the Bible!

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Lynn's Comments: Some of the names used here were Katie's friends. Other were kids that had bullied her at school because of the strip, so this was a way to include the local children and show that we wanted to include everyone we could, whenever possible.

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Lynn's Comments: We were fortunate to have enough space that we didn't have to reorganize our sleeping arrangements. The game of musical beds was, however, good fodder for the strip.

Monday, December 8, 2014

Lynn's Comments: At this time, my parents lived in Hope, British Columbia. To get to North Bay was quite a haul: a two-hour drive to Vancouver, a flight to Toronto, and another to North Bay. With two kids, it was even more hassle for us to go to them. The few times we did get together for Christmas were much-celebrated events.