Pushing 40: Browse The Strips

Saturday January 28, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Here is when writing and drawing can take you away on an imaginary flight. You see others in turmoil as you fly over and around them in safety—trying to figure out what they are going to do next. I often wonder if, in reality, there is someone out there writing and orchestrating the comic strip I live in!

Monday February 6, 2017

Lynn's Comments: This was an opportunity to make an important observation, I hoped, without sounding preachy. There are serious things a cartoonist wants to say; the challenge is in choosing the right time and the right way to say them.

Tuesday February 7, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Some of our best family times have been when the electricity was out. Not only did it make us creative and prepared, it gave us a break from sound. Until the appliances are off, we have no idea how much ambient sound we live with!

Friday February 10, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Moving to North Vancouver has given us a break from shoveling snow. Wet snow falls here, but few people shovel it because the rain will come and wash it away. The rain does come, but frost might come first. Dangerous and slippery sidewalks make going anywhere treacherous. Seaside living means bone-chilling cold. Long underwear (for me), is a necessity. You can't win in Canada!

Friday February 17, 2017

Lynn's Comments: As a hockey mom, I saw some interesting stuff. Parents who dropped off their kids and left never knew how important it was for those young players to see supporters in the stands. Some of the parents who did attend were so determined to see their kid be a star that they also ruined a great game. Kids were shouted at and bullied from the stands, and volunteer coaches were criticized. I'm hoping things have changed since I was a hockey mom.

Tuesday February 21, 2017

Lynn's Comments: After the strip became second nature to me, I began to look past the main characters to the Pattersons’ neighbours and friends. I was so immersed in the neighbourhood that I wanted to know what was going on in their families, too. I began to introduce strange new characters; people who would be interesting for the readers, and a challenge for me.

Wednesday February 22, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Molly is Elly’s best friend Connie’s step-daughter. I was getting into some convoluted relationships and I only had four panels a day in which to tell a story. Four panels and one statement a day. This was hardly enough time to develop a character—especially one outside the familiar ones already established.

Friday February 24, 2017

Lynn's Comments: If I was doing the strip today, I’d be even more intrigued by the ability to talk almost subliminally in coded texts and abbreviated comments. Today, it is communication as fast and as simple as it can be, but nuances and subtlety are lost along the way. I wonder how many serious misunderstandings occur now, because people don't use or don't know enough good words to be able to express themselves!

Sunday February 26, 2017

Lynn's Comments: While making a big cuddly fuss over the dog one day, I noticed a wistful glance from my husband. Whether he was cringing at the "dog-ma" of mother and dog or a bit jealous, I didn't know. The scene made for a good Sunday page!

Monday February 27, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Living with teenagers is a challenge for all parents. Living with adopted teens must be an incredible challenge. I tried hard to imagine it.

Tuesday February 28, 2017

Lynn's Comments: My friends used to go to my mother for emotional help. They’d pour their hearts out about everything from boyfriends to schoolwork, to their relationships at home. As a teenager, I found my mother awfully hard to talk to, and I couldn’t understand why my friends went to her for guidance!

Thursday March 2, 2017

Lynn's Comments: Interesting to read this now. I am 69 and I still look in the mirror and wonder who the heck is staring back at me!