Elizabeth: Browse The Strips

Friday, July 13, 2012

Lynn's Comments: The real farm story began before Katie was born. Rod and I were newly married and Aaron was about three when we drove west from our home in Dundas, Ontario and became farm hands for the summer at Don and Beth's place in Miami, Manitoba. For Better or for Worse wasn't even an idea at the time. Rod was still in Dental school and we needed the work!

Friday, July 20, 2012

Lynn's Comments: There was a single rooster on the farm and he had become downright mean. Don figured that the hens had all been eaten by pigs or other animals while they slept in the barn, so the old bird had nothing to do and took his frustrations out on everybody. We were told to wear boots and to use them if we had to--since the rooster would often pull a surprise attack. He frightened Aaron, who was low to the ground, so we figured we had a choice: get the rooster a partner or put him down.

Just about then, the washing machine died, so Beth and I set out to find a replacement. An ad in the paper took us to a neighbouring community. The folks who were selling their machine just happened to have some nice white hens, so we added the price of a fat one to the price of the washer, loaded them both into the back of the truck and drove home. The men folk had stopped for a beer and were standing in the yard when we returned. Beth held up the burlap sack with the hen in it and announced that the rooster's new mate had arrived.

If there was opportunity for a wager out on the farm, the guys were keen. How would the new lady be received? Beth and I said she'd be attacked as soon as she hit the floor. The guys were more circumspect. They bet ten bucks that the rooster would be a gentleman. He'd welcome her to the pig barn, show her around, and THEN get to courtin'. Beth carried the sack and hen to the barn. The upper half of the doorway was open and the rooster was resting on a hay bale just inside. Beth lowered the sack over the barrier and shook it gently. The hen bounced onto the straw with a startled "AWWWKKK?!" The rooster awoke and was instantly on her--wings flapping and legs astride. We told the guys to pay up.

For a few days after that, we saw the hen and rooster together. They pecked around the yard and seemed to be happy. Aaron found eggs in the sod pile--a sign that the marriage was successful--and then the hen disappeared. Like the rest of the chickens, she had simply vanished.

For awhile, the rooster looked for her and then he got mad. He attacked Aaron and then me. He flew at Don's face while he was putting out feed and that was the last straw. Beth and I were getting dinner ready when we saw Don take his rifle and go into the bush behind the barn. We heard a sharp crack and then he returned. He had solved the problem "the way it's done on the farm." The rooster was gone forever...but his story lingers on.

Saturday, July 28, 2012

Lynn's Comments: The day Aaron was found playing in a grain bin the guys were preparing to empty, was the day my in-laws took him home with them. If we hadn't spotted him in time, he could easily have drowned in the seed or been caught in the auger. I was unprepared for so many dangers. On a farm, you have to be vigilant and prepared for just about anything!

Friday, August 3, 2012

Lynn's Comments: One of the pleasures of living on the farm was eating fresh garden veggies. We had fresh meat, too. We knew where it was raised and where it had been butchered. This was all new to someone used to buying groceries in cellophane packages.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Aaron loved playing with the barn kittens. Cats were kept to keep the mice at bay and kittens appeared regularly. He begged us to let him keep one or more, but we couldn't manage a pet at the time.

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Farley was long gone when this was drawn. I relied on my friends' pooches for dog related input, and they were always keen to keep me up to date regarding kennels, shots, skunk encounters, and table manners. There was also a vet in the family to keep me in the know!

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I can still feel the texture and taste the sweet rubbery flavour of a brand new eraser. I had no restraint when it came to chewing on them, and I did bite them in half. My mother would bark at me for destroying a brand new eraser, but MY reasoning was that I now had two!

Friday, August 17, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Fear of the unknown...As a kid, I relied on this to unnerve my brother; he'd believe anything his older sister told him! As an adult, I found myself teasing my kids as well, forgetting how seriously they take these things.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Lynn's Comments: On really hot days, my folks would put the sprinkler on, and my brother and I would play all day in the spray. We did the same thing for our kids. One hot summer day, while walking to a friend's house, I saw a sprinkler and thought, "if I was five years old I'd run through that thing in a heartbeat!" Then I thought..."Why can't I do it now?" So, I did.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Lynn's Comments: For Better or For Worse required a lot of time and focus. I did have to stop sometimes and wonder what was more important--Aaron and Katie, or my deadlines? I'm glad now that I took the time to be with them, and later, worked until midnight!

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Here is another strip that got me into hot water. Removing Michael's towel while he was changing was a reportable offense! The problem with a static image is the subtle elements, which would otherwise explain things, are not there. You can't show subtle things like eye movement, shrugs, knowing smiles, and reassuring gestures. The artist knows the situation is all in fun, but the audience does not. What should be funny is therefore sometimes misinterpreted.

As kids, we would change on the beach under our towels so fast that even the swiftest voyeur was unable to catch us in the buff. We'd yell out "I'm changing!!" just to goad someone into pulling off our towels. That's what kids do! Anyway, this ran and I knew as I saw it in print that I would soon be getting more mail. I learned another lesson... but then again, this job is all "towel and error!"

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Lynn's Comments: This was me. I remember tying knots in the curtains, jumping on the couch, melting crayons on the radiator, peeling the wallpaper, and dropping toys into the biff. I don't think I was doing these things to be destructive as much as I needed stuff to do. We didn't have a TV, mom worked all the time doing laundry, canning, cleaning, and making meals. And when she wasn't doing housework, she sewed for us and did repairs and alterations for the dry cleaners down the street. She tried all kinds of things to keep us occupied. It's just that we needed constant attention and she wasn't superhuman. She did the best she could. Rainy weather often kept us indoors even in summertime, so it would be interesting for me to poll some of my fellow North Vancouverites to see if they too were as full of mischief as we were.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Here is an example of bad lettering. Hand lettering has to be neat, clean, and legible. Spaces between the words are important as well. You have to make sure that the reader's eyes flow easily over the text and that he knows exactly what's being said. I never thought twice about the lettering in this strip until I received a note from a reader saying he couldn't understand why: In the second panel, Elly had called herself a "goon."

Monday, September 24, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I was happy when this punchline came to mind. I thought it was too good to have been thought up by me alone, that some other cartoonist had surely thought of it too. So far, I haven't been told of a duplication, so perhaps I'm home free. Believe it or not, there are days when two of us will think up the exact same line, and on rare occasions, these are printed on the same day!

Monday, October 1, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Lynn Lake, as I have said so many times, did not have the warmest climate. On the rare occasion that Katie did want to wear a dress, it was often too cold to go outside in one. At one point, Kate was determined to wear a pretty summer dress she'd been given. I let her do it. Fortunately, it fit over a warm sweater and her winter snow pants!

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Lynn's Comments: When a kid is hungry, no explanation for why one should wait will curb the appetite. A kid wants to eat NOW. Dinner time for us was always at 6 o'clock when Dad came home. Nothing was allowed beforehand because it would spoil our appetite. Many a dinner was already "spoiled" because I had to wait so long to eat it!