Farley: Browse The Strips

Sunday, June 28, 2015

Lynn's Comments: This didn't happen, but here's a story that did: I was about 12 years old. For weeks, a cat had been coming to sit under my bedroom window and howl. It sounded like a demonic baby's cry, and I hated the sound. Nothing would deter the cat so one night, I decided to get even. I opened the window wide, placed a pitcher of cold water on the windowsill, and waited for the cat. Like clockwork, it arrived in full voice, and as soon as the howling reached a crescendo, I dumped the water. The cries I expected to hear, however, didn't come from a cat. They came from my brother who had a room in the basement. He had been sneaking out of his bedroom window and howling under mine!

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Lynn's Comments: If you don't have a dog, it's difficult to make jokes about stuff that dogs actually do. Little incidents like this one, taken from everyday life, inspired my imagination. Using this as material for the strip, saved my dog from woe.

Sunday, September 13, 2015

Lynn's Comments: Aaron and Katie both encouraged our dog, Willy, to clean up after them. He was a handy mop sometimes and would eat almost anything. With this in mind, I once saw Aaron offering the dog his homework.

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Lynn's Comments: When I worked with advertising agencies, one of the things I liked to do was to come up with slogans and catchy commentary. I never took the products as seriously as I took the marketing of them. I doubt that I could do a good job of this today--I'm far too cynical!

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Lynn's Comments: Our dog, Willy had a permanent roost under Katie's chair. As soon as she was seated, he'd race into position and wait. It didn't take long for her to become an accomplice in the game of "don't feed the dog." This charade went on relentlessly, and the only player who lost was me.

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Lynn's Comments: I received countless letters from folks who told me that their dog hated peas as much as Farley did. I mean, they really hated peas! You'd think an animal that will happily chow down on road kill, old bones, and horse manure would (if covered in gravy) eat anything! --Who knew?

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Lynn's Comments: This was the diagnosis we were given when Farley (the real dog, Farley) began to limp and have trouble with stairs. Certain breeds of dog are more prone than others to this disorder. It's when the socket in the hip is not sufficiently bowl-shaped to hold and support the top of the femur, allowing it to slip out of place. Eventually, as the dog grows and becomes heavier, the ball of the femur slips right out of the hip joint--a painful and disabling problem. We were told that the breeder who sold us the dog was likely responsible for Farley's hip dysplasia.

Thursday, November 26, 2015

Lynn's Comments: We were cautioned against letting Farley get too heavy, as this would add pressure to the already stressed hip joint. Putting him on a diet wasn't easy--he would beg for table scraps and I hated to waste them.

Monday, November 30, 2015

Lynn's Comments: Despite problems with his hips, Farley was a happy, healthy pooch who only seemed to avoid the stairs. I loved him because he was a real character--as close to a cartoon dog as one can get!

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Lynn's Comments: When the first Cabbage Patch dolls came out, I was caught up in the frenzy like everyone else. I managed to score one for my daughter just before Christmas, but then my sister-in-law called to say there were no dolls available in Winnipeg until after Christmas, and could I find just two more. Word came that a shipment of dolls was to arrive at a local store in North Bay, and it would be first come first serve. I ran to the store and stood in line hoping to get a doll that wasn't too ugly. They were ALL ugly! I bought two blonde C-dolls, and mailed them off to Manitoba just in time for the great glut of Christmas. Apparently, I had saved the day. Looking back, it's hard to believe that such a strange looking doll could have made such an impact, and that I waited crazily in line for two of them! This series of strips was my "revenge."

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Lynn's Comments: I remember this feeling. I remember going to bed and wishing so hard that it was Christmas, my teeth ached. I still love Christmas--but nowadays, it comes too fast!

Friday, December 25, 2015

Lynn's Comments: This was me exactly; standing in the early hours of the morning staring at all the gifts under the tree and wishing they were all for me. I wonder when greed changed to giving? Somewhere between the ages of 5 and 15, I became someone who thinks about others. Whenever it was, I'm grateful.

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Lynn's Comments: When this strip ran, people all over the continent made paper hugs to send to loved ones all over the world. They sent me letters and photographs of the hugs they made and of the people who received them. This was a strip I didn't think was anything special. I never knew when a simple drawing I did might be seriously taken to heart.

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Lynn's Comments: This Sunday page was hastily written as soon as I got home from the car wash. It was a funny incident, but thoroughly annoying as well. I was always happy to vent into the strip whenever something like this happened!

Friday, June 3, 2016

Lynn's Comments: There were no dogs out there to spar with, just a few trees and the schoolyard fence. I was on my own.