Gordon: Browse The Strips

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Aaron was recently reminiscing about the great lunches I used to make for him; "Other kids might have a slice of cheese and some dry, white bread--but we got a great big, honking SANDWICH!" Katie didn't share his enthusiasm; "I used to trade mine with a boy who always had sugar sandwiches." (She's always had a sweet tooth.) I wasn't angry that Katie had given her lunches away--considering the poor diets of some kids, he probably needed a good, nutritious lunch more than she did.

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

Lynn's Comments: There always has to be a villain in the classroom, someone who bullies and "breaks the law"--that's just the way it is. I bet we can all remember the names and faces of the kids who made our own young lives miserable.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I continued to fight and make up and fight all through elementary school. It was just the way things were. I was too young to see the whole picture, and I'd often wind up looking at negatives.

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I remember taking my mother's advice and being nice to one of the kids I "hated." It worked like a charm. After my enemy was certain that my efforts were genuine, the feud ended. This didn't keep me from fighting, though. I still needed the occasional pounding... and I gave a few in return. It's interesting to know now, having talked to some of the kids with whom I had serious differences, that we had all come from families where discipline was strong and physical. If "a pounding" was commonplace at home, then this is how we resolved our differences outside!

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I have always wondered what it is that makes boys and men want to run around shooting each other, when a really good, moderated argument would resolve almost anything. My thinking is: If women ruled the world, we'd get the politics over with expediently, thereby saving the civilian population, then do our best to rejuvenate each other's economies by shopping! This said by someone who admits to having been a street fighter at the age of five!

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Comparing what we got for Christmas with the neighbourhood kids might have been a problem for our folks, except that everyone in our neighbourhood had just about the same stuff. None of us seemed to have more or less than anyone else, and those who were scrimping managed to look clean, healthy, well dressed, and confident. We lived on Fifth and Lonsdale. Folks living on Fourth fit into our "status," and folks on Sixth did, too. Above and below these streets, there seemed to be a marked difference. If we compared our yuletide haul with anyone on Third, for example, we were likely to be called rich. This was easier to take than comparisons with kids who lived on Eighth or Keith Road or the Boulevard. Our stash would be meagre compared to the kids who lived up there! Whenever I go home, I'm drawn to this area of North Vancouver. For the most part, the wartime houses and the tenement buildings have gone. In their places are impossibly priced condos and attached homes--hard for even the most confident buyers to afford, and I wonder if these subtle lines of "status" still exist. If so, it would be interesting to find out what the "poor" kids in this area get for Christmas!

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Wherever Aaron was playing, Katie wanted to be, too. With their big difference in ages, she was considered a pest. The boys would holler for assistance and I'd rescue them from the fumbling hands of a little kid. I would then have to find something special for Katie to do so she wouldn't feel left out. I often wondered if her gravitation to the boys' bombs and light sabres wasn't a neat ploy to get 100% of Mom's attention!

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Lynn's Comments: I can't add anything to this punch line--other than to say that nothing has changed: the day I decide to get dressed late and to wear no makeup, is the day that all the delivery guys show up! This is something I hope a good iPhone application will someday eradicate.

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Lynn's Comments: At school, Aaron was constantly being asked, "Who is Deanna Sobinski?" He didn't have a girlfriend, that I knew of, and there were no other Deannas in town except for my friend's daughter--who was about the same age as Kate. It was assumed that everything I wrote was directly related to my family. Because of this, many storylines were hard on my kids--especially anything to do with childhood sweethearts! Despite my explanations, some folks still believe the strip is auto-biographical.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Lynn's Comments: I hear folks talking about kids and their relationships, and it surprises me when they say that real "love" doesn't happen until you're physically mature. I disagree. I remember being head over heels "in love" with a boy in my grade three class. I remember it clearly, and the feeling was as strong and as passionate as if I was 16. I had no concept of the physical stuff then--but the desperate need to be near him and to be cared for in return was overwhelming. Likewise, his rejection was painful and devastating. I hated him for showing my notes to his friends and I said so. Like Deanna Sobinski, he was attractive and popular, and he made me feel that I wasn't good enough. In retrospect, I think he just didn't know how to handle an ardent admirer.

Friday, February 15, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Writing a series of strips about Valentine's Day brought back so many memories. In grade two, my girlfriends and I thought the boys in our grade were SO immature!

Monday, February 18, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Like my mom, I welcomed my kids' friends into the house all the time. On the odd occasion when it just wasn't convenient, I was the villain. It was "No fair!" I wondered what the kids said about moms who never let friends come in--even to use the bathroom.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Lynn's Comments: In Vancouver where I grew up, February could be four weeks of cold, bone-chilling rain. Now that I live in Ontario, February is a month of safe outdoor activity. Snow machines, and even trucks, ply the surface of the lakes. With the consistent low temperature driving can even be easier. Some folks look forward to February. Fishermen and skiers wait all year for a time when they can thoroughly enjoy their sport. Friends ask me which I prefer: the rain of the west coast or the cold of Ontario, and it's a toss-up. For me, either way, the month of February will always be far too long!

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Everyone smoked when I was a kid. It was cool to have a cigarette in your mouth--you looked like a movie star. At the corner store we could buy packets of candy cigarettes. They were sticky and gritty and tasted vaguely like peppermint. If it was cold enough outside, our breath turned to steam and we'd pretend we were lighting up for real. When my brother and I finally scored the real thing, I was surprised to discover how horrible they were. How anyone gets "hooked" is beyond me!

Thursday, February 21, 2013

Lynn's Comments: "Crazy Eddy's" was based on "Fergy's" in Lynn Lake--part confectionery, part pool hall; a place where boys of all ages liked to hang out. Fergy himself was a dishevelled, crotchety old guy whose motto (printed over the entrance) was "Buy or bye-bye." He sold cigarettes to minors, bent the liquor laws, and bragged about being just honest enough to stay out of jail. Even though we didn't like our boys to go in there, we knew where they were, and in a "frontier town," Fergy's was safer than some of the other haunts around town.

Friday, February 22, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Video games were just coming to the fore when we lived in Lynn Lake. I spent a fortune on "Pong" and "Pac Man" and "Asteroids," which Aaron loved. Compared to the games of today, these were so simple, but at the time, they were a fascinating technological breakthrough. Suddenly, there was a new dilemma; how does one become proficient at this without turning into a large head with a thumb on it?

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Gordon Mayes was a composite of a number of people--kids I knew who had problems too big to talk about. We all knew who had troubles at home--without knowing what those troubles were. Sometimes the signs were too evident to ignore. The surname "Mayes" was for Carol Mayes--a friend of mine in elementary school.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Remember eating snow and believing it tasted like ice cream? If you don't, you didn't grow up in a northern climate! The only snow we didn't eat was yellow!

Sunday, March 31, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Eldon Park was just down the lane from our house in Lynn Lake. It was a small space; room enough for a roundabout, a slide, and a three-seater swing set. The Kinsmen took care of the grounds and the equipment, and thanks to them, we had an Easter egg hunt each year. It was always a skirmish when the big kids got to the goodies first. Some parents helped the little kids, much to the annoyance of others, but we always managed to escape an altercation. I remember Katie standing by the fence upset because she couldn't find anything. To me, the eggs were visible everywhere, but when I squatted down to her level, I could see what the problem was. Everything was either too high or buried in the grass, which was too tall for her to see over. Sometimes, you really DO have to look at things from your child's point of view!

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Party games were a must whenever I hosted a gig for my kids--and I had to keep finding new stuff for them to do. The best games were often the ones that elicited groans and complaints at adult parties but were a lot of fun--after you got started. Fortunately, kids don't need any "fortification" when it comes to being silly!

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Lynn's Comments: I have always been interested in bugs and snakes and creepy-crawly things. The only thing I don't like to catch and examine in my hands are spiders, but they fascinate me just the same. When I was a kid, some of my insect "pets" succumbed to my examinations, and I would create small but elaborate burial ceremonies for them. When one of my garter snakes died, I buried him in a long, flat tie box, and gift wrapped him before I put him into the ground. It was the least I could do.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Lynn's Comments: This reminds me of a story. My friend Christa decided she wanted to learn the saxophone. So as not to disturb her husband one morning, she decided to practice on the back porch. We live in the country, so there were no neighbours to offend. She had just started to honk out some scales when her husband appeared in the doorway excited and out of breath. "Christa!" he cried. "Did you hear that? I think a moose has been hit on the highway!"

Monday, May 20, 2013

Lynn's Comments: The great Johnston yard sale was an epic event. Everyone in Lynn Lake knew that Ruth had squirreled away some fine stuff and looked forward to seeing what would be up for grabs. Tables had to be borrowed from the church next door. It took us two days to price everything and set it out on display. As luck would have it, the event took place on the day of the high school graduation. Students in their best duds crowded around the tables, trying to score a deal ahead of the old guys.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Lynn's Comments: Some of Aaron's friends did have keys to their houses, but again, the town was so small that we all looked out for each other. In general, the kids didn't get into too much trouble. Small towns are a relatively safe environment for kids--which is probably why they all say they can't wait to leave when they hit their teen years!

Monday, July 1, 2013

Lynn's Comments: My friends who were lucky enough to own a piano and get lessons often complained about the torture they suffered having to practice for recitals and such. Years later, with the stress of learning far behind them, they thanked their parents at long last for giving them the gift of music.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Lynn's Comments: The first day of school was always exciting for me, and a new teacher was fresh meat. The ones who were most successful in taming our classes began by setting down the rules. They were strict, no-nonsense people who could stand up to the most irritating kids. If they also turned out to be creative, entertaining, funny, and fair, they had us in the palms of their hands, and we learned--just to earn their praise.