Lawrence: Browse The Strips

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Lynn's Comments: When dad had a mind to build something, he made great stuff. Trouble was, he under-built everything, and what looked like a sturdy vehicle, would last for perhaps two good runs. St. Andrews and St. George's Streets bordered our block of East Fifth and were two of the steepest hills in North Vancouver. Our "Dad-made" go-karts disintegrated instantly--but they had potential. Each one he built lasted a bit longer than the last one, and we always hoped for a kart that would make it through the summer.

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Our dad was a big kid at heart. He enjoyed riding the hills as much as we did. I always wondered why he was so eager to join us in our games and our fantasies. I later read in his sister's (my aunt Bessie's) diary, that he had always held a part time job, and after his dad was injured in the shipyards, he was sent to work full-time at the age of seventeen to help support his family. He never really had a childhood--and loved to share in ours.

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Katie was able to crawl into the tiniest places and we did "lose" her in our roomy house from time to time. One of her favourite spots was under the kitchen sink, which meant I had to put the soaps and cleaners in another place. Convenience always takes a back seat to safety!

As a kid, I loved hide and seek. I attended kindergarten in a private home across the street from ours. Our teacher, Miss Stewart, often had us play this game, but we had to stay within the classroom. How dull! I knew her house well and when it was my turn to hide, I left the room and hid in her broom closet. Kids searched for me and Miss Stewart hollered. I eventually got bored waiting for them to find me, so I decided to surprise them all by taking my clothes off. When Miss Stewart opened the door to the broom closet, there I was in my birthday suit. Immediately, she pulled a small rug off the floor, flung it in front of me, and told the class of giggling kids to go back to their chairs and wait. At once, I was shoved into my duds. Miss Stewart's sister watched the class as she marched me across the street to my house. Mom opened the door to a barrage of complaints, accepted me into the house, thanked Miss Stewart, and sent me to my room. That day, I was expelled from kindergarten. I guess this was the last straw!

Monday, May 28, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Michael has been smitten by Deanna and has heard his uncle talking about Georgia. He knows that love, whatever it is, carries a powerful punch and serious consequences--should you fall! I remember being hopelessly in love in first and then again in third grade. Nobody would have believed the extent of my "crushes" or how badly I wished the boys I liked would return my affection. Puppy love really is serious stuff to a kid and shouldn't be casually dismissed!

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Lynn's Comments: In a neighbourhood where boys outnumbered girls (and the girls were GIRLY) I tried to fit in by being as gross, grubby and rude as the boys were. I wanted to join their club--but the initiation was: you had to pee through the knot-hole in Gary Perkins' garage. Not having the necessary equipment, I offered to spit my way to acceptance. This I had learned to do on the back porch with my dad and when the time came for my initiation, I beat Gary by two feet, six inches. As a member, I had to constantly impress the guys with outrageous acts and better my last indiscretion to prove I was worthy. When you think of it, this was preparation for jobs later on--where women were not treated as equals!

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Down the lane behind our house, the garbage cans waited. Every lid was a potential shield, every can a treasure chest. Eldon Avenue residents checked their cans as soon as school was out--knowing that a stream of kids would soon be tumbling by, looking for fun and mischief. After a year in Lynn Lake, none of us knew whose lid was on which can--and it never occurred to us to wire them on!

Thursday, May 31, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Janice was going to be a regular character in FBorFW. I was looking forward to having a rough and tumble girl down the block who would be an even match for the boys. She was named for a tough kid I knew growing up, and I hoped to explore some of my more daring exploits through her. I imagined Mike and Lawrence battling Janice and other "enemies" in an ongoing quest for neighbourhood supremacy. Sadly, Janice soon disappeared. Perhaps she came on too strong. Perhaps I bowed to reader criticism. Either way, I lost a neat character and some potentially good story lines.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

Lynn's Comments: The days leading up to summer vacation never seemed to end. It was so hard to concentrate on lessons when sunshine beckoned and the bells on ice cream trucks chimed. I counted the days until school was out, but when I finally cleaned out my desk, I cried. My elementary school teachers were like parents to me and I hated to say goodbye.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Lynn's Comments: My folks were good badminton players. As soon as the spring rain subsided, they'd stretch out a net in the backyard and the games began. Alan and I would go through a couple of racquets each in a summer because Dad bought cheap ones. He knew we'd be using them to whack rocks, dirt, and each other. We even tried to make French fries by pushing a cooked spud through the mesh. We lost the shuttlecocks and made holes in the lawn. We pushed each other into the net and tried to swing from the posts. Badminton was an all-purpose sport, which we kids loved...and did eventually learn to play!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Ours was a one-bathroom house and Mom resented the parade of neighborhood kids coming in to use it. She was especially grouchy if Dad had just mowed the lawn and we'd been rolling in the clippings. I remember her washing handprints off the wall, hoping to make an impression on the people who had put them there...but, vindication didn't come until I had children of my own and complained to her about the exact same things.

Friday, September 14, 2012

Lynn's Comments: This gave me the opportunity to show how worried the children would be seeing their dog go to "the hospital." We take each healthy day for granted, and to a child, the family dog seems invulnerable to anything that could take him away. Showing concern for Farley's well-being was, I thought, a story that families could relate to. My sister-in-law Beth (the vet) was a great resource at this time.

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Lynn's Comments: After reading Tom Sawyer, I was convinced that spooks really did come out at night. My dad was no help; he loved to tell ghost stories. The Brothers Grimm book was a favourite of my grandfather's. Between the two of them, my brother and I were reluctant to go out in the dark until the year that my grandma gave us flashlights for Christmas. We used these to expel ghosts from corners, creeps from closets, and bugs from the bed sheet, until the batteries ran out!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Lynn's Comments: Like my mother, I couldn't resist the hungry faces of kids at the door. It's amazing, isn't it, how fresh baking makes folks magically appear.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Lynn's Comments: My mother used to nag me to do my homework. She didn't have to--really, it was just something she had to do. Her nagging drove me crazy. I'd get my work done, just not at the precise moment that she wanted me to! Perhaps it was her need to have everything organized and under control--or perhaps it's because she was not allowed to finish her own education that she was so focused on homework and studying. My mom's father didn't believe in educating women because "they would just get married and have children and waste it all." How unfortunate. How narrow minded he was. I hope there's a life or two after this one and that she gets another opportunity!

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.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Lynn's Comments: The other place where a silent candy wrapper is needed is church! Mom never minded the peppermints Dad brought so we kids would stay awake during the sermon... she was embarrassed by the sounds of the wrapper!

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.

Friday, November 16, 2012

Lynn's Comments: I loved comic books and considered myself a superhero. Not a female superhero with a huge bust, skimpy costume, and impossible sexy powers (these women were Barbies compared to me!)--I was a REAL superhero. If I saw a smaller kid being bullied by a bigger kid, I'd take the guy on--even if it meant getting my dress torn or my face bloodied. I was a fighter, and when the mood struck, the energy I could put into a good punch-up amazed me.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Lynn's Comments: There is a lot being said these days about bullies and being bullied. I was picked on pretty viciously at school and I was guilty of bullying, too. We picked on each other because of our looks, our families, our clothes, and our income. We said mean things, wrote mean things, and passed on mean information--which was mostly untrue. Why? I can only guess. The thing is, we all grew up. The kids I went to school with have all lead full lives. With the perspective that only comes with age and experience, we have faced some of the kids we bullied. We can see now who they really are and they too can get to know us. With mature understanding comes respect and I confess, misgiving. As kids, we spoiled so many chances to connect with and enjoy one another. Because we were too young, too naïve, and too selfish to see past our own need for acceptance, we lost the chance to enjoy the friendship of some truly wonderful people!

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.