daily: Browse The Strips

Monday March 19, 2018

Lynn's Comments: My mom was a stickler when it came to good manners. "Please," "thank you" and "pardon me" were drilled into us. We had eating lessons. She made us sit with a Golden Book under each arm so we could learn to eat without raising our elbows. There was a litany of rules: "Chew with your mouth shut! Don't pick your teeth in public! Don't blow your nose on the napkins! When you're finished, put your knife and fork together (like a clock’s hands) at seven thirty five!" Use of the knife and fork was carefully monitored. If we slouched at the table, mom would put a yardstick down our backs. This was strict and somewhat crazy, but my brother and I learned how to eat with good manners and it’s been a valuable skill, which has lasted us all our lives!

Tuesday March 20, 2018

Lynn's Comments: People were always telling me I should "cut Elly’s hair". This would have taken away a very recognizable feature of the character, so the best I could do was to bunch it up or tie it back. This strip gave me the opportunity to address the readers’ observation.

Wednesday March 21, 2018

Lynn's Comments: In a TV sit-com, you can get away with changing a character with a haircut or a hair colour because the character is a real person. In a comic strip, the art often reflects an artist’s style to the point where hair, posture, and even clothing are used to clearly identify the character. Charles Schulz once told me, "If it wasn't for hair and clothing, all my characters would look alike!" He drew them all in his own unique style.

Thursday March 22, 2018

Lynn's Comments: This is true. There was a coffee house on Davie Street in Vancouver where I tried to be a folk singer! Many of us did. In the 60s, music and entertainment were everywhere. If you could sing and strum a guitar, there was always a place where you could play—for free. One night at The Bunkhouse, I opened for Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee. I was awful and they were very kind. My career, thankfully, went in another direction!

Friday March 23, 2018

Lynn's Comments: I think this was an actual conversation between my brother Alan and I. He became a professional musician. He has just retired—he played the trumpet for over 50 years.

Saturday March 24, 2018

Lynn's Comments: Strolling across the parking lot at Canadian Tire today, my partner Paul and I were talking about our past and how much fun we'd had. We wondered about the new generation of kids, and it occurred to us that right now, is THEIR "good old days!"

Tuesday March 27, 2018

Lynn's Comments: I recently went to a nail spa. I rarely do this but it was a gift and I enjoyed being pampered. The young woman doing my nails had just had her lips injected with something that had made them red and swollen. I tactfully asked her about them and she said she was getting lip injections and Botox as well—to keep herself looking young. She couldn't have been more than 20 years old! I wonder what she will look like when she is my age.

Saturday April 7, 2018

Lynn's Comments: The curly hair story brought thanks from folks who were telling me to change Elly’s hair, complaints from folks who thought it was ugly, and very personal letters from women and men who were waiting for a hair disaster to grow out. Hair, it seems, is very serious stuff.

Monday April 9, 2018

Lynn's Comments: I was good at this…both range and direction. When I was in school, the boys weren't the only ones getting detentions for causing trouble!

Tuesday April 10, 2018

Lynn's Comments: Drawings like the one in panel 3 made my day. If I could come up with an idea that required expressions like these, I was in heaven.

Wednesday April 11, 2018

Lynn's Comments: I couldn't wait to be 13 for this very reason. I could add the word "teen" to my age. I could also babysit and make some cash. This was the beginning of independence.

Monday April 16, 2018

Lynn's Comments: The first boy-girl party I ever went to was at my friend Carolyn’s house. We were all about 13. It was an easy mix until the lights went down and we tried slow dancing. We had been taught how to waltz in gym class, but in a real basement with real couples, it was awkward.

Tuesday April 17, 2018

Lynn's Comments: There were about a dozen of us at the party, all dressed up and giggling. What I remember most, besides being hot and sweaty and dancing cheek to cheek, was a burping contest. Pop was expensive. None of us had it at home very often and Carolyn’s mom had bought us a real variety.

Wednesday April 18, 2018

Lynn's Comments: Somebody (might have been me) suggested we shake up the bottles of pop, drink them and see who could burp the loudest. The guys thought this was a good idea, so they and I got the contest underway. Carolyn and the rest of the girls didn't want to get involved, but they didn't want to tell on us either–in case it was a cool scene.

Thursday April 19, 2018

Lynn's Comments: It wasn't a cool scene. The pop went down and came right back up again. It came out our mouths and out of our noses. I’d chosen cream soda and I was covered in it. My dress was soaked up the front, the guys were also wet and embarrassed, but we laughed anyway. The audience was silent, and I had learned something: It’s of utmost importance to practice a gag before you try to pull it off. When a gag goes wrong, the troops are called and the night ends quickly. I wasn't invited back.