Some news from here, 3 fun things, and art for you!
January 22, 2023
In This Issue:
News From The Home Front
Three Fun Things
Art For You
Top Cartoons
News From The Home Front
Jack Tries a New Cookie Strategy
My husband has decided that the best way to eat cookies is in groups of three. “You’re going to eat three anyway,” he reasoned. “You may as well do it all at once.”
“But if you eat three at a time, won’t you end up eating way more?” I asked.
“Yes,” he said. Then he went back to eating his cookies.
Dog Contemplates Life At Most Inconvenient Times
Our dog JJ knows when I’m in a hurry, and that’s when he likes to take his sweet time on walks, sniffing every last blade of grass and stopping mid-walk to contemplate life.
“Come ON!” I will say.
He will glance at me as if to say, "You've interrupted my thoughts. Now I have to start all over again." Then he will go back to staring into the distance.
Weather Report
We drove to California's Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains last weekend. It snowed a little bit.
In related news, shoveling snow is good exercise.
And now on to some fun things!
Three Fun Things
1. Crumbling Toast
Reader Bob Freeman bought one the Kicking Toast t-shirts from my Threadless store, and the art started to fade and peel after a few washes. (Threadless replaced it for free.) But he and I were laughing at the way the kicking toast looked after fading. I almost like it better. I took the picture Bob sent me and created this:
P.S. I own several items of my own merch and I haven't had problems with it fading. So don’t be scared to buy it!
(That said, I do sort of wish one of mine *would* fade.)
2. The Leighton Show
I’ve been enjoying this account on Instagram. It’s a guy from Maine who posts humorous videos about marriage and parenting. His apologies-to-his-wife videos are quite funny.
I found him when his post about “funny questions college kids ask” went viral. I could relate because Kate called me from college when she was trying to cook some Trader Joe’s frozen food. “Mom," she said, "do I follow the skillet directions, the oven directions, or both?”
"It's best to pick one," I advised.
3. Bruce Springsteen
As we’ve discussed in past issues, sometimes we all wake up in the middle of the night and have trouble falling back asleep. Well, my latest solution is to listen to Bruce Springsteen’s autobiography, narrated by him.
He’s got great stories, and the book is quite funny.
I just put some earphones on, press play, and listen. When I'm smart, I'll set my phone timer to shut off the audio after an hour, so it stops once I fall back asleep. But sometimes I forget, then I fall asleep and miss MANY chapters.
It makes for a disjointed experience. I'll be listening to Bruce talk about starting a band in his teens, then the next night when I press play he'll be talking about his second studio album. I'm like, "Wait, I missed a couple decades there."
At this point, I'm just randomly picking chapters to listen to. I'm getting his whole story, just wildly out of order. But it is a really good listen, and I recommend it.
Art For You!
We're less than a month away from Valentine's Day, so I wanted to equip you with some fun art, in case you need it.
First up: Some little cards you can print and cut out. Download the file here or click on the image. You could stick these tags on gifts, or just give them to people to say, "You're great."
And here's one more. You (or your kids or anyone else) can fill this out and give to friends or family. Download it here or click on the image.
Happy early Valentine's Day! You Rock!
In Case You Missed It...
A new Hedger Corp story is underway!
After drinking spiked eggnog, the employees promised investors that they would develop an artificial intelligence robot. Now it's January and they have to deliver. Spoiler alert: things do NOT go well.
Maybe you've already been following the saga on my Hedger Corp Instagram Page. If not, you can read it here:
Artificial Intelligence Robot, Part 1
Artificial Intelligence Robot, Part 2
Bob is not pleased to be woken up from his nap and told he has to create a highly intelligent robot ASAP.
Top Cartoons
Let's close things out by looking at the most popular cartoons since the last newsletter.
First, we have this one, which illustrates a tweet by Simon Holland. I'm totally into birds, so this resonated with me—and many others.
TWO hummingbirds is unquestionably exciting.
Then we have this cartoon about things that make people happy. I have three different versions of this cartoon, and one of them got posted by Grown & Flown. I looked at the comments on that Grown & Flown post, and then I used those comments to make this NEW (now fourth) version!
That scissor person is insanely happy. She must have had terrible scissors before getting those new ones.
Patreon Club!
Would you like to receive some fun and exclusive art on a regular basis, while also supporting my work? If so, check out my Patreon Club! Depending on which tier you choose, you'll get art once per quarter or as often as monthly.
You can use this art as cards for loved ones, gifts for others, or just something amusing for yourself. I make holiday-themed things (like the Valentine notes above), as well as illustrated quotes, motivational cartoons, and more. Learn more here. It's fun stuff!
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