Trick or Treat

I got the idea for this while waiting for trick-or-treaters to show up for candy - "Wouldn't it be funny to dress up as Santa Claus and give out candy canes on Halloween?" I didn't actually do it, but I did draw this comic and included a joke about how quickly people (and stores) transition from Halloween decorations to Christmas decorations.

Time Travel Suggestion

In honour of National Novel Writing Month, in which I am not participating, I thought I would share this idea in case anyone needed a time-travel story-prompt.

If I were a model ...

As a model, I don't look all that different from an anime character. Go figure.
Also, my art style is such that, even as a model, I would still be 'plus sized'. Plus-size fashion models are just noticably under the standard weight for women of their age group and culture, as opposed to extremely far below the standard weight.
I approve, at least in concept, of new laws in France stating that you must have a certain minimum amount of biomass to works as a fashion model. In practice, I suspect it will lead to a lot of under-the-table arrangements and falsified documents.
(Still working on catching up on the tutorials I couldn't work on while my computer was going belly-up. If all goes well, you'll get a proper tutorial to read on Thursday.)

Flag Day

I try not to make my blog a big political thing, but ... Flag Day! Get the red and white Valentine's decorations back out here!

Gently Worn

Of course, if you're donating clothing that was originally marketed to a vastly different demographic, the question to ask is, 'would I be willing to be seen in public with someone wearing this?', but that felt a bit verbose for what was supposed to be a short-and-snappy piece.

The first wave of winter holidays has passed, which means now is the time that a lot of charities really need support. If you really want to make a positive impact - well, regular giving is best, but the next-best is if your sporradic donations of goods, money, and time come during times of the year when most people aren't thinking, 'I should do something nice, to give back to my community'.

Sorry if this came out preachy. It kind of was. I happen to know of a lot of instances where the reason things were given away was because they were broken in some non-cosmetic, functional way - mostly pants without buttons and coats without working zippers. I live in Canada. It gets cold here. Coats have to be able to shut.

Wow. For a post intended to be short, this sure ended up with my longest out-of-comic commentary ever. Don't worry, it won't become a habit. I hope. I am quite verbose...

And yes, this is a chart. It is a free-form chart.

Feedback Buttons

What do you think? Is this post worth chocolate? (Also, if you can't tell, that's a donut I'm holding. My family makes them on New Year's Eve.)

Puzzling Out Sociallization

Analogies are tricky things, but this is about as clear a metaphor as I've been able to come up with for this situation.

Rudolph's Extra Verse

The most beloved of secular Christmas carols now has an extra verse that totally changes its message.

Book Borrowing Etiquette

Of course there's also the usual 'return in a timely manner' rule, but that applies to all borrowing, not only books.

Squirrel Strategy

Of course, if you don't want squirrels, you could try doing the opposite of these things ... or move to Antarctica.

Poppy Pins

In case you've been living under a rock since prior to 1944, Rememberance Day is every year on November 11th. If you know any veterans or active military personel, do something nice for them.

Love & Belonging - Film Advertisment

L'Arche Canada doesn't want to have too much official involvment in this because the film isn't bilingual, but they are aware of the good advertising in being involved with a film premiere.

Asperger's Syndrome and Neurotypical Syndrome: A Behavioural Chart sample

I have discovered the labels feature, which is what I was going for with the Keywords. At some point I will go through my archives and switch the keywords for labels. Or maybe just add labels and leave the keywords alone.

Sign Spotting

Keywords: gun control; controversial; legality; restaurant signs; public domain versus original creation copyright; Applebee's; vacation; USA Canada culture shock; shirt, shoes, required for service; no pets - guide dogs and other service animals exempt; thank you for not smoking, stabbing anyone with utensils, or bringing firearms into our restaurant; where will it end?

If you want a copy of my 'thank you for not stabbing restaurant staff or fellow patrons with your utensils' sign, I request that you use the following JPEG image and include a link back to this site:



Venn Diagram

Keywords: Circle, oval, overlap, conversation, presumably well-intentioned, family, single, married, divorced, with or without kids, parenting, possible xkcd reference, too much information, opinion, occurance, popular media portrayal, analysis.