Posts Tagged ‘Education’
10 items.
Most strips come from me hearing something, and finding it interesting enough to ponder. Even though it was over 15 years ago, reading this strip jogs the memory of my dad and brother having this conversation.
In fact, in the original version of this strip, the man on the right WAS Bruno’s brother. Upon revision, I decided that it worked best with her as an only child.
Is/was Bruno me? In ways, yes. I did not feel as dismissive of their thoughts as she does, but I believe I was the only one attending school at the time (although my dad was, and still is, working in the education system).
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It’s easy to find fault in something when it fails for you. The problem is, even when you’re right, if you don’t complain until AFTER it fails you, unfortunately, your motives are totally suspect.
Ah, Mary. A toast to you and all who got stuck in life because you were not willing to play the game.
And possibly that includes me. Not sure.
I believe this strip was in response to a tuition hike at UMass, where I was attending at the time. After two years I had quite a few loans to pay off.
This strip is taking place near the back table in the “Basics” dining hall, although perhaps not accurately.
Recently, Beth said almost the same thing to me that Bruno is saying. I pulled out this strip and showed it to her.
School is jumping through hoops, but so are jobs, so it is doing a fine go of preparing you, don’t worry.
In the beginning, I didn’t know which characters would stick. In this first appearance of Susan, I wrote her as a bit of a simpleton. But I think it was her good natured earnestness which led me to have her stick around. She came to be one of my favorite characters.
And just so you know, I actually did drop out of UMass after two years. For better or for worse.
I think this background was actually  referenced from the admission offices of UMass, and that heart card was because this strip appeared shortly before Valentines day.
I forget how much I told my parents about me dropping out of college after two years, but I know my mom picked up on the fact that I was dropping out, and my dad didn’t. Looking back, my guess is that I could have handled that (and everything) with much more grace and sensitivity.
Not that it’s fair to ask that of ANY 21 year old.
This strip was me trying to put into words some of the feeling of conflict, of kinda wanting to tell but feeling the pressure of disappointment if one does.
These numbers may seem a bit low, but it was based on my own situation. I was paying in-state tuition at a UMass, and also was receiving various loans and financial aid.
This strip was simply me exploring the debate which I heard (and participated in) many times at college, does it stifle artistic creativity, or teach you how, or both, or etc etc. But like most things, the debate was more interesting to me than the answer.
I think there is a bizarre but distinct feeling of similarity to Barabara Bush in Jeremy’s expression here, not sure why. But I do remember writing that punchline AFTER drawing the strip.
Oh, and the story Jeremy is telling in this strip really happened to me. Honestly, I think students should show respect to teachers, but I also think that some justifications for doing so are very reasonable. But the person i was speaking with apparently did not. Heh. :)
