According to this article in The Guardian, ” In the US, 44% of new year resolutions last two to three months; only 6% last a year..”
About 40% of Americans make resolutions, but this varies by age. Younger adults (59% of those ages 18 to 34 versus 19% of those older than 55), which I would ascribe to the optimism of youth versus the resignation of those whose past resolutions haven’t really improved their fitness or finances.
Boise Ed suggested this venerable “For Better or for Worse” strip (from 1993), commenting: “This one really warmed the cockles of my heart (and I have no idea where that idiom came from).“
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P.S. Ed didn’t give it a category, he called it “just sweet“, so I’ve added an “Awww” tag.
The New York Times has a Flashback quiz, which asks you to place 8 historical events in chronological order. The New Yorker has now started Laugh Lines, in which you are asked to put some New Yorker cartoons in chronological order. Here’s one:
https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/laugh-lines/no-2
I haven’t tested to what extent these are available to non-subscribers. The cartoon version would seem impossible, but there’s usually a clue to some event (e.g. the word “Obama”).
This one popped up at the end when I finished:
And now a few more Christmas LOL’s / Awws:
Danny Boy send this cutie in: “The pets’ fondness for a “little pink sock” is a running trope. But then the pairing of sock/stocking is I guess “the joke””
And a few holiday entries:
More website ineptitude from GoComics. Make up your own ending. The complete caption (found same day in other places) is at the bottom of this post.
Mark H. and Boise Ed send in another Frazz as a double OY from December 26 (important to understanding the pun): “The first oy is subtle, and depends on your understanding of the English.”
Full caption from the Jim Benton Cartoon:
” I think I’ve fallen in love with you.
Unless that’s not cupid and I’ve just been
shot by a little naked guy.”
It’s an odd choice to have that cartoon appear on December 25, Christmas Day.
Some comics feature both tea and coffee, usually preferring the latter, but this comic from a 1902 issue of “Punch” is notable for its impartiality:
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The passenger’s statement (“Look here, Steward, if this is Coffee, I want Tea; but if this is Tea, then I wish for Coffee”) has been (incorrectly) attributed to a number of people (such as Abraham Lincoln), but it remains unclear who said it first, or whether it was merely composed as a fictional anecdote.
Herman is confronted with an alternative solution:
Buni seems to depict the usual attitude of coffee drinkers towards tea.
Ditto Adam@Home:
Horace has made it clear (multiple times) that he definitely prefers coffee:
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It’s hard to say which one it easier to prepare (if you care about doing it well):
Sometimes it doesn’t matter, when it’s just for the caffeine:
Each drink has its own particular traditions.
Jack Applin submitted this “Edison Lee” last year as a CIDU, but Comics Kingdom refused to produce it, until I remembered to change the URL from the old “.net” to the new “.com” address. Ooops.
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Jack commented: “Sure, the Rankin/Bass special. But what’s this about a finger in a nose? It wouldn’t BE in the special, if he were edited out.”
The humor is mostly just slapstick, but “nose” is probably a reference to the line in “The Night Before Christmas” (and the elf just messed up while “…laying his finger aside of his nose“).
Speechless Santa. Fill in your own dialogue. (GoComics posting error on 12/15. It’s clearly a GoComics error, because Arcamax shows the dialogue. GoComics corrected the error a day later.) It’s oddly meta, because panel 3 in the actual dialogue accuses Santa of not keeping up with the latest technology.
Steve B. sends this in. “Thought this was clever. Not sure everyone will get this if they don’t pay attention to the news.”
Mark H. send this in, noting “It took me a while”.
In honor of what would have been my grandfather’s eleventy-first birthday, here are some hobbit comics:
Mark H. sends in this triple OY
Chuck’s going to be one busy guy!
… will occur tomorrow (well, at least up here in the northern hemisphere):
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Most countries in the temperate zones have one 23-hour day every year’s calendar, but it falls in Spring, not in Winter.
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As opposed to both of the “Born Loser” strips, Frazz is referring here to net sunlight, rather than total duration.
P.S. Jef Mallett lives in Michigan, and must be very familiar with how short the days get in northern latitudes. On the other hand, Berlin is located ten degrees farther north than Detroit, so Mallett doesn’t have that much to complain about.
Of course, the shortest day of the year is followed immediately by the longest night:
Robin Bickel provides this holiday update from the Bickel clan. For those of you who are newer readers, or may just want a refresher about Bill, who founded this site, can find it here.
I hope everyone at CIDU is doing well.
Here’s an update on the always entertaining Bickel clan.
Zak is now in charge of all the visual planning for the NY Times business section and does all the hiring and layout for all the business section features. He just got a dog (his girlfriend talked him into it!) so we’ll see what happens with that!
Aaron and Mary Cate are now the proud parents of Hildegard Willa. She’ll be turning 1 at the end of February and she’s already smart and feisty! I’ve included a few photos of their recent trip to Tuscany. (Hildy has already been to Montreal, Portland Oregon, Berkely, Tuscany, Orlando, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York! She is very well traveled and extremely good on airplanes.)
In between grandma time, I’ve been seeing a lot of theater in NYC – 30 pays this year and I’m already making plans for next year. In the spring, Aaron, Mary Cate, Hildy and I will be travelling to London and Scotland.
As always, I’d love to send everyone a holiday card, designed by that art director extraordinary, Zak! So send me your address and a card will wing it’s way to you [RobinBickel_AT_gmail.com]
Bill wasn’t fond of Dave Whamond‘s squirrel jokes in the corner of Reality Check, so I hope he would forgive me for posting this one. [editor, not Robin]
Comics I Don't Understand 