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It's a secret! (waffles)

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The unmentionable DAAAAAANG

Pintsize's coma

"Damn, girl!"

Mister gentleman

First he was all , and then he was , but soon he was , and finally he was

BOOBS!

Happy Arbor Day 2003!

[AnAverageWriter]

I learned a long time ago that as a white male of middle-class upbringing, I'm nearly always wrong on this type of thing.

Do you really believe that?

Or do you think that everyone ELSE here feels that way? Because that's a pretty potent combination of racism, sexism, and classism all in the space of a single sentence.

[westrim]

I don't see why people are arguing about town bicycles. I think every town should have some bicycles. They could be rented for an hour at a time and have a large basket in the back to carry purchases and such, and maybe get a few more people out of their cars, especially all the tourists stopping to look at trees like they're an alien invasion. If Padma is advocating something like that, I would be happy to get behind her on it.

[Tova]

"repeated expression of unacceptable sexist views was the main, but not the sole, basis."

You would ban someone for merely having a point of view that differs from the norm?

How you managed to draw that conclusion from the post pwhodges made is totally beyond my comprehension.

[AnAverageWriter]

How you managed to draw that conclusion from the post pwhodges made is totally beyond my comprehension.

Probably because you DELETED the last part of pwhodges quote, eliminating the context of the post. It's easy to be baffled by a statement when you selectively erase relevant portions of that statement.

In any case- I'm sure pwhodges doesn't want to enter a discussion of a specific case beyond what has been said publicly; it's obvious that the moderators agree his action was appropriate and I trust his judgement.

I think that any additional discussion about this might best be discussed in PM or a different topic, as it has ceased to be about the comic and more about posters; that brings it into off-topic territory.

[TheEvilDog]

I don't see why people are arguing about town bicycles. I think every town should have some bicycles. They could be rented for an hour at a time and have a large basket in the back to carry purchases and such, and maybe get a few more people out of their cars, especially all the tourists stopping to look at trees like they're an alien invasion. If Padma is advocating something like that, I would be happy to get behind her on it.

Just so you know, I laughed reading this.

[Paranoid]

Ok, I'm a little amazed here.  Why is it that A) everyone assumes that people can control their emotions easily, and B) assume that everyone else (aka Padma) should assume the same as well?

Marten did not assume that.  He tried backing out of this twice: first by trying to opt out of the camping trip, then by whining about the dance party.  Obviously, he didn't want to go, but being the wishy-washy Charlie Brown that he is he let himself get pushed into it*.  He knew from square one that things were going to go sour.  Meanwhile Padma casually says "I'm leaving soon" and "Wanna dance?", without stopping to think about the mixed signals (and mental whiplash) those combined messages says.  And let's face it, just saying "I'm leaving soon" does not prevent someone from becoming emotionally attached to you: life is messy and imperfect, something Padma clearly does not understand.  Contrary to what most of you obviously believe, not everyone has control over how they feel, and quite frankly I don't think they should.  What we do have is control over how react to those feelings.

Look, I already said a while back that none of this completely absolves Marten from accepting the consequences of his drunken stupidity.  But he did make an effort to not put himself into this situation, while Padma pushed forward without regard to how other people might eventually feel.

*It is important to note that it wasn't just Padma pushing Marten into this situation.  Faye and Steve helped as well, however in Steve's defense Marten was whining about the wrong thing.  Marten needs to grow a pair and stand up for himself, otherwise he will continue to get walked on by people like Dora and Padma his entire life.  Which is the heart of his bad luck, and unfortunately it is all self-inflicted.

EDIT:

Okay, while I agree stoutfiles does get carried away with his accusations sometimes, the point he's trying to make is looking sharper and sharper all the time.  Let's face it, this does not paint Padma in a good light.  According to Elliot, she specifically said she doesn't want to get involved with anyone before she left.  So what does she do?  Hook up with Marten for a one-night stand, without first making sure he's comfortable with a one-night stand.  And as it turns out he isn't.

More woman-blaming? Did not Padma explicitly tell Marten that she was leaving town in the immediate future?

Yes, at least this particular woman.  Like I said earlier, telling someone they are leaving soon does not prevent emotional attachments.  Anyone that assumes life is that simple is in need of a serious reality check.

[Dr. ROFLPWN]

Ok, I'm a little amazed here.  Why is it that A) everyone assumes that people can control their emotions easily, and B) assume that everyone else (aka Padma) should assume the same as well?

Marten did not assume that.  He tried backing out of this twice: first by trying to opt out of the camping trip, then by whining about the dance party.  Obviously, he didn't want to go, but being the wishy-washy Charlie Brown that he is he let himself get pushed into it*.  He knew from square one that things were going to go sour.  Meanwhile Padma casually says "I'm leaving soon" and "Wanna dance?", without stopping to think about the mixed signals (and mental whiplash) those combined messages says.  And let's face it, just saying "I'm leaving soon" does not prevent someone from becoming emotionally attached to you: life is messy and imperfect, something Padma clearly does not understand.  Contrary to what most of you obviously believe, not everyone has control over how they feel, and quite frankly I don't think they should.  What we do have is control over how react to those feelings.

Look, I already said a while back that none of this completely absolves Marten from accepting the consequences of his drunken stupidity.  But he did make an effort to not put himself into this situation, while Padma pushed forward without regard to how other people might eventually feel.

*It is important to note that it wasn't just Padma pushing Marten into this situation.  Faye and Steve helped as well, however in Steve's defense Marten was whining about the wrong thing.  Marten needs to grow a pair and stand up for himself, otherwise he will continue to get walked on by people like Dora and Padma his entire life.  Which is the heart of his bad luck, and unfortunately it is all self-inflicted.

EDIT:

Okay, while I agree stoutfiles does get carried away with his accusations sometimes, the point he's trying to make is looking sharper and sharper all the time.  Let's face it, this does not paint Padma in a good light.  According to Elliot, she specifically said she doesn't want to get involved with anyone before she left.  So what does she do?  Hook up with Marten for a one-night stand, without first making sure he's comfortable with a one-night stand.  And as it turns out he isn't.

More woman-blaming? Did not Padma explicitly tell Marten that she was leaving town in the immediate future?

Yes, at least this particular woman.  Like I said earlier, telling someone they are leaving soon does not prevent emotional attachments.  Anyone that assumes life is that simple is in need of a serious reality check.

...Wh...what? 

I don't even. This is stupid. This is the stupidest bullshit I have ever read on this forum, guys, all this "PADMA DID WRONG BY MARTEN HERE" stuff. I...how do you make your brains process this drivel? How?

Marten tried backing out twice so he could go mope. It's not like his attraction to her would've gone away! It's not like it would've done anything but caused her last weeks there to be filled with awkward tension and then him moping over "what could've been" when she was gone! If he hadn't gone on the hike or to the dance, he would've had less fun! And for fuck's sake, she didn't seduce him at the apartment!! He has been broadcasting to her "hey Padma I think you are a fine slice of delicious curry business and would be interested in trading genetic material" for almost as long as he's known her!

And...and...the end result is that he had really good sex, and the only Bad Thing is he's going to miss her when she's gone! She even said to call her! She pretty clearly likes him as a person, not just as "dick #1 to hop onto". If she was staying in Northampton, it's 99% likely she'd date him and they'd have a long and fulfilling relationship! But she can't stay, so they're just going to have to settle for having fun in the time they have left, which Marten realizes, it's just hard to come to terms with.

So...so I guess if a lady lets you have amazing sex with her but she has to leave to someplace far away and you regret that she can't stay there with you, that makes her, somehow, a "slut" or deeply in the wrong somehow? Is that really what I'm hearing? Am I on /co/ and I didn't realize it? What is this shit?

[Dust]

I'm just wondering how many people are going to use the "hot curry" 'joke'.

We get it, she's Indian.

[Tova]

How you managed to draw that conclusion from the post pwhodges made is totally beyond my comprehension.

Probably because you DELETED the last part of pwhodges quote, eliminating the context of the post. It's easy to be baffled by a statement when you selectively erase relevant portions of that statement.

Just because I didn't quote it all, doesn't mean I didn't read it all. And I wasn't 'baffled', so if you thought so, I'll state it more clearly -  there was no justification for your post.

To get back on topic...

Marten did not assume that.  He tried backing out of this twice: first by trying to opt out of the camping trip, then by whining about the dance party.  Obviously, he didn't want to go, but being the wishy-washy Charlie Brown that he is he let himself get pushed into it*.

His reasons for initially trying to opt out of the camping trip, and for 'whining' about the dance party, were rather different. I think he did want to go to the dance party. He was just nervous because he's not much of a dancer. He initially tried to opt out of the camping trip because Elliot was right there looking upset.

And I don't think that it makes sense to 'heap blame' on Padma (why any blame needs to be given is another topic altogether) for what happened, just because you think Marten is too 'wishy washy' to accept responsibility. That doesn't really make sense.

edit: just reordered some of the words to eliminate possible ambiguity.

[Overkillengine]

Or he could have said no to the initial invitation to go dancing. It's doable. Hell, I've turned down almost the same exact invitation before.

And I used to be a poster child spineless Nice Guy that moped about his horrible luck with women back then, so yes, even someone like Marten could just actually say no. It is that easy.

[Tova]

Except he wanted to go?

Actually, he wasn't moping about being invited; he was moping about his lack of dancing ability.

[jwhouk]

On a different tangent altogether (pauses for people to say "On a different tangent")...

Notice that the only LTR's we have had so far in our storyline had, as the post-consummation strip, nudity?

Think about it: Dora and Marten's first strip didn't feature the two of them nekkid after their sexy times. Neither did Faye and Sven. We never saw Raven get nekkid with any of her Benjis. And you can just forget about Hannelore.

However, Faye and Angus did get nekkid afterwards, as did Wil and Penelope. They're still together as of this writing.

Maybe Jeph isn't doing it intentionally, but I'm thinking that he does draw a couple he doesn't plan on making into a LTR either clothed or covered up by sheets/whatever after they "do the deed."

[Dr. ROFLPWN]

Except he wanted to go?

Actually, he wasn't moping about being invited; he was moping about his lack of dancing ability.

...Oh God, he was.   He was complaining because he was afraid he'd do something to look unattractive in the eyes of the girl he's attracted to. Which confirms my wild crackpot theory that he was attracted to Padma the entire time! JEEPERS.

Heeeeeere's another thing to consider-- while it sounds like Padma wants nothing further to do with Marty after what she said to Elliot, remember that this is filtered through Elliot, a man she is explicitly unattracted to with whom her relationship right now is somewhere between Awkward and Soul-Destroyingly Awkward. What if part of the reason she sounds so thoroughly blow-off-ish is because she doesn't want said enormous looming idiot to get the wrong idea, or thinks he's making passive-aggressive jabs at her ("why don't you go fuck Marten then?!" could have easily been what she heard, not "I think you should have a nice time with this boy you clearly like").

[AnAverageWriter]

Just because I didn't quote it all, doesn't mean I didn't read it all. And I wasn't 'baffled'

And I quote: "How you managed to draw that conclusion from the post pwhodges made is totally beyond my comprehension."

I love people who pretend they can't read a post. PW clearly stated that he didn't "believe there was any intent to troll"- that the ban was a result instead of "repeated expression of unacceptable sexist views". This would mean that stoutfiles was banned for the entirely unintentional occurrence of having views (the "unacceptable sexist views") that differed significantly from the viewpoint of the group.

there was no justification for your post.

You know, it makes sense to me now that a muppet would be your main avatar.

[Tova]

I love people who pretend they can't read a post. PW clearly stated that he didn't "believe there was any intent to troll"- that the ban was a result instead of "repeated expression of unacceptable sexist views". This would mean that stoutfiles was banned for the entirely unintentional occurrence of having views (the "unacceptable sexist views") that differed significantly from the viewpoint of the group.

/sigh

He was banned because his views were unacceptably sexist, not because they were different.

It's not complicated.

And, I forgot to add, repeated in spite of knowing they were inflammatory.

And other reasons we don't know about.

Final edit, this time for sure: Oh and he's not a muppet, he's a WOMBLE. Sheesh. Where's your knowledge of the classics? ;p

[AnAverageWriter]

He was banned because his views were unacceptably sexist, not because they were different.

Unacceptably sexist to you. To me. To pwhodges. Heck, from what it seemed like to the group.

And yet-

Culturally the concept of "unacceptably sexist" is simply nothing but a different worldview, a different viewpoint. So there you go.

[Dr. ROFLPWN]

Just because I didn't quote it all, doesn't mean I didn't read it all. And I wasn't 'baffled'

And I quote: "How you managed to draw that conclusion from the post pwhodges made is totally beyond my comprehension."

I love people who pretend they can't read a post. PW clearly stated that he didn't "believe there was any intent to troll"- that the ban was a result instead of "repeated expression of unacceptable sexist views". This would mean that stoutfiles was banned for the entirely unintentional occurrence of having views (the "unacceptable sexist views") that differed significantly from the viewpoint of the group.

there was no justification for your post.

You know, it makes sense to me now that a muppet would be your main avatar.

 Oh for fuck's sake.   Yes, stoutfiles was banned for his viewpoints, because his viewpoints were sexist. It's much like how if someone came in here and started slinging crap about Padma based on her race, or Tai for her sexual orientation, they would also get fucking banned and the admin would be correct to ban them.

If you feel so strongly that stoutfiles was right I suggest you join him in exile.

EDIT:  CULTURALLY THE CONCEPT OF "UNACCEPTABLY RACIST" IS ALSO NOTHING BUT A DIFFERENT VIEWPOINT. YET NO ONE IS GOING TO TOLERATE IT BECAUSE THE VIEWPOINT IS REPUGNANT. DO YOU GET IT YET.

[Tova]

Culturally the concept of "unacceptably sexist" is simply nothing but a different worldview, a different viewpoint. So there you go.

Yes, I'm sure you could say that about quite a lot of 'different' viewpoints.

The point is that it was clearly inflammatory, and almost caused a riot on the forums when he first posted it. He was probably even spoken to about it behind the scenes. Note, he didn't get banned for that at that point.

He got banned when he posted it again, when it obviously would have known by that point how inflammatory that view was. And when he really didn't need to - his views by that point were well known. To post it again was needlessly provocative.

My point is that people don't get banned merely for having a different viewpoint. Look, here - I'll post a viewpoint different from that of pwhodges. In repeating a viewpoint he knew to be inflammatory, IMHO he was trolling.

Let's see if I get banned.

I don't think I will, though.

[Overkillengine]

Except he wanted to go?

Actually, he wasn't moping about being invited; he was moping about his lack of dancing ability.

And he still could have turned it down on the basis of lack of dancing ability. Attraction does not make one a slave to the invitations of the person whom one is attracted to.

[westrim]

I don't see why people are arguing about town bicycles. I think every town should have some bicycles. They could be rented for an hour at a time and have a large basket in the back to carry purchases and such, and maybe get a few more people out of their cars, especially all the tourists stopping to look at trees like they're an alien invasion. If Padma is advocating something like that, I would be happy to get behind her on it.

Just so you know, I laughed reading this.

I figured the thread required some levity. Some of the people chatting right now need a mustache ride.   :{

[Tova]

Sorry everyone for the hijack...

And he still could have turned it down on the basis of lack of dancing ability. Attraction does not make one a slave to the invitations of the person whom one is attracted to.

Yeah, he could have. It would have been kind of silly in my opinion, but he could have. He didn't. I think it's a stretch to say that makes him a slave to his emotions.

To introduce a different topic: what do people think are the odds of this being the start of a long distance relationship?

[Overkillengine]

Hmm, normally I'd say 50%, but given that Padma has not specifically said anything about being interested even though she is leaving, I would say <25%.

And even if Marten wants to bother trying instead of just moving on.....

Edit: I can understand why some would think it would be silly to turn down an invitation like that, but I'm just one of those weirdos that doesn't bother attending things where it is unlikely for me to have fun by myself- because I won't expect that others will provide that for me.

[AnAverageWriter]

Sorry everyone for the hijack...

Actually, you made some very good points in your last post. I suppose we could have had the discussion over PM, but I appreciate the time and effort you took in proving your side of things.

[cesariojpn]

Ok, I'm a little amazed here.  Why is it that A) everyone assumes that people can control their emotions easily,

Because we're human?


Warning - while you were reading 4 new replies have been posted. You may wish to review your post.

RAGH, HULK SMASH!!

[Tova]

Hmm, normally I'd say 50%, but given that Padma has not specifically said anything about being interested even though she is leaving, I would say <25%.

And even if Marten wants to bother trying instead of just moving on.....

The interesting thing about the whole situation is that we really don't know all that well what Padma is thinking. Not that we really know what Marten is thinking either, but I think almost all of our exposure to Padma has been through Marten's eyes (could be wrong - I don't have the archive-fu that some have around here). And even that is presumably only select portions of their interactions.

So she is still fairly mysterious to us.

[AnAverageWriter]

So she is still fairly mysterious to us.

And unless Jeph figures out a way to

a: bring her back from so far away
or
b: reasonably figure out a way to include a long distance relationship in there...

she may stay mysterious...

[westrim]

Inscrutable, even.

[Coffee_Kaioken]

I realize it's super, super, super late.... but I called it.

[raoullefere]

Am I the only one hearing Leaving on a jet plane throughout this entire storyline?

Yes. It did cross my so-called mind,

but then I realized it doesn't in the least apply, since Padma's doesn't seem the regretful type, and the song's not from Marten's POV.

Just for my two cents, I doubt what Elliot did or didn't say has anything to do with Padma sleeping with Marten. I doubt she paid any attention. I mean, why start now?

[Is it cold in here?]

And this "whole stream of beautiful women..." - that'll be Dora, Padma, .... er.... (OK, Cosette asked him out - *while he was in a relationship*).

Tai expressed envy over Marten's ability to get coeds hitting on him.

[Carl-E]

He's a skinny, slightly "olde"  indie guy working in the library of an all-women college.  Every straight girl on campus who spent any time in the library at all would be hitting on him! 

[cesariojpn]

And this "whole stream of beautiful women..." - that'll be Dora, Padma, .... er.... (OK, Cosette asked him out - *while he was in a relationship*).

Tai expressed envy over Marten's ability to get coeds hitting on him.

I thought she was envious that he could snag hot girls period?

[danuis]

Do you know what I see?  Marten just broke up. Padma is leaving. They had fun, got drunk. What mental transactions happened led to this, which shouldn't be a big surprise. HELL, Padma may be having the same reaction he is, or just cruising along, which both are fine. She is suffering a bit to - no one likes to uproot themselves and leave, even for a good cause, there is still a sag.  They were down, had fun, then had sex, and we have just started to see one side of the fallout. Marten feels terrible - that's his character. He might even go to angsty mode for a week or month of comics, ut then he'll find out, hey, it wasn't bad, and what made it happen and be fine with it. We must wait, and see, not name call.

[Soulsynger]

[ ... ] I've never had that specific kind of fun but I still know that it doesn't have some sort of magical tainting effect on a woman's value as a person, regardless of how much she has or with whom.

Oooph... compare that point of view with that of the general public opinion about girls that do one-night-stands. Prepare to be surprised.

I hope we're all done condemning either Marten or Padma now and can - after today's comic - finally go back to being utterly clueless - yet again - about anything going on in the comic character's heads.
(Or move on to blaming Angus for going away leaving Faye to spend her emotionally distressed extrovertism on getting Padma and Marten on a sofa together...or better yet, lets blame Dora for breaking up with Marten because of insecurities!)

Please don't hit me... again.

[FunkyTuba]

It amuses me to see cries of "poor Marten" and "how could she" here. I think they miss the point.

He's in his early-mid 20s. He's somewhat inexperienced, having had two relationships and one 1-night stand (that I remember... any archivists want to show a significant difference in his depth of relationship experience? I'm happy to amend).

I say he's due for some more formative experiences, some of which he will enjoy, some of which will hurt him, some both, but all of which will Develop His Character.

It's interesting not as a question of what things are "good" or "bad" to happen to him but rather what *will* happen to him and how he will react. The "What do you want.. A cheeseburger, then a haircut" speech to me signaled him moving to a place of being ready to venture out and have these kinds of experiences. He happened across an attractive, liberated, somewhat clueless, but unapologetically sexually aggressive person and found himself able to work the situation in ways he might not have been capable of before.

He needs stuff like Padma to happen to him so he can gain perspective (read: grow up). I encourage the "poor Marten" crowd to enjoy the journey here, not try to second-guess the destination or the roads being chosen. Of course, then traffic on the forums would drop to nothing... maybe we can get idug to post more caption contests.

[westrim]

Oooph... compare that point of view with that of the general public opinion about girls that do one-night-stands.

If this forum were representative of the general populace, we'd be just barely over homophobia, illiterate in pretty much every thing that matters to the way the world works/ will develop, favor opinions over facts, disbelieve that global warming is happening or that evolution is true, think free healthcare is communist, and believe God has a direct and personal connection with us, so praying for him to favor you for a promotion or thanking him for your team winning a game totally makes sense.

We are not the general public, and mostly okay with people fucking each other without necessarily committing to a relationship, is what I'm saying.

[Emperor Norton]

He's in his early-mid 20s. He's somewhat inexperienced, having had two relationships and one 1-night stand (that I remember... any archivists want to show a significant difference in his depth of relationship experience? I'm happy to amend).

There is a comic where he mentioned more than one other girlfriend before Dora. I'm not an archivist though so I can't find it in five seconds.

EDIT: Found something.
 
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=755 <===They're all crazy. Personally I think that would imply at least 3 pre-Dora. With two it would have made more sense to say They're both crazy.

[Fen]

The general public opinion ain't gonna change by accepting it because it's the general public opinion.

Just sayin'.

[snubnose]

He's in his early-mid 20s. He's somewhat inexperienced, having had two relationships and one 1-night stand (that I remember... any archivists want to show a significant difference in his depth of relationship experience? I'm happy to amend).

There is a comic where he mentioned more than one other girlfriend before Dora. I'm not an archivist though so I can't find it in five seconds.

EDIT: Found something.
 
http://questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=755 <===They're all crazy.

Pfft I just wanted to post that.

[Soulsynger]

Oooph... compare that point of view with that of the general public opinion about girls that do one-night-stands.

If this forum were representative of the general populace, we'd be just barely over homophobia, illiterate in pretty much every thing that matters to the way the world works/ will develop, favor opinions over facts, disbelieve that global warming is happening or that evolution is true, think free healthcare is communist, and believe God has a direct and personal connection with us, so praying for him to favor you for a promotion or thanking him for your team winning a game totally makes sense.

We are not the general public, and mostly okay with people fucking each other without necessarily committing to a relationship, is what I'm saying.

Now don't get worked up over nothing. With "general public" I didn't mean the common opinion forming mass collected in this forum. I actually meant the general public of the American/European population. (Dunno about all the others' opinions about girls that like one-night-stands. I'm here to learn.)
As far as I know, even in Germany, most groups of people large enough develop the interesting assumption that all girls who have sex with relative "strangers" on a "regular" basis are sluts and/or are "whoring themselves out".

This is not my opinion and not necessarily a representative observation.

...

JEPH! Comic! The crowd is starting to devour each other. 

[gangler]

I could have sworn Marten was in his mid thirties, which was why he's always so mopey about what he's doing in life and how much he's accomplished and stuff.

He's in his early-mid-twenties? Damn. How does one come to be so world-wearly at such a young age? What, did something sneak up on him in the night and drain him of his wonderlust?

[Fen]

All his past relationships were highschool relationships though(IIRC about 4), so not the epitome of mature relationships.
Except Vicky(?), and we know how that ended, and Dora. Though I think Vicky was the first one he actually had sex with. So yeah, he's not the most experienced of people.

Soulsynger: You'd be surprised. I've been world-weary since I was 18. Some people are just like that I guess.

[FunkyTuba]

He mentions in this tumblr post that marten and faye are 24-25... so more "mid" than "early"... but yeah, def. not 30s

[westrim]

Now don't get worked up over nothing. With "general public" I didn't mean the common opinion forming mass collected in this forum. I actually meant the general public of the American/European population.

I wasn't getting worked up (in fact, I was trying to phrase it to be vaguely witty), and I knew you were talking about the general public (that's kind of hard to misinterpret); I was noting that we are not the general public.

[pwhodges]

The general public opinion ain't gonna change by accepting it because it's the general public opinion.

I sigh when I see and hear people criticising schools because "no less than half their children are below average"!  Well, duh!

How does one come to be so world-wearly at such a young age?

It's an extension of teenage angst.

[musicalsoul]

Dang, look what happens to the WCDT when I'm away from my computer for a couple of days. This is insanity.

[FunkyTuba]

How does one come to be so world-wearly at such a young age?

It's an extension of teenage angst.

He's probably still working the "office bitch" out of his system too--it's only been a couple of years comic time...
(not trying to bag on people who have to work at office jobs for a living, but that is how Marten viewed that job for himself)

[Emperor Norton]

All his past relationships were highschool relationships though(IIRC about 4), so not the epitome of mature relationships.
Except Vicky(?), and we know how that ended, and Dora. Though I think Vicky was the first one he actually had sex with. So yeah, he's not the most experienced of people.

Did it say anywhere that the others were all high school? He didn't meet Vicky until the last semester of college according to the QC wiki, and that leaves plenty of time in college for relationships.

[Soulsynger]

Now don't get worked up over nothing. With "general public" I didn't mean the common opinion forming mass collected in this forum. I actually meant the general public of the American/European population.

I wasn't getting worked up (in fact, I was trying to phrase it to be vaguely witty), and I knew you were talking about the general public (that's kind of hard to misinterpret); I was noting that we are not the general public.

Damn the internet! When will we be able to convey tone through pixels. ><

But at least I got what you were trying to say... I still don't know why anyone would ever think of a forum's userbase as some kind of "general anything"

Dang, look what happens to the WCDT when I'm away from my computer for a couple of days. This is insanity.

You're to blame for our insanity! Yesssssssss! Shoving circle!

All his past relationships were highschool relationships though(IIRC about 4), so not the epitome of mature relationships.
Except Vicky(?), and we know how that ended, and Dora. Though I think Vicky was the first one he actually had sex with. So yeah, he's not the most experienced of people.

You can actually deduce his inexperienced-ness in relationships from how he handled any and all of his more recent ones. No person past a certain point of experience would explode into a nervous love-of-life-expecting wrecking train headed for the next sneak-level on a first person shooter like that. (This analogy actually makes sense. Think about it. ... )

[musicalsoul]

wearing underwear with writing on it does NOT mean it's "meant to be seen."

oh, and i'm calling "bull" here. if a tree falls in a forest, and there's no one around to read "SASSY" printed in big pink varsity letters on the tree's ass ... is that ass still sassy?

I'm wearing royal blue undies with black lace right now, and a matching satin bra with a little bow on it. (Kinda like this.) And I can assure you no one will be seeing me tonight, because my big evening plans include watching "Ringer,"
 paying my bills, and cleaning my room. But pretty much all my underthings look like this because yes, they make me feel sassy. Heck, sometimes part of the thrill is that no one knows I'm wearing awesome cute underwear except for me.

I know this is a few days late, but I'm totally with you on your view on women's undergarments. I wear a lot of really cute undies and I would to be able to wear super cute bras (I have a hard time finding ones that aren't plain unless they cost 60-70 dollars due to my cup size) all the time. I'm single, I'm a virgin, and I live with my parents. No one is seeing my undies but me. But that doesn't mean I have to wear plain undies. I have undies that have things written on the butt (I don't think any of them actually say 'sassy' though  ). I like them. I like pretty things. I feel pretty when I wear pretty things. Just because no one is going to see them doesn't mean I can't enjoy them. And that is most decidedly not bullshit. Like JackFaerie said in her first post, it can be a confidence boost and sometimes part of the thrill is knowing I'm the only one who knows what's underneath.