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Jim needs a favor... could Samantha stay here for a couple hours...

0 (0%)

"I'm old enough to stay at home by myself!" NEXT YEAR

0 (0%)

"We can keep an eye on her."

0 (0%)

"So, little larva..." I'm not a larva! "...Wanna learn how to use a BLOWTORCH?" YES

6 (13.3%)

Brazing... "You mean like when my dad makes pot roast?" Different process.

0 (0%)

Lemme show you what I made! (Doesn't involve animal genitalia)

0 (0%)

BEHOLD THE MIGHTY WAR LADLE (I'd wanna see the Attenborough documentary)

11 (24.4%)

"...And that's how you pull a shot." That was easy!

0 (0%)

And here I thought you hated kids. Normally, yes. But this one has potential.

0 (0%)

I'll mold you in my image. "You mean, like, big boobs?"

5 (11.1%)

Keep the blade at the same angle or you'll mess up the edge bevel.

0 (0%)

You went on a date with my dad, right? "...But we decided to just be friends."

0 (0%)

Dad's not with mom anymore, he can go on dates if he wants to. He's on one right now.

0 (0%)

"He didn't want me to tell you that, but if you're friends it's okay, right?" ABSOLUTELY

6 (13.3%)

Hey kiddo. Did you have fun while I was gone?

0 (0%)

Faye taught me how to use a blowtorch, and make expresso, and sharpen knives, and -

3 (6.7%)

Of all the irresponsible-

2 (4.4%)

She also taught me how to make an "old fashioned." (Sip)

0 (0%)

So, I usually pay my siter ten bucks an hour - (Fifteen.) Deal. Take a check?

12 (26.7%)

Total Members Voted: 43

[pwhodges]

The chef knife is for chopping carrots.

They also sell cakes, so perhaps they sometimes cut those.

[Blackie62]

And why does CoD need a knife?

Why does CoD need a broadsword? Why does Faye do her brazing on the premises? Why does Jeph's comment make me think of Faye filling a bathtub with gasoline and dissolving styrofoam in it to make napalm Fight Club style?

[Akima]

Oooh! That's got to burn, Dora! Jim is the social butterfly; you get the larva.

Next door to The House of Flying Daggers?

Oddly enough, one of the Chinese characters for "dagger" is 匕 which used also to mean "spoon" or "ladle". Another character that is often translated as dagger is 刀, but that really means a single-edged cutting implement like the cook's knife Sam is sharpening. So CoD really is the House Of Flying Daggers tonight!

Of course the Chinese title of the movie is actually《十面埋伏》or "Ambush From Ten Sides" which is the title of a famous piece of Chinese classical music. Google Translate even translates 十面埋伏 as House Of Flying Daggers, which really is a fail because the characters don't mean that at all.

And why does CoD need a knife?

Maybe they serve lemon tea?

[Is it cold in here?]

The knife is for cutting remarks.

[Soulsynger]

I consider "espresso" correct. But Wikipedia points out that both are loan words, espresso from the French, expresso from Spanish, and have the sense of "press out." Express is a verb sometimes used to refer to what happens when grapes or other fruit are pressed in the first step to making wine. The usage I recall is that the juice is "expressed."

Well.. allow me to espress my impression then: I'm gonna use "to espress" and "expresso" from now on. Because I can. 

At least he didn't lie about it.

Isn't a lie of omission still a lie?

[jmucchiello]

At least he didn't lie about it.

Isn't a lie of omission still a lie?

Dora: Absolutely

[vsonics]

I figure, because it's the logical continuation from this comic, Dora's probably going to confront Jim about this when he comes to pick Sam up.
I'm interested in seeing how she does it, though, because really there isn't anything reasonably to get upset about - they went on one date, nothing came of it, and they're not so much friends as business partners anyway.

I guess she could make some kind of (teasing, maybe, to surprise everyone that thinks she's gonna get all angry?) remark about how he told Sam not to tell her he was going on a date. But I think that's about it, and even that would be odd.
At this point I'm really just curious to see where this goes, I think.

[Soulsynger]

Hide your babies and lock up your children. Dorasaur incoming.

[pwhodges]

Isn't a lie of omission still a lie?

It's not that simple.  There are a thousand things which you don't tell your partner every day; there just isn't time, for one thing; and they are still living their life while you live yours.  So the question is who decides, and how, and why, what things are those which absolutely must be passed on.  This is in effect part of the informal contract between couples, and every such agreement is different.

[cesariojpn]

Bathtub Explosives.....nah, Bathtub Gin would be more Faye's Style and cultural heritage.

[cvcharger]

And why does CoD need a knife?

Why does CoD need a broadsword? Why does Faye do her brazing on the premises? Why does Jeph's comment make me think of Faye filling a bathtub with gasoline and dissolving styrofoam in it to make napalm Fight Club style?

Rule number 1:  NO talking about fight club.
Rule number 2:  NO talking about fight club.

[akronnick]

Ummm... I kinda hate to point this out, but everyone who thinks Jim should have told Dora what was going on needs to remember that Jim and Dora aren't dating.

They went on one date, and halfway through, Dora realized that she's not ready to get involved with someone.

Maybe Jim didn't want to tell Dora because he didn't want to hurt her feelings. Maybe he just doesn't want her all up in his business. Either way, Jim doesn't really have an obligation here.

Whether the fact that Jim is dating someone else bothers Dora or not is another matter, but she really doesn't have much recourse if it does bother her, and it's not very realistic for her to expect him not to continue on his own way.

I personally don't think Dora will be too upset with what's going on with Jim. After all, she seemed to take the Marten and Padma situation in stride and she was much more involved with Marten than she ever was with Jim.

[Welu]

One thing about the situation is "Who knows, maybe once you get things sorted out we can give it another try." It'd be crazy and controlling but there's can be an interpretation of implying of, "I might wait a little for you." Jim has every right to go out and date and there's no need for him to put himself on a shelf for Dora, since they barely know each other for one thing. It can still hurt when someone who came on strongly to you moves on to another, although he probably asked out the new person in a similar way to how he asked out Dora. Jim's just that kinda guy. 

[TinPenguin]

While I definitely don't want her to go ballistic (and I don't think she will in front of the kid), I think she has the right to be a little upset. Sam has a point - if they're gonna be friends, Jim should be able to admit where he's going.

"able to admit" is not the same as "obliged to inform". Not everyone likes to shout it to the world that they've got a date, especially when it isn't actually relevant.

[purple.platypus]

Ummm... I kinda hate to point this out, but everyone who thinks Jim should have told Dora what was going on needs to remember that Jim and Dora aren't dating.

They went on one date, and halfway through, Dora realized that she's not ready to get involved with someone.

Maybe Jim didn't want to tell Dora because he didn't want to hurt her feelings. Maybe he just doesn't want her all up in his business. Either way, Jim doesn't really have an obligation here.

I agree. What do those people expect Jim's train of thought to be, exactly? "Although there's no real reason why Dora has to know what I'm doing, I better tell her anyway just on the off-chance she'd be upset about my not doing so. Especially since there's no chance at all that a person who would get upset at that would also be inclined to be upset and possibly create a scene upon finding out that information." He's hardly my favorite character but he isn't stupid, and surely anyone can see that any problems that come out of this are of Dora's making, not his.

[VonKleist]

I agree. No reason for Dora to be upset. I hope she´ll leave it at a snarky comment when Jim comes to pick Sam up. I can't see her going all trainwreck over this in light of the comic's logic (i.e. I hope Jeph is planning on her to get some grip on herself^^).

[Mr. Doctor]

Kids: being completely honest and open about things... Making everything akward for adults in the process since the dawn of friggin time.

[Border Reiver]

Kids: being completely honest and open about things... Making everything akward for adults in the process since the dawn of friggin time.

Truth

[Jabberwocky]

The knife is for cutting remarks.

Oh, you're a sharp one today.

[ilikefishfood]

The knife is for cutting remarks.

Oh, you're a sharp one today.

  At both of you!

Sooooooo, here's my thinking on this...You come on to someone and go on a date which ends with "maybe in the future we can give this another try." 

While you go on with your life, you don't really want to be waving your dating life in her face, particularly if there's a potential for future involvement...hence, his not telling her AND asking Sam not to tell her either.  He obviously recognized that while he's not answerable to Dora, it would be awkward and possibly hurt her feelings a bit.  If he didn't think it was a big deal he wouldn't have had a problem with her knowing.  Remember, it's not just that he didn't tell her, he specifically told the kid not to tell her either.

So here's the thing...I think it's totally tacky to ask a woman who a few weeks ago you were interested in, and indicated that you would be interested in trying again with in the future...to look after your kid so you can go out with another woman.  Maaaaaan......surely he could've postponed the date.   

[TinPenguin]

One thing I'm not entirely sure about with today's comic: the title, "Gotta Learn Sometime".

Is that in reference to Sam, or to Dora?

[DSL]

Interesting situation for Dora:
She's just coming back from being told she has, er, "control issues," and is now in a situation where, at least as of Comic 2179, she's completely losing control of the situation: A guy she's dated (once) but is a also a business partner of sorts is using her as a babysitter for another date, the closest thing she has to a right-hand person in her shop is turning it into the Weapon Shops of Isher, and there's a damn teenager (her date/friend/business partner's daughter) behind the counter sharpening up what looks like it wants to be a Ka-Bar when it grows up.

I can see next week's (strip time) therapy session as
DORA: (Relates the above).
THERAPIST: (Pulls a fifth and a tumbler from desk drawer) "Geez, kid. Here. You need it."

@TinPenguin: I would say the answer is: Yes.

[jwhouk]

What's next in Samantha's "mentoring" by Faye?

Learning ALL THE CUSS WORDS!    2 (4.4%)
Shopping at the local second-hand store for goofy hats!    1 (2.2%)
Burning down an apartment with only a toaster!    2 (4.4%)
AnthroPC tossing for fun and profit!    0 (0%)
The Barista Sneer_(tm)    13 (28.9%)
Playing left field for the Northampton Bonercats Kickball League!    0 (0%)
Bourbon-flavored Milkshakes!    0 (0%)
Snark 101!    9 (20%)
Leading a boy on while moving in with him platonically.    2 (4.4%)
Spathe Ham!    0 (0%)
Boobs!    2 (4.4%)
Butts!    0 (0%)
Knees!  (Oh wait, this isn't Bloom County... never mind)    2 (4.4%)
How to drive your boss crazy in three simple steps!    5 (11.1%)
Tracking the elusive PIZZA GIRL!    7 (15.6%)

Total Members Voted: 45

[techkid]

Poor Dora. You can almost hear her thinking "Damned if you do, but damn it all if I won't!"

But as DSL posted above, with therapy still right up there in her mind, hearing something like that from the child of the guy she still has an... emotional attachment (I guess...) to, you don't have to have a psychology major to see that her brain wants her to a) throw, b) hit, c) scream, d) whatever, and it's only some thin piece of self control that's stopping her from doing e) all of the above.

More than likely, Dora's therapist is going to end up in therapy at the end of this saga.

[Black Sword]

I've never really liked calling it a "lie of omission." A lie is a blatant falsehood. Just because you interpreted someone's words incorrectly doesn't mean they lied to you, intentionally or otherwise. Just pay attention to what people say, then apply your minds to figure out what was actually said.

Though that requires actually thinking.

[sitnspin]

A lie of omission, like a lie of commission, is a deliberate attempt to deceive. Intent is the key part of the definition. This differs from simply not mentioning something.

[gangler]

I think the concept of the lie of omission just gets applied in places where it shouldn't.

In a situation where you have a moral or social obligation to inform somebody of something that is clearly understood by both parties and you don't then that's blatant dishonesty. You've deceived as surely through your silence as you could through your spoken words.

A situation like this though, well it just plain doesn't apply. It's not a lie of omission. It's just not telling her something. Being less informative than maximally possible.

[Throg]

@DSL: that's exactly along the lines of what I was thinking. Dora, having a day that definitely challenges a lot of her control issues.

Heh, maybe the "date" is going to be the mystery redhead that Jeph keeps drawing! 

[Carl-E]

To those arguing "lies":  Yeah, no, Jim wasn't lying, he was trying to find a friendly and reasonable place to leave a hazard of a child before he had to be somewhere.  You tend to drop the neceties of details when you're panicked and/or rushed. 

I have to say that Dora's eyes are getting to me in this one - the expression isn't changing.  She's obviously fretting about Sam in the first few panels (first about the knife, then about her feelings), but in the last panel, the eyebrows have dropped, but the eyes... are still the same, and it's really hard to read what Jeph normally makes easy - her facial expression seems to involve a pretty heavy internal struggle. 

So to those predicting a Doapocalypse, I say, nay!  I think she's realizing that the welling feelings of mistrust and anger (or whatever she's feeling) are misplaced, inappropriate, and control-related. 

I think she's actually going to have something to talk about with her therapist next time! 

I know, I know, it doesn't make for a very exciting comic...

[DSL]

... it's really hard to read what Jeph normally makes easy - her facial expression seems to involve a pretty heavy internal struggle. 

I'd say Jeph depicted it, and you read it, perfectly. He does nuances of expression really well.

[Magdalena]

I think she might just get a little annoyed with Jim - I don't think there will be a, how did people put it? A Dorasaurus?

I do think that she will ask him or tell him to next time just tell her that he's going on a date for courtesy's sake.

I know it's perfectly reasonable to think that he is on a romantic type date, but remember that Sam is only what, 12 years old? It could be that Jim is at a business meeting with a female that Sam ASSUMES is a potential romantic partner, but in reality is just a business partner. ( It's one thing to ask a random person that you've met and had dinner with one time to baby sit your kid for a business meeting, another thing entirely for that same one dinner date person to baby sit your kid while you are on a date. Which brings up the point that possibly if he were on a romantic date with someone, I would think he would ask a family friend who was closer to babysit Sam, rather than Dora. )

I hope that made sense. - -;

[Blackjoker]

I think this will be an interesting kind of test run for Dora. If she can keep rational control of herself she will have grown...if she behaves like she did with Marten then she might well be napalming bridges.

[Overkillengine]

I think the concept of the lie of omission just gets applied in places where it shouldn't.

In a situation where you have a moral or social obligation to inform somebody of something that is clearly understood by both parties and you don't then that's blatant dishonesty. You've deceived as surely through your silence as you could through your spoken words.

A situation like this though, well it just plain doesn't apply. It's not a lie of omission. It's just not telling her something. Being less informative than maximally possible.

This.

To clarify: I once had a friend ask me for a loan because they were having financial issues and were about to lose their car. What they didn't tell me is the reason they were having financial issues was that they were helping a serial adulterer and deadbeat dad pay his child support to get out of jail. (Disclaimer: Deadbeat Dude was the kind of irresponsible crap that causes the rest of us men so much hell having to prove that we aren't them, so I feel justified for wanting to let him rot in jail. You'd likely understand too if you knew him.)

This of of course irked me greatly when I eventually found out the truth about how the loan I gave was being used. I thought I was helping a friend meet their responsibilities, but was in actuality instead helping a deadbeat avoid theirs.

This is an example of a lie by omission, as crucial information that would have affected my decision was deliberately left out of the request for help.

---

Why doesn't what Jim did count as being as horribad? Because he's not in a relationship with Dora. Now, if he were at least even casually "seeing her" and then also asking her to watch his kid so he could go on a date with another woman? Yeah, that would be bad. It is a bit tacky to show up like he did if he actually is going on a date (just reschedule it, if the lady is interested and not a psycho hose beast, she'll understand)  but short notice and desperation make odd bedfellows at times.

[Marfo]

Honestly... I feel like its a lie of omission. The kid said "He didn't want me to tell you that." The intent is written all over it - this was information that he wanted to avoid sharing, not information that he forgot to share. That being said, Dora typically would not be affected (they are not together after all), but I feel since he dropped his kid off with her, he owes it to her to be more honest. Would I babysit an ex-date's kid if I thought he had work related or even family related affairs? Sure. Date related? I don't think so. I think even if there was no feelings there, it is still imposing to put me in a situation where I'd be used like that; if I agreed upon a date in the first place, there is the possibility of me still liking him. It is rude that just because she can't see him right away he gets to ask a huge favour of her while deceiving her. And yes, kids are a huge favour. Kid gets hurt at her work, and she can get sued. Nobody wants to feel rejected like that, even if they weren't too interested in the first place. He really should have found an alternative babysitter. I know that they are "friends" and work partners, but there are some situations you don't put certain people in.

Overall, its an awkward situation and he should be responsible for his offspring. Delay the date, find alternatives... But don't put people doing you a favour into positions where they (like Dora) can be hurt by the truth.

[DSL]

I'm gonna guess ("predict" is too dignified a word for what I'm doing) that further story developments from here will have more to do with Dora's efforts to strike a balance as to how much control she wants/needs to exert over her surroundings, than to any bad intent or lack thereof on Jim's part. Really, the worst he's done so far is maybe not make the best choice in resolving a sudden situation, and it's a side issue, in my mind.

Unless it turns out that Jim's the kind of person who's used to charming people into giving him what he wants. I pick up a little of that in what Jeph's presented thus far. Or maybe I'm projecting my dislike of that sort of person onto a cartoon character.

[Throg]

I wonder if Jeph could go in this direction:

(a) Jim, older, wiser, is okay with Dora not being ready for a relationship;
(b) can perceive that Dora might get upset if she knows he's on a date when she's watching his kid;
(c) therefore, if Dora gets upset, he can say: well, there ya go. That's why I didn't want to tell you; because you're upset!

Hmmm. There's something wrong in that sequence somewhere, but I'm too cold-addled to figure it out.

[Overkillengine]

It is similar to this:

http://www.questionablecontent.net/view.php?comic=1325

But, Jim could have avoided it all by just rescheduling, and should have done that instead of doing what he did. Marten had it dumped in his lap.





*edit for spelling. Argh.

[pwhodges]

Not really similar, because Jim is actually doing something which could be seen as affecting Dora, and not telling her (though we don't agree on whether that should matter, as they aren't in a relationship); whereas Marten didn't do anything at all, but merely didn't bother to report something that someone else (Cosette) did.

[Method of Madness]

The difference is Dora specifically asked Marten if anything happened, and he deliberately didn't tell her. She overreacted, sure, but I wouldn't say he "didn't do anything at all". Jim on the other hand came in and said he had plans, which is true, if non-specific, and Dora didn't ask what they were. If Dora had casually asked what he was up to and he'd lied, well...that'd be another can of worms*.


*Why is that a saying?

[Overkillengine]

It's similar in that both deal with sharing information with Dora that could cause her to get upset. How each guy got into that situation and how they dealt with it do differ though. Marten tried to avoid it when directly asked about it (spectacular backfire!), and Jim...well, given that we do not have a camera inside that character's head to get an omniscient view of his motivations for omitting the info, could have simply felt that the specifics were not important/relevant enough to share with "just a friend".

Still not the best of ways to handle the situation though....since it didn't need to happen that way.

[pwhodges]

Things happen to you all the day; too much to tell your partner, on any ordinary day, even when asked.  Yes, Cosette asking Marten out was a tad unusual - but it was the kind of mistake he could just have shrugged off and forgotten about; in fact he got momentarily flustered, but even so, all he did was say, "no, I'm already taken".  I don't see that not mentioning that is any kind of subterfuge at all - just a missed opportunity to let Dora feel good about getting dibs on a man who seems slightly popular.

In Jim's case, he has shown a little more awareness of the potential for upset (even if not really justified) by mentioning to Sam that she shouldn't tell.  Although it's not really a big deal, he is being a bit thoughtless using Dora to babysit on this occasion.

[Overkillengine]

Things happen to you all the day; too much to tell your partner, on any ordinary day, even when asked. 

*snipped for brevity

Yes, that would be the reasonable way for things to be. :/

[Kombatkoala]

If I was to inform my significant other every time someone showed an interest in my availability then while it would not be a daily conversation it would likely be at least a bi-weekly conversation. In my opinion Marten did nothing wrong when he did not tell her about Cossette asking him out because it honestly was a thing of no concern.

Jim is not really in the wrong for asking Dora to babysit either. It appeared to be a last ditch effort to avoid rescheduling, and though it may be a bit socially awkward she did agree to it and had to know that was at the very least a possibility.

[Asterus]

On a completely different topic: I wonder if Sam will end up learning how to dual-wield the broadsword and the battle spatula at the same time? Just to transition from the angsty drama that Dora may be headed for.

[Is it cold in here?]

Who would teach her martial arts?

Momo might have a module for that.

[cesariojpn]

Who would teach her martial arts?

Momo might have a module for that.

She knows Kendo!!

[themacnut]

Who would teach her martial arts?

No one in their right mind. She's dangerous enough as it is.

[pwhodges]

COMIC!

Sounds like Jim is naturally a bit over-protective, but can be brought round!

[blewupthesun]

No Dorasaurus yet! I was expecting at least some kind of angry-but-really-really-trying-to-reign-it-in face, somewhere in the background. Instead, Faye makes an excellent babysitter.

[snubnose]

I wonder if Jim will think twice before asking Dora about babysitting again.