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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

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"We can keep an eye on her."

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"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.

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

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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.

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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.

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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.

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"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)

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

12 (26.7%)

Total Members Voted: 43

[iduguphergrave]

"You put my daughter's safety at risk but now she can make me alcoholic drinks so it's ok."

Is that normal?

(still kinda funny tho)

[akronnick]

Dora may have suddenly had pressing business in the alley as soon as she saw Jim coming.

[DSL]

COMIC!

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

Or bought a round.

[Is it cold in here?]

"You put my daughter's safety at risk but now she can make me alcoholic drinks so it's ok."

Is that normal?

(still kinda funny tho)

Does CoD have a liquor license?

Yes, that bothered me too. Anything for a laugh? My opinion of Jim has dropped a little anyway.

EDIT: Jeph says on Twitter that she's twelve. Maybe it's twelve-and-a-large-fraction, which Jim rounded up to thirteen when talking to Dora.

Anyone else bothered by the idea that a 12-year-old can't sharpen a knife safely?

[Method of Madness]

Is that something I was supposed to learn as a kid? I'm 24, and I've yet to have a reason to need to sharpen a knife, so I've yet to learn how.

[cvcharger]

Who would teach her martial arts?

Momo might have a module for that.

Haha, grasshopper need not martial arts.  Grasshopper has psychotic insanity.  Psychotic insanity is all grasshopper needs to defeat Battle Armor Pintsize.

No, Faye probably taught Sam how to make something that most would never divulge the secret processes of to a child, much less a stranger's child.  It is the perfect batch of...





Sweet Tea.

[Tova]

Does CoD have a liquor license?

Yes, that bothered me too. Anything for a laugh? My opinion of Jim has dropped a little anyway.

Anyone else bothered by the idea that a 12-year-old can't sharpen a knife safely?

I can't imagine that you need a liquor license for your personal stash in a back room.

I was strangely unbothered, to be honest.

[akronnick]

Sounds like a job for the Emergency Bourbon.

[cvcharger]

Is that something I was supposed to learn as a kid? I'm 24, and I've yet to have a reason to need to sharpen a knife, so I've yet to learn how.

Meh, I think it depends on where and how you were raised.  For instance, in Alabama most of us already learned how to drive a car by the time we're 10 years old.  Some other states believe it's illegal to just let a child sit in the drivers seat even without keys in the ignition.  Also, if you were raised doing a lot of hunting, or just living in a rural area, you kinda pick up on how to sharpen knives, and any other kind of blade for that matter.

[Kugai]

*Ahem*


Excuse me for bringing this up, but has anyone here considered that 'Old Fashioned' might just mean an Old Fashioned Lemonade?


Thank you for your time.

*Bows and walks offstage*

[iduguphergrave]

Didn't know lemonade was brown. Or served in a whiskey glass.

[cvcharger]

*Ahem*


Excuse me for bringing this up, but has anyone here considered that 'Old Fashioned' might just mean an Old Fashioned Lemonade?


Thank you for your time.

*Bows and walks offstage*

Damn, I never thought of that.
(turns to a group of ninjas)  False alarm guys.  Turns out she didn't teach them how to make sweet tea after all.

[Tova]

Lemonade isn't what it used to be, clearly.

[Carl-E]

*Ahem*


Excuse me for bringing this up, but has anyone here considered that 'Old Fashioned' might just mean an Old Fashioned Lemonade?


Thank you for your time.

*Bows and walks offstage*

No.  Sorry, but an "Old-fashioned" is a well known and fairly well-defined alcoholic drink. 

Dora's dealing with her inner demons at the moment, no time for interacting with others, especially a PO'd father. 

Besies, Faye's got it under control, which is good, because soon Dora won't...

[Overkillengine]

I find Jim's reaction to Faye letting his daughter use knives and a blowtorch amusing if misguided. How is she supposed to learn how to handle potentially hazardous tools safely if she is never allowed to touch them? When I was her age I was helping my grandparents butcher livestock. Kids can learn how to do a lot (safely) if you actually take the time to teach them how...

[blewupthesun]

^ I agree with above comment. If anything, it's best that she tried out all these things in Faye's presence, who seems at least somewhat experienced with them and how to do them safely (given that she hasn't maimed herself yet). Better that than having a curious kid randomly get her hands on dangerous tools herself and use them without supervision.

[pwhodges]

Is that something I was supposed to learn as a kid? I'm 24, and I've yet to have a reason to need to sharpen a knife, so I've yet to learn how.

I would sharpen a chisel on an oiled stone at Sam's age, helping my mother build a dinghy.  At 24 I was married, and would sharpen the carving knife with a steel at the dining table before cutting the roast; indeed, I still do that - and keeping kitchen (or any) knives sharp is a given, as blunt knives are unpredictable and dangerous.

[Akima]

I find Jim's reaction to Faye letting his daughter use knives and a blowtorch amusing if misguided.

Yes, but this is the guy who doesn't even want his daughter walking home by herself from her mother's house.

[TinPenguin]

COMIC!

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

Or bought a round.

Damn, you beat me to it.

[rcs]

Did anyone else notice how Sam told her Dad that Faye taught her to *use* a blowtorch and *sharpen* knives, but he replied back that Faye allowed her to *play* with them? I'm probably reading too much into word choice, but perhaps that seems like he's thinking of her like a child running with scissors rather than a girl entering (or about to enter) her teenage years. But then to turn around and be ok with her fixing a cocktail seems weird.

[techkid]

Maybe he's an easy drunk?

Personally, I would rather my teenager (should I ever dare to have a kid at all) to learn the safe usage of a blowtorch or knife sharpening, than the responsible service of alcohol. Or to put it another way: What's more responsible, teaching your kid to safely handle tools, heat and sharp objects, or how to pour a drink?

[Jabberwocky]

I love how Faye is completely unfazed by Jim's (over)reaction.

[Border Reiver]

Maybe he's an easy drunk?

Personally, I would rather my teenager (should I ever dare to have a kid at all) to learn the safe usage of a blowtorch or knife sharpening, than the responsible service of alcohol. Or to put it another way: What's more responsible, teaching your kid to safely handle tools, heat and sharp objects, or how to pour a drink?

Nope, a responsible parent ensures that the offspring can do it all. 

Safely use knives and axes - check
Properly pour a beer for Dad - check
Ride bike, sans training wheels - check (for 2 out of three ATM)
Know what the effects of alcohol are, etc. - check
Able to think for self - Still working on that one.

[JRDelirio]

@ Jabberwocky: She has seen intense reactions before. 

And I dunno about the blowtorch (at least she did not let Sam handle the arc welder) but 12-nearly-13 sounds fine for learning how to properly sharpen a knife.

And the cocktail's a sort of easy gag.  But apparently they pour one damn fine Old Fashioned...  I still get the feeling that Faye is not going to get recruited by Big Sisters any time soon 

[rcs]

I was remarking on the different points of view - Sam was excited that she was learning new things. Jim thought she was just playing around. Is that a father-daughter thing? Or an older generational thing? Or just me? I guess I resonated to it oddly.

Actually, learning the responsible use of alcohol is probably a good thing. But I don't think Faye is a good role model for that lesson.

[El_Flesh]

Nothing wrong with teaching the kid how to use that stuff.

Overprotective parents are frightened children themselves really.

[gangler]

You know, blow-torches I can see a parent being uncomfortable around. He doesn't know the whole story or what Faye's qualifications or stances on safety protocols are. Heck, he might not even know exactly how safe a blow torch can be if you're using it right if he's never had the need or opportunity to be around them. They're not usually a normal part of the workplace environment.

The knife remark though. All I can think is that if she hasn't been allowed to use the sharp knives yet, then it's really no wonder that when he leaves her alone to make dinner for herself she sets the place on fire.

All in all I'm interested to learn more about this guy. He seems he's got it all together, but then again so does Dora. Seems a little scatterbrained at times too. He can run a business pretty well but his personal life seems to lack that same level of organization and attentiveness. I suspect that his apparent maturity might also be a bit misleading. Just because he's got the extra years doesn't actually mean he's got romance or interpersonal interaction worked out any better than Dora or Marten.

Looking forward to seeing more of the kid too.

[jmucchiello]

Personally I find it strange that Faye would show a child how to mix a drink. That's crossing a line. You don't know if alcoholism runs in the kid's family or not. Teaching the proper using tools to someone else's kid is one thing but alcohol and someone else's children... you just should not go there. It's not someone else's call to introduce alcohol to my kids, even if they aren't sampling it.

[Throg]

The only way I can find Jim's reaction understandable is from what his daughter did to the kitchen in her first appearance: the stove covered in fire extinguisher foam. Plus diving off a cliff to capture a snake. If I had a daughter who was kinda accident- and disaster-prone, I might immediately assume the worst about knives and blowtorches.

[pwhodges]

Would it be wrong  to make a word filter that changed "expresso" to "espresso" just because that mistake bothers me more than it should?

Note that Sam uses "expresso" in today's comic (2180), and that Jeph has tweeted that it was deliberate (the tweet where he says she's twelve, when Jim told Dora she was thirteen).

[jwhouk]

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

Learning ALL THE CUSS WORDS!    4 (6.5%)
Shopping at the local second-hand store for goofy hats!    1 (1.6%)
Burning down an apartment with only a toaster!    3 (4.8%)
AnthroPC tossing for fun and profit!    0 (0%)
The Barista Sneer_(tm)    15 (24.2%)
Playing left field for the Northampton Bonercats Kickball League!    0 (0%)
Bourbon-flavored Milkshakes!    0 (0%)
Snark 101!    12 (19.4%)
Leading a boy on while moving in with him platonically.    9 (14.5%)
Spathe Ham!    0 (0%)
Boobs!    2 (3.2%)
Butts!    0 (0%)
Knees!  (Oh wait, this isn't Bloom County... never mind)    2 (3.2%)
How to drive your boss crazy in three simple steps!    5 (8.1%)
Tracking the elusive PIZZA GIRL!    9 (14.5%)

Total Members Voted: 62

[Method of Madness]

Would it be wrong  to make a word filter that changed "expresso" to "espresso" just because that mistake bothers me more than it should?

Note that Sam uses "expresso" in today's comic (2180), and that Jeph has tweeted that it was deliberate (the tweet where he says she's twelve, when Jim told Dora she was thirteen).

Right, she's a kid who's really excited, so he intentionally made her say the wrong word. To be honest, when I saw his tweet about it, it was the first time I actually thought something in the comic might have been ripped from the forums.

[GerPronouncedGrr]

Regardless of whether or not it was 'responsible' of Faye to teach Sam to pour that drink, based on her lack of reaction to Jim's rage and then her quick uptake of the business deal, I'd say she's an evil genius who knew exactly what she was doing. There was no way Sam wasn't going to be so super excited and tell her dad what she did, so Faye prepared for it. Classic shit sandwich.

[Is it cold in here?]

Faye was setting a great example for Sam by showing her that a woman can make metal things.

Not so much so in potentially giving her the idea that it's normal to have a stash of a mind-altering drug at work.

[DSL]

Would it be wrong  to make a word filter that changed "expresso" to "espresso" just because that mistake bothers me more than it should?

Note that Sam uses "expresso" in today's comic (2180), and that Jeph has tweeted that it was deliberate (the tweet where he says she's twelve, when Jim told Dora she was thirteen).

Right, she's a kid who's really excited, so he intentionally made her say the wrong word. To be honest, when I saw his tweet about it, it was the first time I actually thought something in the comic might have been ripped from the forums.

I would say the RMS Pedantic has run up on the iceberg of Jeph's scorn.

[FunkyTuba]

I align with DSL's thinking here... This arc, amusing anecdotes about Faymantha aside, is about Dora and her reactions to stuff.

Someone quoted Sam's line "He didn't want me to tell you that," ... without following up with what I think is the more important part of that strip: "...but if you're friends it's okay, right?"

to which Dora responded "Absolutely."

From the mouths of babes, right? This is a profound and unexpected, if unintended on Sam's part, challenge to Dora's entire mindset and her response may or may not signal an epiphany... we'll find out Monday

[iduguphergrave]

Personally I find it strange that Faye would show a child how to mix a drink. That's crossing a line. You don't know if alcoholism runs in the kid's family or not. Teaching the proper using tools to someone else's kid is one thing but alcohol and someone else's children... you just should not go there. It's not someone else's call to introduce alcohol to my kids, even if they aren't sampling it.

I agree. This is what bothered me about today's strip. Teaching a kid skills that could potentially be useful is one thing, but alcohol's a little different and I'd personally be more upset about that than the dang blowtorch.

[VonKleist]

lol forum


by the by

Anybody else think it´s kind of weird to be babysitted at all above 10 years of age?

On second thought Samantha does have a record of reckless behaviour.

Still weird, though.

[jwhouk]

Faye was setting a great example for Sam by showing her that a woman can make metal things.

Not so much so in potentially giving her the idea that it's normal to have a stash of a mind-altering drug at work.

Yeah, like coffee or tea. Oh, wait...

[pwhodges]

Anybody else think it´s kind of weird to be babysitted at all above 10 years of age?

In Britain there is no law on the matter, but a government web site quotes the following:

* children under the age of about 12 are rarely mature enough to be left alone for a long period of time
* children under the age of 16 should not be left alone overnight

[bukwrm]

I kind of see the alcohol thing as-
Faye: *thinking* geez, this is easier than I thought it'd be. I'm gonna have a drink to celebrate!
*fixes drink*
Sam: *notices* Watcha doing? Can I see?  Can I try?
Faye, by now imagining Sam as her little protege, and perhaps knowing the ability of an unwatched Sam to create havoc, lets her watch and explains she's making a drink. Or Sam just bypassed asking and watched.
Jim shows up, freaks over Sam doing dangerous stuff
Sam: *thinks* Hmm, dad likes drinks, right?
Sam goes and duplicates what she saw Faye doing earlier, figuring (correctly) that it would make her dad calm down a bit, paradoxically.

So Faye didn't show her drink-mixing as part of the "let's play around with dangerous stuff!" daycare program, but she decided to make a drink...perhaps when she came back from that restroom break, figuring Sam is still sharpening with Dora watching her, and found a kid next to her watching the alcohol making.
I'd like to point out that if you try to hide something from a kid, they will be ten times more interested in it. So rather than slipping the alcohol behind her, she said "Making a drink. This is an old-fashioned."

[vforvancouver]

Well, I once taught one of my nieces how to mix a proper Vodka Martini.

She was 10 or 11, if I recall correctly, and she was the only person in the party who wasn't legally able to drink alcohol. She was also very bored. So I made her the bartender, gave her an apron and some recipes, showed her how to handle all the stuff, and promised her by the end of the night I'd mix her a grown-up drink.

She enjoyed the job and the party was a success: from that day onward she became interested in the art of mixing cocktails and now she works at a fancy bar (she turned 19 last month). To this day, her mother doesn't know whether thank me or hate me with all her soul.

And the drink I mixed her that day?

A Shirley Temple. 

[Carl-E]

I had a similar experience, from  the other side.  My father was a plant maitenance manager for a large industrial corporation, and from my ages of 12 to 16, I bartended the anual party he threw at our home. 

One of the VP's, named Walter, really liked my Harvey Wallbangers.   

I also "invented" what I liked to call a left-handed screwdriver; vodka and grapefruit juice, with a dash of grenadine to cut the sourness. 

[cvcharger]

And the drink I mixed her that day?

A Shirley Temple. 

Well played Mr. Vancouver.

[Is it cold in here?]

Remember what those did to Raven.

[cvcharger]

Remember what those did to Raven.

Could it not just be assumed that such resulted from the power of suggestion.  Of course, this is coming from a person who spent most of his life avoiding the consumption of Root Beer and Ginger Ale, just because their names involve the words beer and ale.

[Omega Entity]

thatsthejoke.jpg 

[Carl-E]

The ability to follow any recipe is a useful life skill! 


the ability to placate your father is just an added bonus...

[iduguphergrave]

Personally I find it strange that Faye would show a child how to mix a drink. That's crossing a line. You don't know if alcoholism runs in the kid's family or not. Teaching the proper using tools to someone else's kid is one thing but alcohol and someone else's children... you just should not go there. It's not someone else's call to introduce alcohol to my kids, even if they aren't sampling it.

For all we know, arson or knife crime runs in the family...

I agree. This is what bothered me about today's strip. Teaching a kid skills that could potentially be useful is one thing, but alcohol's a little different and I'd personally be more upset about that than the dang blowtorch.

You don't think the ability to mix drinks is a potentially useful skill?

Arson and stabbing tendencies are considerably less likely to run in the gene pool than alcoholism.

And recipes in general, sure, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say she would have been able to live a happy life if she postponed the drink-making skills a couple more years.

[Is it cold in here?]

Seems like there's something missing in learning a skill that you can't enjoy the benefits of.