Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

Henry & Maurice Reed

3 (11.5%)

Veronica Vance

2 (7.7%)

Dr John Ellicot-Chatham

2 (7.7%)

Beatrice Chatham

0 (0%)

Mrs Whitaker

0 (0%)

Mrs Augustus

13 (50%)

Peter & Ellsa Bianchi

1 (3.8%)

Jim Bean

5 (19.2%)

Total Members Voted: 26

[BenRG]

Okay, snap poll created when I realised that no-one had set up a WCDT for this week: Who is the best parent character? 'Best' doesn't mean 'nicest', it means 'best written'.

In an odd coincidence, Mrs Whittaker is high on my list. I think that Jeph has always done a good job in showing her feelings about everything that has happened to her over the years and she's always been shown having an honest reaction to her daughters' lives. However, I think I like Jim a bit more. He is shown as genuinely struggling with Sam but, despite this, he genuinely loves her and is trying to make the right decisions for her. I think that he's an entirely praiseworthy character in that area

Now onto today's strip: "All I want is for my girls to be safe and happy" is the quote for the day and I do think it says a lot of good things about what is in her heart.

Meanwhile... Is is traditional for southern women to frankly discuss things like that? Or is Mrs A merely exercising her motherly privilege of embarrassing her daughter. What next? emailing Bubbles scans of Faye's baby pictures? Or telling her a story about that time 6-year-old Faye decided to 'make art' out of the contents of the kitchen?

[Gyrre]

The first panel can be summed up as 'all things within reason', a fairly good motto to live by.

[snubnose]

Hrr, hrr.

I have a very hard time to believe theres many parents like Fayes mom.

So you got two daughters and the first one turns out to be homosexual, okay.

And then the second daughter turns out to be bisexual and enters a stable longterm lesbian relationship.

Thats when you know you wont get grandchildren, ever. Right ?

[somnolesence]

We're getting all of about 30 seconds to a few minutes of conversation in a strip. I'm sure the topic will come up at some point. But even then she may have already had conversations with Faye and or her sister about kids before and come to the understanding they aren't something either sister is interested in having, at least for now depending on their feelings. Not every relationship has to end up with kids after all.

[Tova]

In case you've forgotten about how Mrs Whitaker felt about Faye having grandkids... remember the "crazier than a mule on a Ferris Wheel" quote?

Faye: No offense, Mom, but I don't see Amanda with kids no matter WHICH team she bats for.
Mrs Whitaker: I know, but look at the alternative. I love you, sweetie, but you're crazier than a mule on a Ferris wheel.

This event isn't changing how she feels about future grandchildren. There's no reason for her to be mad about this.

[Annemoon]

Anyone able to help a fellow reader across the pond out?
What on earth does "You're a big bucket of water, ain'cha?" mean? ^^'
Just, your a big person? Is it more a 'melons' reference?

[BenRG]

Mrs Whitaker is telling Bubbles that she's tall, big and attractive (refreshing like a glass of water). Bi Mrs W confirmed? Might my idle speculation of her coming to Northampton and then running away with Mrs Augustus actually plausible now?

[Zebediah]

It’s just a way of noting that Bubbles is very big. Nothing more.

[somnolesence]

Anyone able to help a fellow reader across the pond out?
What on earth does "You're a big bucket of water, ain'cha?" mean? ^^'
Just, your a big person? Is it more a 'melons' reference?

Its probably a play on the older phrase of calling someone a tall drink of water, however, bubbles being not only tall but well built is a bucket not just a glass of water.

I've only heard it used in the US and kinda more of an old fashioned thing if I understand correctly. Although it does play into the more modern phrase of some being "thirsty" for an attractive person.

[JoeCovenant]

Mrs Whitaker is telling Bubbles that she's tall, big and attractive (refreshing like a glass of water). Bi Mrs W confirmed? Might my idle speculation of her coming to Northampton and then running away with Mrs Augustus actually plausible now?

I'm pretty sure it's possible for someone of the same gender as another to comment on other said person's attractiveness, without being Bisexual.

[BenRG]

I think so too, but this is Jeph we're talking about. This really sharply skews the averages off of the median line.

[JoeCovenant]

I think so too, but this is Jeph we're talking about. This really sharply skews the averages off of the median line.

That, I'll grant you ! 

[shanejayell]

That turned out OK. I still want her coming to town too, tho. 

[dutchrvl]

Hrr, hrr.

I have a very hard time to believe theres many parents like Fayes mom.

So you got two daughters and the first one turns out to be homosexual, okay.

And then the second daughter turns out to be bisexual and enters a stable longterm lesbian relationship.

Thats when you know you wont get grandchildren, ever. Right ?

"Thats when you know you wont get grandchildren, ever"? That is a pretty extreme conclusion. Is the chance lower than had they been in heterosexual relationships? Probably, although I actually do not know if nowadays the chance of gay/bisexual couples having (biological) children is lower than for heterosexual couples.
But a conclusion that neither one of them will ever have children is far from foregone, even for Mrs. Whitaker.
 

[Perfectly Reasonable]

Sam. Sam is all the grandchildren Mrs Whittaker will ever need.

[Rincewind]

Is that steam coming out of Bubbles neck-seam?  She seems to be blushing a bit, to.

[Tova]

The intensity of their embarrassed reaction to her mother remarking that Bubbles is attractive is very weird to me, honestly.

[TheEvilDog]

Probably because Mrs Whitaker is trying to show she's understanding, which when any parent tries to do that, it automatically becomes cringe inducing.

[Mr Intrepid]

Now, I would have put Jim and Veronica as a couple.  Veronica raised Marten to be a nice guy, but she's also there to guide Sam through the process of becoming a young woman.  So she's done double duty here.

But in the end, I voted for Mrs Augustus.  She raised two kids, on her own for some time now, guiding one of them through a very difficult in their life.  Dealing with another's life changing injury.  Winding up as a bass playing, pot smoking,, sexually free woman of a certain age.
Veronica was fortunate enough to do what she does on her own terms, and apparently get to a place her life in a position of some comfort.
Faye's mom seems to be doing pretty good, in spite of what has occurred.  Maybe handling the event, overall, better than her elder daughter.

Sorry, just rambling.

[Tova]

Probably because Mrs Whitaker is trying to show she's understanding, which when any parent tries to do that, it automatically becomes cringe inducing.

One of the biggest reasons I come here is for the surprisingly different takes that forumites bring.

Mine is somewhere in between the two extremes of, She's trying to show she's understanding and, She thinks Bubbles is hot - maybe my ship is legit now! Even taking Jeph's proclivities into account.

I have encountered proud parents remarking for all to hear on just how attractive their offspring's new partner is, and it has indeed provoked mild embarrassment. But nothing to the extreme of this comic. YMMV.

Probably - maybe? - Jeph is just doing comic exaggeration.

[SeaWoodStage]

To me, this discussion is interesting because it just goes to show how little you know until you know it. I read 'Wooo-boy, you're a big bucket of water, ain'cha?' as Mrs Whitaker basically saying "gosh you're big" with a side of positive, but I was reading from context.

I used to think "tall drink of water" was an insult. I used to equate it with "tall streak of piss" and it was years before I realised they had totally different meanings.

It is genuinely interesting to me how different cultures/nations/regions use slang differently. "Tall drink of water" isn't a common phrase where I come from, whereas "tall streak of piss" is. The more you know!

EDITED: I voted for John Ellicot-Chatham, but if it's best written, I'll put in a word for Jim even though I can't stand the guy.

[Tova]

Interestingly, "tall drink of water" was used with negative connotations (but with much the same literal meaning) in the film The Shawshank Redemption.

At around 1:48 in the clip above.

Kind of reminds me of the phrase "pretty boy." Could be a compliment or an insult depending on who's saying it.

[SeaWoodStage]

Thank you Tova! I've seen the film a few times (and personally think it's the best Stephen King adaptation along with Stand By Me) but I haven't seen it for a while, and I wonder now if that's where I got my negative connotation of the phrase from. As I said, it's not a common phrase where I come from, so it makes sense that I picked it up from a film.

[shanejayell]

New comic up! Faye of course teases Bubbles on her attempt to be 'Southern.' *lol*

[TheEvilDog]

Or it could be that Bubbles was affecting an accent to make herself more likeable to Mrs Whitaker. Unfortunately, it was more Western than Southern.

Huh, guess I was right. Truly I am shocked.

[Tova]

Hah. I am not.

[alc40]

By the way, the thread title has a couple typos.  The comic range should be 4286 to 4290.

[TheEvilDog]

Nah, its just that this is/will be/was time travel week.

[Tova]

That's not this week. It's not going to be Time Travel Week until two weeks ago.

[Gyrre]

Anyone able to help a fellow reader across the pond out?
What on earth does "You're a big bucket of water, ain'cha?" mean? ^^'
Just, your a big person? Is it more a 'melons' reference?

Its probably a play on the older phrase of calling someone a tall drink of water, however, bubbles being not only tall but well built is a bucket not just a glass of water.

I've only heard it used in the US and kinda more of an old fashioned thing if I understand correctly. Although it does play into the more modern phrase of some being "thirsty" for an attractive person.

Though, whether it's purely a matter of aesthetic  appreciation vs physical attraction remains to be seen.

[Gyrre]

There's always the Kenoshan accent.

[cesium133]

Uff da.

[Mr Intrepid]

If anyone recalls, when the sheriff came into the wedding chapel in the first "KillBill" movie, he described the bride (Uma Thurman), as a tall cool drink of water, as a comment on her beauty,  in spite of what had been done to her.

[BenRG]

As I said yesterday: Mrs W is exercising her motherly prerogative of embarrassing her children with stories you'd forgotten and wished that they had too. In this case... Maybe Faye's first ever stumbling attempt at getting a boyfriend, one who was a bit too confident and sassy for her mother's taste?

That last panel was odd. Did Bubbles have a speech filter installed that she had to stop so that she'd start sounding like... well Bubbles again?

By the way, the thread title has a couple typos.  The comic range should be 4286 to 4290.

Yes, that's what happens when you create a thread literally on the fly first thing in the morning pre-coffee when you're still about 2/3 asleep. Anyway, thanks for pointing it out; I've fixed it now.

[TheEvilDog]

Or she could have simply been affecting an accent to make Faye's mother more at ease. Ben, sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and more often than not the simplest answer is the right one.

[jwhouk]

There's always the Kenoshan accent.

I DO NOT HAVE AN ACCENT, YANNO!

Fer criminy cripes sake...

[stayctee]

Hrr, hrr.

I have a very hard time to believe theres many parents like Fayes mom.

So you got two daughters and the first one turns out to be homosexual, okay.

And then the second daughter turns out to be bisexual and enters a stable longterm lesbian relationship.

Thats when you know you wont get grandchildren, ever. Right ?

You must be trolling. Or you are the least informed person ever. Or you are a child. Do some reading.

[stayctee]

FYI boys, women tell each other they're hot all the time and it doesn't mean anything other than a compliment. If people are saying that Faye's mom thinks Bubbles is hot now that is just all kinds of ridiculous.

[TheEvilDog]

No one is saying anything about it not being a compliment.

Its that Mrs Whitaker has just found out her eldest is in a relationship with a female AI and is trying to be understanding by complimenting Bubbles using a term that is overly flirtatious.

[Is it cold in here?]

Hrr, hrr.

I have a very hard time to believe theres many parents like Fayes mom.

So you got two daughters and the first one turns out to be homosexual, okay.

And then the second daughter turns out to be bisexual and enters a stable longterm lesbian relationship.

Thats when you know you wont get grandchildren, ever. Right ?

WE ARE WORKING ON THAT TECHNOLOGY

Plus of course adoption or a sperm donor for the uterus-equipped member of the couple.

The biggest obstacle to grandchildren is Faye's mental health problems, followed by her financial insecurity. Both of those obstacles would be present in a het relationship.

[sitnspin]

Not every woman wants kids. Not every woman with kids wants grandchildren. I am disappointed this even needed to be said.

[TheEvilDog]

Yeah, but Mrs Whitaker realised long ago that she wouldn't get any grandchildren. She discussed that with Faye back when Faye went to visit her after Dora and Marten hooked up. In her own words, she loved Faye, but she was crazier than a mule in a ferris wheel, meaning that Mrs Whitaker knew that Faye wasn't in any healthy place to be a mother.

And that was directed more to Snubnose's post.

[notStanley]

On accents:  I grew up in Missouri, now in California, but enough howdy and y'all have snuck in that occasionally folk think I am from Texas.

[Perfectly Reasonable]

Do they really talk 'down south' up north?

[Is it cold in here?]

Mrs. Whitaker sounded more wistful than hurt to me about not having grandchildren. I think she would have preferred having them.

[Roborat]

On accents:  I grew up in Missouri, now in California, but enough howdy and y'all have snuck in that occasionally folk think I am from Texas.

My father was in the air force, we moved so often that I ended up being an accent chameleon, 6 months in a new place and you would think I had lived all my life there.

[Mr Intrepid]

Accents are less pronounced today than they were in the past.  WWII moved huge numbers of people both to fight and to support the war effort.  Mass media produced a "neutral" accent for news readers and announcers, with created a sound that many people emulated.
Economic and educational opportunities were also a factor.  Of course, economic and education were also related to race.
Mrs Whitmore's accent, such as it is, is likely related to both her age (patterns from her childhood),  where she was raised, (a more rural and isolated environment).  But that's really all speculation on my part.

[hedgie]

Regional accents are most certainly still there.  I have a friend who is from Alabama who is seriously considering hiring a speech therapist because she's worried that she sounds like some sort of redneck.

[Zebediah]

Do they really talk 'down south' up north?

No, and those who try are usually hilariously bad at it. Like Bubbles was here.

On the subject of regional accents: My wife grew up with in the North Carolina mountains. Over the years she has trained herself out of most of her Southern Appalachian accent in favor of a more neutral one. It’s doubtful that Harvard would have hired her if she still spoke like her mother or her sister, who still have strong Southern Appalachian accents. Like it or not, people with that accent are perceived as uneducated and unintelligent.

Of course, that’s not limited to Southern accents. A South Boston accent won’t get you far in the academic world either.

[St.Clair]

Comic's up.

Sex, cookies, whatever.
"Some people juggle geese!"