Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for November 15, 2009

It wasn’t me, my hands never left my wrists at any time!

he is our favorite little speck.

But not often, at least, his Dad’s.

Johanan Rakkav, I did find your comment - thanks.

Come on Dad, he wasn’t fooling, he was totally serious. And it worked, he came back to his regular size.

Love the imagination of a 6 year old! Priceless!

Maybe! Perhaps I want to break the camera so that you will by me one for myself.

Ah, the days of 35mm film cameras and waiting to get the pictures back.

Oh dear, I have this book, and I can guess what is coming next…

Fifteen “short” seconds. I didn’t know some seconds were shorter than an other………

I could use a camera that slenderizes people…

I can’t believe that such an imaginative kid can come from such an unimaginative father. Calvin must favor his mother’s side of the family. Or maybe he was adopted.

Calvin’s dad does have some imagination. He tells Calvin some pretty tall tales. It’s his mother who has no imagination. She’s such a bore.

Honest Dad, I was just looking at it and it broke.

I just watched “The Incredible Shrinking Man” an hour ago. I wonder if Calvin ever saw it!

Leonardeuler said, about 3 hours ago Fifteen “short” seconds. I didn’t know some seconds were shorter than an other………

Sure. It depends on which side of the bathroom door you are.

Good one, Kea!

Well he could always scan them into his AIO then use the “Enhance Feature” to clear them up a bit and then maybe he could make out what/who that little speck is… DON”T DO IT! Something’s are better left unknown!

I love strips like this. Bill’s artistic ability really shines; the detailing of the penny, fly, and camera is astounding.

Andantonius said, 36 minutes ago

I love strips like this. Bill’s artistic ability really shines; the detailing of the penny, fly, and camera is astounding.

Oh yes! I love it, you can tell what year the penny is. The fly and the paperclip, the CAMERA! Gosh! Some of Bill’s best work was these types.

How does anyone assign guilt when something gets broken?

Four-year-old Margaret Mary comes crying to her mother, saying that her 6-year old brother Matt broke her doll. “That’s too bad, dear,” says mom. “How did it happen?” Struggling to stifle her tears, Margaret Mary says, “He broke it when I hit him over the head with it.”

Agreed, Andantonius. Bill’s ability to use detailed art to underscore his cartoon storyline made the funny even funnier. Very clever fella.

Real nice comment, Bandz !! That reminds me to some situations of my proper youth: I liked to “kill” my sisters’ dolls.

No, why would calvins dad even think that. Granted its kinda hard not to.

jrbj, Calvin’s mother is just as unimaginative as his father. But he wasn’t adopted; in another strip, Mom yelled at Dad that his “lousy chromosome” was what kept them from having a “sweet little girl”.

It’s not that his parent’s are unimaginative; it’s just that they’re so caught up in adult responsibilities and priorities that they forget that Calvin comes from an entirely different point of view. As Bill Watterson himself has pointed out, Calvin’s mother is always in the middle of something when Calvin barges in on her with one of his imaginative ideas, so she’s never going to be at her best or at her most receptive when he’s just interrupted whatever she is doing for something that she sees as patently ridiculous at best.

Similarly, Calvin’s father is too tied to the mental discipline required by his job and the daily demands of adult living to relax and come completely down to Calvin’s point of view. Calvin’s father believes in getting from Point A to Point B, period – no unnecessary detours allowed. Hence, he also bristles at Calvin’s seemingly irrational attempts to live life Calvin-style; if it doesn’t make sense to Dad, it’s not worth the time or the effort.

And Calvin? He doesn’t get his parents’ point of view, either. In fact, he simply considers their sole goal to be to turn him into one of them eventually (whereas he feels that their sole PURPOSE should be to cater to his every whim on demand.)

Really, the family dynamic isn’t that much different from that of any other parent-child relationship, when you stop and think about it.

I can’t see any speck!

Try getting attention at the right time Calvin

Actually, both Calvin’s mom and dad show some imagination: Calvin’s mom, while out searching for Hobbes, calls out to him, so she “buys into” his reality in part, while who can forget Dad’s bedtime stories, or his explanation of why old pictures are black and white! Calvin comes by his imagination honestly.

But, as was said, Calvin’s parents are often caught up in life so deeply that they forget the free-wheeling imagination of a child.

Massive pest problem, that fly would be an inch long!