For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for August 19, 2018

She wore a helmet, but not knee pads nor elbow pads and wrist pads? Even the Cardcaptor Sakura Kinomoto always wore the pads when she wore her inline skates (without a helmet).

I remember my step-brother started skateboarding about this time in 1989. I bought him a pair of knee pads for his birthday, which he trashed in very short order. Unlike Lizzie, his knees are still in good shape today.

Double header. Ice cream and a bandage!

No elbow pads or knee pads? At the very least, she should have been wearing full pants instead of shorts. Yes, it’s summer, but pants are better than shorts when it comes to tripping and falling.

She WAS lucky. Boys get bruises and scabs all of the time, but they don’t get frozen treats afterwards… ;-)

HUh!?

duh, she’s riding it backwards!, the kick lip should be behind her,

To dare is to reap great rewards

In the 60s skateboards( often homemade made with metal stakes) were known as “Bunbusters” Jan+Dean had a song Sidewalk Surfing with the refrain -bust your buns.

Lynn’s notes (see if I can bold them) agree with you all:I know the kids today are wearing a lot more than shorts and a helmet when learning to ride a skateboard. We’ve tried many times to bring the strip up to date by adding seat belts and helmets, and removing sexist remarks and cigarettes. I thought about adding kneepads to Elizabeth’s gear here, but then there would be no gag.

I know I will get comments, so let’s add another family truth to this: Elizabeth has knee and elbow pads and has been told to use them. It’s just too much trouble to do so, however, and now she is learning a good lesson about safety and protection. And the ice cream is not her favourite flavour.

We got punished, not rewarded, for getting hurt. Yelled at and grounded off – whatever – for two weeks, usually. Hard to say now if that really worked. We were much more careful getting back on – slower to advance to more risky behaviors.

I love the angles in the artwork

And that, Elisabeth, is why we wear protection.

Yes, Elizabeth is very lucky. Not only was she not hurt worse but her mom is being sympathetic. I was run off the road on my motorbike and was severely scolded for ruining the knees in my good pants. I also had to walk the damaged bike home and was late, making my parents late for dinner. Another reprimand. That was a parental lesson I always try to remember.

Which hand is hurt; the left or the right? Equal time?

I suspect this what some people feel when they see someone parking legally in a handicap parking spot.

I bet she wiped out on purpose so Mommy would give her ice cream! Hey, if someone’s willing give me ice cream for hurting myself, I’ll do it! Actually, someone did give me a dollar for an ice cream cone when I got hurt once. I was kind of embarrassed. I mean, I was nine or ten, for crying out loud. My mom caused me to bang my head on both sides walking thru a door and I went to the floor holding my head. Kind of knocked the wind out of me.

I can guarantee that the safety stuff was not the Kid’s idea. Not once did I consider it, even after putting my Bike 10 feet up a tree, with me on it.

Hope Elizabeth learns her lesson and use protection gear next time she skateboards.