Habits are good for getting enough exercise, for making sure you leave the house with your car keys, for typing in your password. But when you interact with someone, it’s really sort of rude to interact habitually. Not to mention opening the door for the Caulfields of the world to use your habits against you.
It’s such a weird thing that parents and teachers say, isn’t it? If all of your friends committed suicide? Yeah, you just might do it, too, since that would be seriously devastating.
For all the mistakes my parents made raising me, one they did not make was to pull out that stale old line about whether I’d do something extraordinarily foolish just because all my friends did it. I think it’s because they knew that if there was something extraordinarily foolish to be tried, I’d likely be the first of my friends to try it.
I’m not sure that was just resignation to sequence on my parents’ part. It’s almost as if someone took them aside at some point and said, “If all the other parents insist on trying to turn their weird kids into something they’re not, will you?”
So, getting back to my opening sentence about “all the mistakes my parents made …”: The older I get, the more I realize just how astonishingly few that was.
Knowing my friends, if they all jumped off a cliff, I’d wonder why and take a look over the edge. I know they wouldn’t willingly endanger themselves. (E.g., what if they were all in swimsuits and there was a deep pool of water below?)
And just in case, I’d look behind them, to see if they were fleeing something very dangerous.
Concretionist over 5 years ago
Habits are good for getting enough exercise, for making sure you leave the house with your car keys, for typing in your password. But when you interact with someone, it’s really sort of rude to interact habitually. Not to mention opening the door for the Caulfields of the world to use your habits against you.
mddshubby2005 over 5 years ago
This explains why ’ I’ve got friends in low places… ’
asrialfeeple over 5 years ago
Did she just discorage Caulfield to turn in his worksheets on time?
CoBass over 5 years ago
I’ve loved this XKCD about this concept. https://xkcd.com/1170/
Ignatz Premium Member over 5 years ago
It’s such a weird thing that parents and teachers say, isn’t it? If all of your friends committed suicide? Yeah, you just might do it, too, since that would be seriously devastating.
sandpiper over 5 years ago
conflicting message here
OshkoshJohn over 5 years ago
If all my friends jumped first, I’d have a nice pile of bodies to break my fall.
DonLee2 over 5 years ago
As best as I can interpret this strip, the reacting character in each panel is reacting to the opposite of what was said.
Nick Danger over 5 years ago
“Duck Season!” “Rabbit Season!”
“Duck Season!” “Rabbit Season!”
“Duck Season!” “Rabbit Season!”
“Rabbit Season!” “Duck Season!”
BANG!!
KellyChase over 5 years ago
I wonder if Caulfield’s last name is Holden?
Night-Gaunt49[Bozo is Boffo] over 5 years ago
Blog PostsFrazz16 hrs ·
For all the mistakes my parents made raising me, one they did not make was to pull out that stale old line about whether I’d do something extraordinarily foolish just because all my friends did it. I think it’s because they knew that if there was something extraordinarily foolish to be tried, I’d likely be the first of my friends to try it.
I’m not sure that was just resignation to sequence on my parents’ part. It’s almost as if someone took them aside at some point and said, “If all the other parents insist on trying to turn their weird kids into something they’re not, will you?”
So, getting back to my opening sentence about “all the mistakes my parents made …”: The older I get, the more I realize just how astonishingly few that was.
gammaguy over 5 years ago
Knowing my friends, if they all jumped off a cliff, I’d wonder why and take a look over the edge. I know they wouldn’t willingly endanger themselves. (E.g., what if they were all in swimsuits and there was a deep pool of water below?)
And just in case, I’d look behind them, to see if they were fleeing something very dangerous.