Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson for March 10, 2020

One day Calvin will say this to a woman who will become his ex-wife.

On Earth, we say “Thank you”, Calvin.

know of anyone who actually has pressed briefs?

If you iron socks and underwear, will the elastic still work?

Well Mom could warm your bottom.

She does take pride in her work Calvin, but the problem is..you don’t.

Maybe she should STARCH them (heavy on the starch!). They’d be harder to stuff into the drawer.

If she were Dennis’ mom, panel 4 would have him sitting in the corner with a smarting bottom, holding Hobbes.

Mom has other pressing issues to attend to, Calvin. Hahaha.

My mother had her quirks, and one of them was that she loved to iron! Ironed everything, including everyone’s underwear. The ironing board was a permanent feature in the kitchen. It took me several years to realize that this was not normal…

He’s right. She doesn’t work, all the time at home, too hard for her to iron? Learn from Mary Tyler Moore and get a job, or learn to iron for your kid.

She trusts Calvin with an iron?

… says the kid who lets Hobbes do his homework.

What’s an Iron?

My mom was a nice woman, but she had OCD when it came to housekeeping. She ironed dust rags so they would look good in the closet.

My wife pointed this out to her and my mom replied, “Well, after I die if the neighbors come in, I want them to know I keep a clean house.”

My wife replied, “Mom, if they’re looking in your closets, I’m throwing them out of the house.”

Another time my mom bragged that her neighbors knew she kept a clean house because she always bleached her mop head and put it outside to dry.

My wife said, “Oh, if I saw a mop head that clean, I’d think you never used it.” My dad and I grabbed our coats and went across the street to the Knights of Columbus for a beer.

My wife and I had a good relationship with both sets of parents.

I know a few ‘Calvins’ who demand quality work from others but slop around doing their own. I always just figure their father owns the company or something.

Mom, you should starch his underwear!

It’s a good thing for you that she doesn’t, Calvin!

It’s “here’re some clean clothes,” NOT “here’s some clean clothes.” She knows better, but now Calvin will use her poor grammar to defend his ignorance.

Careful Calv … she might just iron AND STARCH them turning them into a guillotine, like in a bad cartoon

I read a memoir by a maid who worked in the Downton Abbey era. One householder demanded she iron the shoe laces!

She’s your mother, not your maid, Calvin!

He wants the clothes pressed, and then he stuffs them into a drawer, where they get all jumbled up.

Well, ma’am, don’t blame Calvin for starting a house fire trying to use the iron, because you technically gave him permission to use it.

This strip appears in “The Calvin and Hobbes Tenth Anniversary Book” along with a strip featuring Calvin and Dad. Watterson states “Dad and I still have this kind of relationship but I like to think I’m easier on my Mom now.”

I’m with his mother on this one. It’s underwear. Who cares if they’re ironed?! :p

It’s so hard to find good help now days…

The best thing for mom to do here is: Iron his clothes with enough starch to make the collars as stiff as a board and take the flex out of the pants. We’ll see if he complains about less ironing then.

“I might iron your underwear while you wear it….”

Yep. Ass-in-training…

My uncle was a GP. Once I saw my aunt ironing his underwear. She explained that she didn’t want the other doctors to see him in wrinkled undies when they changed clothes before a surgery.

This is from a different era simply because Calvin even knows what ironing is.

I read a story about a guy that wears his underwear once and then throws them away. He goes to the store every month and gets a new supply.

Somehow I sense Calvin’s not happy with the laundry service here …

Better luck next time, buddy.