For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for August 12, 2020

Happy trails

I am very good at shoveling tons of manure

This is fairly typical of the humour of country people about town-people. I know it’s the sort of thing that would be said to a bumptious youngster visiting on a farm in my country, South Africa.

It’s a great keepsake even if he never wears it again.

Lynn’s Notes: When Michael went off to college, I had him study at university in London. I figured I would get a lot of critics saying he cannot travel to the U.K. by bus, only to be embarrassed when the province of Ontario was explained to them. It backfired on me when I got this strip in the mail, showing Michael in the cowboy hat. Enclosed with the strip was a letter saying the U.S. was an excellent place for Michael to tend to his education. Talk about being hoisted on my petard. It turns out I did not know all geography. London is also the name of a community in Texas!

Pretty much a normal kid’s perception. The reality, however, is a different sort of knowledge/experience : )

Obviously, Mike does not remember the spray painter fiasco.

He should have stayed!

I can’t recall how Mike is related to these people? Is his dad a brother or something like that? Hmm

He looks ready to go to the out-back.

Giddy up!

Now that is funny.

A pleasantly surprising astute comment in the last panel.

I’m glad he had a good time.

“Your head will swell up”…. Ain’t THAT the truth!

I think Uncle Dan meant to say “Thank You for all the work you did this last month.”

My son and I both learned a great lesson by living and working on a dairy farm for many years. Formerly city folks, he especially took away from it a great work ethic, independent thinking, and a different perspective of growing up and taking responsibility for yourself and your actions. He carried that into his life now and turned out pretty well if I do say so myself.

My grandson said something like Mike’s “good at just about everything” comment once, but he wasn’t even four years old at the time.

Don’t worry Mike – if your head doesn’t swell into it you’ll be a perfect contestant for the “Gong Show”. :-)

Does that mean Michael has a disease where his head will keep getting bigger, like in the movie Mask?

Farmers/Ranchers don’t get big heads, Mother Nature always has the last word.

Now that’s phunny.