Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson for June 25, 2012

Gus has already intimated more than once that Gene has more in the boat (mostly in “sweat equity”, perhaps) than he does. I predict that A&J will pay a fair price for the boat, but they and Gus will wind up giving the money to Gene & ML.

Well, I believe that it was Benjamin Franklin who said that visiting relatives and fish have a lot in common – after three days – both of them begin to stink! Perhaps Gus DOES have an ulterior motive He KNOWS that once the kids get married, Arlo and Janis will be finding more and more excuses to come visiting. IF Arlo and Janis have the house boat to stay in while they are visiting, Gus won’t need to worry about them being underfoot in the main house. Gus COULD be figuring that if he arranges for the potential relatives coming to visit to have a permanent place to bunk – Gus will be the one who comes out ahead. With a lot of luck, Arlo and Janis could end up seeing things from that same perspective – and decide that the boat COULD be a wise investment after all.

.arlo is bring a realist- smart man

I wonder if Arlo is thinking “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is”? It does seem to be a little too easy, but then again, maybe Gus is trying to give them a discount since they’re practically family. Guess we’ll have to wait and see how it turns out.

I’m amazed how few readers understand what the strip is about: treading water. The boat thing has forever been Arlo’s fantasy of a parallel universe. JJ isn’t going to let it happen. Go read Luann if you want a story.

True, if they buy the boat at a fair and it becomes a money pit there may be animosity between the families. .But if Gus would use the boat as a place for A/J to stay, why not keep it for himself as a guest house.

there’s an old saying.. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. I’m sure it applies here… somehow. :-P

1. Arlo will buy the boat.2. Something Bad will happen involving the boat.3. Janis will remind Arlo of his error at every opportunity.4. Arlo shacks up with Gus.

1. Arlo buys the schooner from Gus for $10.

2. A&J get Gene to accept a decent sum for all his work on the boat, and that money goes wherever it’s needed most.

3. A&J use the schooner as a vacation condo, so Arlo’s fantasies will now be about actually SAILING it somewhere exotic.

Or.. you know he could receive/buy the boat and actually have a good time with it.

Pride goeth before a fall. Take the boat Arlo. You’ll be glad you did.

I think Gus is a genuine nice guy and has absolutely no ulterior motive. He knows through Gene how much Arlo has always wanted a boat, and he wants to do something nice for them. This is a perfect match and a win win for everyone involved. Arlo! Say thank you and accept the gift!!!!

To make up a quote that Ben Franklin might have said, “Patience is the ability to wait for something that you find out that you didn’t really want after all.”

“I wanted the gold, and I got it —Came out with a fortune last fall, —Yet somehow life’s not what I thought it,And somehow the gold isn’t all.”R.W. Service

The comic strip as Rohrshach test.

The last thing I ever expected was cold feet!This reminds me of a Candid Camera episode where they went into a department store and put a wooden bin in the middle of an isle.They filled it with one dollar bills and put a sign on top saying,“Free – take all you want.”No one touched it the whole time the store was open.

Depending where Gus’ place is, they might learn to sail and head into the Caribbean, where there are also still (unfortunately) real pirates (not glamorous at all, BTW, just vicious!) No need to go to Somalia after all…