By LEE SCOTT
When I send birthday or greeting cards to friends and relatives, I usually cut out something from the newspaper and include it. Sometimes it is an article they might enjoy, but most of the time, it is a comic strip that I think they will find relevant (no money).
When I send my engineer son a comic, it is usually Dilbert. Dilbert and his Human Relations officer have interesting conversations that many people in the corporate world would find funny. Like who is responsible for the department refrigerator and what is living in it.
For young mothers, the two comic strips, “For Better or Worse” and “Baby Blues” are good. The little kids in “Baby Blues” are priceless.
The comic strip “Pickles” is one that I only started reading in the past few years. It is about an older couple. Suddenly their antics are hilarious.
I have enjoyed reading the comics all my life and realized that I probably perfected my reading skills as a young child by reading them. There were numerous comics that caught my interest like, “Peanuts,” and “Marmaduke.
Recently I sent a Father’s Day card to a young man with a picture of snakes and spiders on the front and inside it said, “To the perfect Dad who knows how to slay dragons.” In the card, I placed a few comics that he and his wife would enjoy.
The wife called me soon after they opened the card and told me how much they laughed over the card and comics. But that was not the only thing she said.
“Lee, who gets newspapers now and cuts out actual comics? It’s the digital age!”
They thought it was hysterical. I like this couple, so I did not feel offended. Evidently, reading comics from an actual newspaper is becoming a lost art.
For me, there is such joy in sitting down with a newspaper. I love having a cup of coffee, getting caught up on the local news, reading the comics, and doing puzzles. Through the years I have gotten in the habit of cutting out comics that I enjoy and throw them in a kitchen drawer. Inevitably, there is someone that will get one of the comics.
Now I have decided to start putting them in a scrapbook. After all they are classic.
Years from now, my grandchildren can open it and read those comics and see history. Because comic strips reflect what is going on in the world today and the writers are quick even now to put humor in some of the social distancing challenges. Like Superman leaving earth because six feet was just not enough.
So, if you get a card from me, do not expect any money. Maybe just a few comic strips from an actual newspaper.
Lee Scott, award winning humor writer takes her “Walter Mitty” like persona and spins tales around everyday life. She enjoys boating, reading, and meeting people. Scott lives in Beaufort with her husband, JD, along with their dog Brandy. You can reach her at Lasshood@aol.com.
