Being back at work is taking some getting used to. I have been tired a lot and have renewed respect for folks who manage to blog every day even though they’re busy. So I am back from hiatus and will try to get back to posting regularly.
Ron is really into comics and graphic novels, an interest I don’t really share, though I do love cartoons. And from the traffic I see at 741.5973 (where book length collections of cartoons are shelved), I am not the only one. I am at times amazed at the continuing incredible popularity of Garfield.
Killed Cartoons: Casualties of the War on Free Expression is a collection of editorial cartoons censored by newspapers and magazines. There is an introductory section that discusses editorial cartooning and the reasons editors sometimes kill a particular drawing, then the cartoons themselves each proceeded by a page or two detailing who refused to publish it and why. After the first few I mostly skipped the explanations which are inevitably some form of “it crossed the lines of taste” or “it’s offensive to someone” and just read the actual cartoons, some of which were quite good. It was kind of sad to see that some of the best and most insightful drawings don’t make it into publication.
I have written previously about Unshelved, the daily comic strip about Dewey, the lazy librarian at the Mallville Public Library and was thrilled to find come across this collection while shelving the other day. Barnes and Ambaum do a great job of portraying life in the library in a way that is often quite funny and always very on target. Over time the strip also manages to talk about why libraries are important. In one particularly good sequence a protester is picketing the library and demanding it be closed to save tax payer money. The staff invites the protester into the library, helps him to research the relevant laws and to write his petition and in the end even promises to call him to let him know when the new edition of Tax Revolt Monthly comes in. As Dewey explains, “this is what we DO, for everybody, even for people we disagree with.”
As I typo this, I am watching the fourth season of The Flintstones on DVD. This caught my eye while I was checking stuff in so I brought it home. I have very fond memories of watching this show as a child, though watching it again now I am less impressed. While it is funny, the plots seem very weak to my adult tastes. Then too I suppose that The Simpsons have since raised the bar a great deal.
Tomorrow I have an appointment with human resources to do paperwork for insurance and benefits and it sounds like my insurance will be effective August 1st. Odd as it sounds I am Really looking forward to going to the doctor and the dentist again.
Happy Monday!
