Something to Sing

This is the regular dispatch from Bizarro Studios North, where I have been writing and drawing the Monday through Saturday Bizarro comics since 2018. My partner and friend, Dan Piraro, who created Bizarro in the late twentieth century, continues to do the Sunday comic from Rancho Bizarro in Mexico.

Wayno

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I can only hope that during this journey, I have somehow contributed to the happiness in the lives of a few other fellow humans.
Daevid Allen

Today's post will be (relatively) brief. The past month was extra busy, as my spouse and I have been helping friends plan a memorial celebration of a life well-lived. I'm writing this early in the week, and on Friday and Saturday, we'll honor our friend by getting together, enjoying food and music she loved, and sharing our memories.

The words at the top of this entry are from musician Daevid Allen (1938 - 2015). Our late friend certainly embodied that worthy sentiment, and contributed to the happiness of a great many fellow humans.

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A Saturday post wouldn't be complete without a pipe pic. This one is a piece of mid-century clip art, skillfully rendered by an anonymous graphics worker.

The closer one looks, the more impressive this ephemeral item becomes. The illustrator used the two ink colors and the white page itself as elements in their design. I salute whoever created this image.

Now, let's review the week's cartoon panels.

Monday's gag imagines agricultural selective breeding in the age of social media. Surprisingly, I've not seen a single "OK, boomer" comment on Instagram (yet).

 

Cartoonists can relate to Sisyphus. Pushing a rock up a mountain, only to find it back at the bottom the next day, every day, is an apt metaphor for our never-ending deadlines.

 

A search on Cartoonstock turns up almost 200 Sisyphus gags, and I've done a few myself.

Sisyphus Gag 3/28/18

 

Sisyphus Gag 1/12/19 

 

Sisyphus Gag 1/8/20

 

Speaking of Cartoonstock, they now feature many Bizarro comics, which are available as downloads for personal, educational, or commercial use, as well as fine art prints, t-shirts, coffee mugs, and even pillows. 

 

Eternal damnation can sometimes be poetic.

 

It seems I was in a Biblical/mythological frame of mind when I wrote this batch of cartoons. At least Eve responded to being cast out with a positive attitude.

 

One should never pass up the chance to use an umlaut, or to end a line of dialogue with two funny-sounding words.

 

While writing the blog, I decided to look up a few song titles as possible headlines, and noticed that the band name is actually spelled with umlauts on both the O and the U, so I missed one there. 

 

Mëä cülpä.

It's possible to go too far when clearing one's mind, but I think the drawing is remarkably uncluttered despite containing ten Secret Symbols.

 

That's the roundup from my Little Shop of Humor. I recommend visiting these affiliated sites for more words of amusement and enlightenment.

Dan Piraro's Bizarro Blog

Wayno's Bizarro Newsletter

Diego Piraro's Peyote Cowboy Graphic Novel

Thank you for stopping by and for your support of Bizarro specifically, and the comic arts in general. 

See you next week.

Bonus Track

The Town Pants "Monkey Run"
From the 2018 album Something to Say

The Town Pants, a Celtic band from Vancouver, have been regular visitors to Pittsburgh thanks to our late friend and her husband, who booked them for many enjoyable, rowdy gigs.

Our memorial celebration will include a performance by TTP as they pass through on their 25th anniversary/farewell tour.

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