Dumbing of Age Book Twelve

Dumbing of Age

A college webcomic by David Willis
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May 19, 2026

Chef

by David M Willis on November 4, 2024 at 12:01 am
  • 02 – The One Where Jocelyne Returns
└ Tags: danny, joe

Discussion (151) ¬

[ Comments RSS ]
  1. Ana Chronistic
    Ana Chronistic
    November 4, 2024 at 12:01 am | #

    *Joe checks out Totsuki Academy anyway*

    “JAPAN! Fuck that, I’m gonna stay here and just watch ChefPK for FREE”

    • NGPZ
      NGPZ
      November 4, 2024 at 12:37 am | #

      who says Food Wars can’t also take place at IU :p

      • Xaeon
        Xaeon
        November 4, 2024 at 7:57 am | #

        This feels like a solid opportunity that Willis missed out on

        • Lysbeth
          Lysbeth
          November 4, 2024 at 1:59 pm | #

          I like how we’ve all agreed that this is just Food Wars/SnS now

      • Morleuca
        Morleuca
        November 4, 2024 at 11:16 am | #

        dammit I need third season dubbed!

        • Ana Chronistic
          Ana Chronistic
          November 4, 2024 at 11:57 pm | #

          as long as you stop before the dumpster fire that is season 5

          • Dante
            Dante
            November 5, 2024 at 12:03 am | #

            The very last arc on the manga does NOT exist. It’s a nasty internet rumor, and whatever panels you’ve seen around, no you’re not. It was some rando doing doujinshi for the kicks

  2. TrueVCU
    TrueVCU
    November 4, 2024 at 12:01 am | #

    WOULD Joe set himself on fire before validating Danny’s sappy emotional needs?

    • Nedlum
      Nedlum
      November 4, 2024 at 10:31 am | #

      In this case, I think Danny’s sappy emotional needs have been reassured by Joe coming to Danny with this in the first place.

  3. Rabbit
    Rabbit
    November 4, 2024 at 12:02 am | #

    Their school literally has a whole culinary like, job prep thing. Danny please.

    • anon
      anon
      November 4, 2024 at 12:06 am | #

      Tbf, it’s not like we’ve been introduced to any students also aiming to be a chef/working in the food industry

      Inb4 Galasso was a graduate of this college/his daughter was a student all along and she was just never crossing paths with any one before

      • Schpoonman
        Schpoonman
        November 4, 2024 at 12:23 am | #

        Connie was 16 last semester.

        • Mano308gts
          Mano308gts
          November 4, 2024 at 5:25 am | #

          There are 16 year olds attending college all across the country; it’s not impossible for the two to be simultaneously correct.

          • Needfuldoer
            Needfuldoer
            November 4, 2024 at 6:32 am | #

            Not sure if you’re on Patreon (or which book it wound up in), but there’s a bonus strip with Connie and Galasso where she’s looking forward to enrolling at IU in the near future.

  4. NGPZ
    NGPZ
    November 4, 2024 at 12:02 am | #

    I mean IU Bloomington has a program for Food Studies Certificate, not sure how relevant it actually is for a career as a chef.

    Worst case scenario he can just teach himself, stay with Joyce and open up a food truck.

    I mean how much harder can it be than teaching yourself how to code video games? XD

    • anon
      anon
      November 4, 2024 at 12:10 am | #

      Outside of specific bakery stuff/being a patissier that needs exact measurements, i’m sure there are good home cooks that you can also get tips/tricks from. Although it would be interesting if there was one of the stay at home mom/dad charas being a better chef than any of their local restaurants

      (tho these days with shrink flation and post covid and stuff/quality going down, making things for yourself might be better)

      (tho interestingly enough i swear once i saw a website of a culinary arts school that had like a psychology class as a ‘requirement’? or so?? Like, i get maybe a ‘minor in business’ in case ppl wanted to start their own restaurant but psych is a bit odd for it but y’never know i guess it would be useful to know but idk how much you can psychoanalyze your potential customers)

      • Michael Steamweed
        Michael Steamweed
        November 4, 2024 at 8:45 am | #

        Oh, no, psychology is _much_ more than psychoanalysis. Simply understanding how and why people eat (many reasons besides mere hunger), how they remember and feel due to food stimuli, how they eat together or alone, why they overeat, how they can stick to healthy diets and why they stop them, how eating impacts (positively and negatively) exercise programs (since Joe works out, this is particularly germane to him), and more.

        Food is powerful stuff, and knowing how it controls and influences people is important background for any serious food business person.

        (hell, we just saw joyce jump joe because he cooked some simple stuff for her [per the instructions])

      • Aus
        Aus
        November 4, 2024 at 11:46 am | #

        Psychoanalysis is more or less entirely different than psychology, but I believe I know what you meant.

        Cooking is of course about making food, but *making food for someone* is very much a highly social activity. Understanding context, occasion, the mix of people you’re cooking for, the cultural signals they associate certain foods with.. all of these are social skills a chef should possess. Requiring at least some basic courses in psychology seems a perfect fit for chefs.

        • anon
          anon
          November 4, 2024 at 3:58 pm | #

          i guess it depends on how small the restaurant is but sometimes the line cook isn’t the smae as teh cashier taking the order, i’m just fine as long as there’s not like too many mistakes versus the restaurant ppl talking tom e for 5 mins versus it being some kinda ‘entertainment’ thing like how japan has host clubs/hostesses

    • Jay
      Jay
      November 4, 2024 at 12:17 am | #

      Becoming a chef is literally one of the most “no education required” jobs ever if you’re willing to work shit shifts for a couple years

      • Decidedly Orthogonal
        Decidedly Orthogonal
        November 4, 2024 at 11:49 am | #

        You’ll need to add the word “formal” to that, and you’ll still only acquire “cook” not “chef”. If you think working shit shifts for a couple of years to learn how to cook isn’t an education, then maybe it’s time to review what education and learning are.

    • Jamie
      Jamie
      November 4, 2024 at 12:26 am | #

      Yeah, the hard part about becoming a chef is mostly “be constantly making food”, preferably many different kinds of food, but specialty is fine, too.

      It really depends on what he means by “chef”. Like, running a food truck or a popup is one thing. Working the line at a Michelin starred place is another. Being the cook making bar food is also an option. Or being someone’s personal chef. There’s variety and shit.

      Right now, what Joe seems to want is seeing people smile because they ate his food. He’s not passionate about the food itself, yet, I think.

      • Cholma
        Cholma
        November 4, 2024 at 1:52 am | #

        Joe aspires to be the kind of cook that Gordon Ramsey will put 2 slices of bread on either side of his head, and have Joe declare himself an “idiot sandwich”.

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 4, 2024 at 3:07 am | #

          Gordon Ramsay’s a little punk-ass dusty weasel who couldn’t cook his way out of a takeout box. It’s all smoke and mirrors. The rat fuck has been faking it this entire time, just bullshitting all his recipes and dishes. Nobody wants to fucking admit this, but his camera crew does all the actual cooking and the dirty bastard has a team of six ghostwriters to cover any occasion. He’s been running lines for the camera since his career started.

          • Rose by Any other Name
            Rose by Any other Name
            November 4, 2024 at 7:48 am | #

            Huh.
            I have literally no idea if you’re joking or not. Mostly because, aside from general pop-culture osmosis, I have never once watched anything with Gordon Ramsay in it. Mostly because I find any sort of show where people cook elaborate dishes only to have an array of random judges take a single bite and decide if they did good or not is inherently stupid and ignores that personal taste and preferences are the heart of cooking.

            • Aus
              Aus
              November 4, 2024 at 11:51 am | #

              The impression I always get from him is that for all of his bluster, he still is at *least* a competent cook and business manager. Maybe not Truly Extraordinary at those things, but that puts him leagues above the kind of disasters he has on his shows. Like if it the world of chefs, if he’s a B, B- rank, that’d still be leagues better than the Fs on Kitchen Nightmares.

              • Ray Radlein
                Ray Radlein
                November 4, 2024 at 7:21 pm | #

                He has won several Michelin stars

              • Ray Radlein
                Ray Radlein
                November 4, 2024 at 7:28 pm | #

                He trained under Joël Robuchon and Marco Pierre White. He’s as real the real deal as there is, despite the over-the-top cartoon TV personality

                • Yumi
                  Yumi
                  November 4, 2024 at 8:56 pm | #

                  I do like him on Master Chef Jr. He’s good with the kids, and while they have some restaurant challenges when he will be yell-y with them, they’re told about it ahead of time so it’s not actually some sudden shock. (And I think it’s still much less then he’ll do with adults.)

                  And he does have some sweet moments elsewhere, but again, I don’t watch those as a whole.

            • Taffy
              Taffy
              November 4, 2024 at 1:11 pm | #

              I was mostly being rude to the big-shot millionaire celebrity, more or less unprompted.

        • Michael Steamweed
          Michael Steamweed
          November 4, 2024 at 8:48 am | #

          Ramsey is no Anthony Michael Bourdain. Not by any stretch.

          • Morleuca
            Morleuca
            November 4, 2024 at 11:25 am | #

            that travel show Ramsey attempted was terrible. Not just isn’t Bourdain, but is the antithesis of Bourdain. He doesn’t have that deep sociological understanding of cultures that Bourdain had, nor the grace when encountering subsistence foods. And he certainly doesn’t have the writing chops. He’s a prissy little spoiled douche. He reminds me of the negative caricature Bourdain would talk about when describing himself as a teenager.

    • Mark
      Mark
      November 4, 2024 at 7:30 am | #

      I’ve been having difficulty figuring out where IU is aiming w.r.t. “food studies” and the like. Subjects related to food seem to be scattered all over — IIRC Food Studies is part of Anthropology? The clearest focus seems to be on the management side of hospitality.

      When I was in school there was a Department of Restaurant, Hotel and Institutional Management, but it changes its name and mission every couple of years and I have no idea what it’s called now, or what it does.

    • cory
      cory
      November 4, 2024 at 8:49 am | #

      He could do a business studies or public relations degree, then learn culinary stuff on his own/get an apprenticeship afterward? Or if he wanted to do the molecular gastronomy side of things, he could focus on the science now and the food later.

      Back when I was at university a friend did a Phd about the make-up of the perfect sausage. She was actually hired by a big food company out of the gate, although it was more automation than food prep they wanted her for.

  5. IntangibleMatter
    IntangibleMatter
    November 4, 2024 at 12:04 am | #

    Ten points to whoever pointed this out yesterday

  6. CitrineMonster
    CitrineMonster
    November 4, 2024 at 12:04 am | #

    WILLIS PLS NO DONT TAKE JOE AWAY FROM JOYCE 😭😭😭😭

    • anon
      anon
      November 4, 2024 at 12:10 am | #

      Imagine if this is why they break up like “Joe moved/transfer to become a chef, but Dorothy GAVE UP going on Yale FOR ME” or so XP

      • Rose by Any other Name
        Rose by Any other Name
        November 4, 2024 at 8:01 am | #

        Imagine if that was end-game.

        Joe and Joyce have a satisfying and fulfilling sexual relationship, but in the end, he leaves her to pursue his culinary dreams. Joyce is left behind with her friends and Dorothy, who as you said anon, gave up her dreams to remain with Joyce. Thus, Joyce finally embraces her bisexuality and dates Dorothy.

        Then the comic jumps forward say 6 years or so to Joyce and Dorothy’s wedding day. Joe is there, both as a guest and the caterer (establishing his successful entry into the food industry). Other characters show up, some in couples we knew, others not (either alone or with new partners).

        Joyce and Dorothy say their vows. There is a montage of bird seed throwing, photos, and the start of the reception.

        And then a portal opens and Soggies appear. Because this is still a David Willis comic.

    • DashWallkick
      DashWallkick
      November 4, 2024 at 3:05 am | #

      Dumbing of Age has had runaway gay teenagers and aspiring superpoliticians circle around to staying at IU. I’m certain this is just Willis messing with us.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 4, 2024 at 6:28 am | #

        Joyce really is the nexus point of the Dumbiverse.

        (She’s the main character, after all.)

    • Michael Steamweed
      Michael Steamweed
      November 4, 2024 at 8:49 am | #

      Not going to happen. Joyce needs to keep her new Sub.
      😀

  7. Ray Radlein
    Ray Radlein
    November 4, 2024 at 12:04 am | #

    It’s a good fountain

    • True Survivor
      True Survivor
      November 4, 2024 at 12:14 am | #

      I agree it is a very nice fountain. However, looking at images online, the central figure’s face and hair seem strangely angular compared to the rest of the work. I wonder why that is.

      • Taffy
        Taffy
        November 4, 2024 at 12:43 am | #

        She ran out of polygons, don’t be insensitive.

      • Needfuldoer
        Needfuldoer
        November 4, 2024 at 6:27 am | #

        Large outdoor sculptures sometimes need to have weird proportions in order to look “right” from the ground.

  8. anon
    anon
    November 4, 2024 at 12:05 am | #

    I mean, i’m sure a certification would be good (at the very least you need to go do a food handler’s test to get a license to sell food), but you could still just be a good ‘self-taught’ chef if not watching vids. Although depending, it would be useful, greed/money aside if some culinary arts/retired chef could come in on places like these on the weekends to have some group cooking class and such so the broke college students aren’t having ramen each saturday lol

  9. Yumi
    Yumi
    November 4, 2024 at 12:06 am | #

    Don’t worry, Joe, we’ve been workshoping career pathways that involve you staying at IU.

    • NGPZ
      NGPZ
      November 4, 2024 at 12:10 am | #

      For reals i would fuckin LOOOVE if he opened up a food truck with Joyce!!! ^^

      but what should they name it? and what would they serve?

      • True Survivor
        True Survivor
        November 4, 2024 at 12:21 am | #

        Rose n’ Thaws and it serves like icecreams and other frozen treats during the summer and spring. Then during the cold seasons they could be Rose n’ Falls and do coffee with seasonal pastries and fresh muffins – that sort of thing.

        Maybe they could do catering and floral arrangements for events.

        • Yumi
          Yumi
          November 4, 2024 at 12:31 am | #

          Rose n’ Gnaws, where they serve food that… you eat.

        • Jamie
          Jamie
          November 4, 2024 at 12:53 am | #

          Edible flowers is a whole thing. Like, both literal edible flowers, and also shaping food into looking like flowers.

      • anon
        anon
        November 4, 2024 at 2:00 am | #

        @NPGZ I mean for easy serving/portion size they could do some “bite” sized food like meatballs and dango — i actually saw a bakery once which was called ‘amazeballs’ tho unfortunately it shut down

        (Or some vamp chef au with like a name like “love at first bite” 8D.)

      • Shadowsnail
        Shadowsnail
        November 4, 2024 at 2:06 am | #

        FoodtrUCK
        (because Joyce is a fan of that word)

      • Disastroid
        Disastroid
        November 4, 2024 at 6:00 am | #

        Jo-Jo’s Cuisine Adventure

    • Vulcanodon
      Vulcanodon
      November 4, 2024 at 10:55 pm | #

      I love the fact that he’s just sort of a dumb kid trying to find his way. Trying to become a better person but he doesn’t have a clear career path.

      The motivation was different, but I didn’t put much more thought than this before devoting years studying for the ministry. And that went exactly nowhere.

  10. Angel
    Angel
    November 4, 2024 at 12:12 am | #

    No one leaves Blowjob Cat.

    • True Survivor
      True Survivor
      November 4, 2024 at 12:24 am | #

      When you try to get out, it just sucks you back in.

    • Michael Steamweed
      Michael Steamweed
      November 4, 2024 at 8:53 am | #

      And everyone knows it! If you don’t know at first, you will soon enough.

      Better fel-late than fel-never!

  11. Prince Mech
    Prince Mech
    November 4, 2024 at 12:15 am | #

    Seeing the bleed through of Joe being happy with Joyce into his other personal relationships is genuinely really heartwarming. At the beginning of the comic he basically treated Danny like a vague nuisance, implicitly because he was, as Joe might have said at the time “babe repellant”. Now he’s actually opening up to him again and talking to him about what he wants in life.

  12. Endplanets
    Endplanets
    November 4, 2024 at 12:17 am | #

    The opposite of Joe Prime who ditched everyone to learn ngineerin

  13. Francoinblanco
    Francoinblanco
    November 4, 2024 at 12:18 am | #

    You dont love me, but there you are telling me about your dreams. You have strange idea about small talk

    • Nymph
      Nymph
      November 4, 2024 at 10:20 am | #

      Not everyone likes or engages in small talk. It’s super boring.

      • Jeremiah
        Jeremiah
        November 4, 2024 at 12:43 pm | #

        Especially if you are forced to do it with someone you barely know for no other reason that you will be “rude” if you don’t.

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 4, 2024 at 1:12 pm | #

          Normalize not forcing a conversation neither party wants or needs.

  14. Dave Van Domelen
    Dave Van Domelen
    November 4, 2024 at 12:19 am | #

    Get a degree in small business management. If you’re a competent self-taught chef and good at keeping the books, you’re going to have a much better shot at making it work than if you’re a professional chef and self-taught at keeping the books.

    • Bogeywoman
      Bogeywoman
      November 4, 2024 at 12:37 am | #

      I was thinking this, too. It’d also be a good background for other opportunities if it turns out he doesn’t love the chef life (most chefs I know actually hate their job).

      I kinda want to see him have a little bakery and wear a cute little apron Joyce made for him, because she Definitely learned that kind of home-ec for her prior trad-wife goals. Or slowly evolve into Bob Belcher but with macaroni instead of burgers

  15. Reltzik
    Reltzik
    November 4, 2024 at 12:20 am | #

    Besides, Joe, if you learned to cook fancy foods with lots of weird ingredients, Joyce would dump you.

    • anon
      anon
      November 4, 2024 at 2:08 am | #

      i’m sure he’d have a customized menu for joyce as opposed to her feeling ‘obligated’ to be more adventurous

      (imagine if they finally hook up and she just ends up being able to have more dishes)

  16. Darkseide
    Darkseide
    November 4, 2024 at 12:24 am | #

    Blowjob Cat will miss you Joe

  17. ESM
    ESM
    November 4, 2024 at 12:25 am | #

    Man, if I had a nickle for every one of Joyce’s friends who gave up on their dreams because they’d have to change colleges and thus leave Joyce, I’d have two nickles. Which isn’t a lot but it’s weird it happened twice.

    • Jeremiah
      Jeremiah
      November 4, 2024 at 12:27 am | #

      Dorothy case is quite a lot more complicated than that.

    • Bruno
      Bruno
      November 4, 2024 at 12:31 am | #

      And this isn’t a “dream” so much as something Joe just thought of and thought might be cool.

    • Jamie
      Jamie
      November 4, 2024 at 12:58 am | #

      I appreciated your joke. It’s weird that I need to say that, but here we are.

    • PedanticJerkass
      PedanticJerkass
      November 4, 2024 at 2:54 am | #

      This meme needs to die.

      • Taffy
        Taffy
        November 4, 2024 at 3:00 am | #

        Not to agree with you, but yeah it’s kinda played out at this point.

        • Mturtle7
          Mturtle7
          November 4, 2024 at 1:38 pm | #

          If I had a nickle for everyone in this thread up to 10:40am, 10/4/2024 who commented about this meme needing to die, I’d have two nickles. Which isn’t much, but it – *gunshot*

          *coughing up blood* …So…worth it…

    • Segnosaur
      Segnosaur
      November 4, 2024 at 2:56 am | #

      And you can take those 2 nickles and have sex with someone’s mom twice. Or have sex with 2 different moms. Depending on how the math works out.

      • Taffy
        Taffy
        November 4, 2024 at 3:01 am | #

        You’d have to do two separate moms. The transaction works on Devil May Cry rules, so it costs an extra nickel each consecutive time. By the fifth time, you’re already up to a quarter in price.

        • Bruno
          Bruno
          November 4, 2024 at 4:21 am | #

          Sure, but your mom’s worth it.

          • clif
            clif
            November 4, 2024 at 11:38 pm | #

            Mmmm.

      • Michael Steamweed
        Michael Steamweed
        November 4, 2024 at 8:55 am | #

        Mike approves of this message.

  18. Jeremiah
    Jeremiah
    November 4, 2024 at 12:26 am | #

    Hugs for Joe.

  19. Slartibeast Button, BIA
    Slartibeast Button, BIA
    November 4, 2024 at 12:27 am | #

    He could never survive without Galasso’s Pizza (and Subs)!

  20. Slartibeast Button, BIA
    Slartibeast Button, BIA
    November 4, 2024 at 12:30 am | #

    I recall that episode of Lucifer where the promising high school football player really wants to be in the CIA.

    (Culinary Institute of America)

  21. Vanessa
    Vanessa
    November 4, 2024 at 12:37 am | #

    In case anyone else is wondering what this fountain looks like, or like me found some photos but couldn’t make head or tail of it, here is a 3-D model that was made from an iPhone scan. It’s so bizarre, those contorted “dolphins” are just the weirdest looking things, and the lady’s pose and anatomy are rather improbable. Very Gothic. Thanks for drawing our attention to it, so interesting!

    https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/iu-showalter-fountain-3d-print-for-bicentennial-473c6587831c4adc860dd78fd55c6f21

    • Vanessa
      Vanessa
      November 4, 2024 at 12:41 am | #

      She’s holding a fish between her legs??!

      • Amelie Wikström
        Amelie Wikström
        November 4, 2024 at 2:42 am | #

        Can’t a girl wrestle a fish these days

      • Segnosaur
        Segnosaur
        November 4, 2024 at 10:01 pm | #

        Must… resist… temptation… to make bad joke about women’s privates smelling like ‘fish’.

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 4, 2024 at 1:19 am | #

      It’s actually the third in a series of five statues by the same sculptor, each placed in a thematically appropriate context. They tell the story of a young woman named Eamo and her sister Turel, who live in the forest after their drunkard father dies and leaves them penniless (hence her nudity). In this third statue, Eamo is fishing in the river to feed herself and Turel, who’s too overcome with grief to take care of her own needs. By the end of the series, the two women are in fancy dresses and accompanied by a wealthy Baron named Hvitt, who found Eamo fishing and was so impressed that he asked her to marry him right then and there. There’s a fascinating interview with the sculptor if you want to read the entire story.

  22. Dday
    Dday
    November 4, 2024 at 12:40 am | #

    Joe’s pullin a Dorothy… Joyce’s inescapable gravitational pull.

    • Freezer
      Freezer
      November 4, 2024 at 2:09 am | #

      Not quite. Dotty decided her life’s dream ain’t… Dreaming? Lifing? Joe just had an inspiration but isn’t willing to leave the source of same to persue it (if he even has to).

    • Michael Steamweed
      Michael Steamweed
      November 4, 2024 at 8:59 am | #

      Dotty had a dream, realized it meant much less to her than it used to, and let it go.

      Joe didn’t have a dream at all. But through The Power of Sex, er, I mean, Love ™, he’s developing one, for the first time.

      • Segnosaur
        Segnosaur
        November 4, 2024 at 10:02 pm | #

        Power of handys?

  23. ZerglingOne
    ZerglingOne
    November 4, 2024 at 12:43 am | #

    A chemistry degree is really good for people wanting a science degree but want to do cooking. Molecular gastronomy is pretty cool!

    • Opus the Poet
      Opus the Poet
      November 4, 2024 at 4:19 pm | #

      So is having an oven/steamer that has fine enough thermostatic control to actually do Molecular Gastronomy. I saw a video on eggs cooked 1°C apart and the differences were nothing short of flabbergasting. The proteins in the yolk cooked at differrent temperatures and the eggs came out creamy, or custardy, or lumpy, with less than 5° changes between them.

  24. BBCC
    BBCC
    November 4, 2024 at 12:51 am | #

    It does have a hospitality degree! Joe could do that and learn to cook elsewhere.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      November 4, 2024 at 6:20 am | #

      He can run a chain of hotels known for going the extra mile with their continental breakfast. There will be no cold bagels and air pot coffee at Rosenthal Suites.

      • Michael Steamweed
        Michael Steamweed
        November 4, 2024 at 9:00 am | #

        I’ve long wanted to see _someone_ open a breakfast restaurant with some name like “Pangaea Breakfast” or “Plate Techtonics Continental Breakfast”.

        • clif
          clif
          November 4, 2024 at 11:42 pm | #

          Where breakfast is someone else’s fault.

  25. Bogeywoman
    Bogeywoman
    November 4, 2024 at 12:55 am | #

    Dream jobs for the cast, tell me what you think.
    Joe: Opens a little bakery or take-away joint. Later runs cooking classes for autistic and other disabled people to help find healthy, sensory-safe and spoon-saving meals
    Joyce: Education with a side small-business for her art
    Dorothy: Social work. Professional people-helper.
    Walky: Tries like fifty different careers, but accidentally ends up making films and ends up writing for cartoons
    Sarah: Starts out as a lawyer, ends up a judge.
    Amber: computers, ofc. Probably designs an app for multiples to co-ordinate and communicate
    Jennifer: Author with a best-selling semi-autobiographical account of her life
    Becky: Counsellor working with young queer kids
    Sal: Has one really successful country album, cashes out and disappears. Becomes a cultural cryptid.
    Ruth: highschool English teacher who also teaches self-defence

    • Foolissa
      Foolissa
      November 4, 2024 at 1:20 am | #

      These are perfect.

    • Bruno
      Bruno
      November 4, 2024 at 1:44 am | #

      And the sliding timescale guarantees that they’ll be in college for till communism, so these are actually pretty viable.

      • Taffy
        Taffy
        November 4, 2024 at 2:48 am | #

        For til communism???

        • Strain of Thought
          Strain of Thought
          November 4, 2024 at 3:02 am | #

          By the 23rd century and the Enterprise’s mission to boldly go, probably about ten years will have passed in comic, barring repeated massive time skips. And the Federation had been around awhile at that point, and if some of the cast go for terminal level graduate degrees… yeah, they could easily be in college that long.

        • NGPZ
          NGPZ
          November 4, 2024 at 6:23 pm | #

          Yes, us icky sticky communists gonna RULE THE WORLD like we supervillians hahahahahahahaha >:D

    • Bash
      Bash
      November 4, 2024 at 2:00 am | #

      Reading this gave me the warm fuzzies.

    • Dave
      Dave
      November 4, 2024 at 4:12 am | #

      If Joyce being autobiographical continues, her art will presumably end up her primary career. Webtoons is close enough to Keenspot, and after finishing her sci-fi webcomic she can use her inside view of her husband’s culinary work to write and draw McAwesome’s, and one year when the anniversary of Roommates!!! rolls around she can launch a new AU comic about what if her superpowered alien-fighting characters were regular humans who met in college…

    • Mark
      Mark
      November 4, 2024 at 7:42 am | #

      Mostly on target, but I think Dorothy would feel that she’d thrown away her potential. Probably while surrounded by awards for the amazing work she’s been doing.

    • Michael Steamweed
      Michael Steamweed
      November 4, 2024 at 9:11 am | #

      Sal’s career is similar to Johnny Cash’s. Free concerts for kids in juvenile.

    • Morleuca
      Morleuca
      November 4, 2024 at 1:22 pm | #

      I can see Amber working with Carla

    • Mturtle7
      Mturtle7
      November 4, 2024 at 1:42 pm | #

      Has everyone really forgotten so quickly that Becky specifically wants to be a research scientist?! There was, like, a whole dramatic arc about it…

  26. nothri
    nothri
    November 4, 2024 at 12:58 am | #

    You should build self driving automobiles instead.

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 4, 2024 at 1:19 am | #

      Nobody wants those.

      • NGPZ
        NGPZ
        November 4, 2024 at 1:40 am | #

        yeah I’d give up the self-driving car shit forever if we just had more fucking walkable cities in the USA :/

        • Taffy
          Taffy
          November 4, 2024 at 2:57 am | #

          Living in a small farming town has probably skewed my concept of “walkable”. Is 5-10 minutes between your home and the nearest gas station or convenience store considered walkable? We used to have like 5 grocery stores within a 5-15 minute drive too, but now there’s like one left (plus Walmart), basically at the edge of town.

          • Taffy
            Taffy
            November 4, 2024 at 2:58 am | #

            Fuck. I immediately remembered we also have an Aldi. Two grocery stores. It’s on the same end though, so the distance issue remains.

          • Daibhid C
            Daibhid C
            November 4, 2024 at 4:11 am | #

            I grew up in a “suburb” that was three miles outside town, which I didn’t consider walkable unless I absolutely had to. There was much excitement when the out-of-town shopping centre was built half way between us and town, which I consider almost walkable, but I’d rather take a bus if they’ve decided to exist that day.

          • AK
            AK
            November 4, 2024 at 4:53 am | #

            15 minutes is a reasonable walkability situation, five is better. I feel like 20 is where it starts getting questionable depending on who you are. I used to consider 30 minutes walkable but I think I’m an outlier on that one.

          • Jeremiah
            Jeremiah
            November 4, 2024 at 12:41 pm | #

            I think by walkable they mean actually being able to walk anywhere, because a lot of places barely have any sidewalk, everything is build around cars.

          • Opus the Poet
            Opus the Poet
            November 4, 2024 at 4:32 pm | #

            As others have pointed out, 15 minutes walk/bike ride is the outer limit of “walkable”. I’m including bike ride because you can carry much more with a bike and some kind of cargo capacity like a basket or panniers. My bike has a 500 pound capacity including the rider, so +/- 300 pounds payload. And I have ridden with a full payload without any problem other than going up an incline.

          • Regret
            Regret
            November 4, 2024 at 4:40 pm | #

            I consider 10 minutes one way to be the limit for walkability, but on a bike I gladly do 40 minutes. No real reason, just what I’m used to I guess.

    • staszu13
      staszu13
      November 4, 2024 at 8:13 am | #

      But he would need to get together with Rachel for that. The Dumbiverse Rachel isn’t giving him the time of day. And I do believe the Ruttens take the Rosenthal Industry’s place here as well

  27. Joyfulldreams
    Joyfulldreams
    November 4, 2024 at 1:39 am | #

    Wow okay just hit me in the face. This is going in the folder of Highlight JoJo strips thank you very much.

    • Joyfulldreams
      Joyfulldreams
      November 4, 2024 at 1:40 am | #

      Also maybe the feeling Joe is really having here is that his true desire in life is to be Joyce’s househusband.

  28. Freezer
    Freezer
    November 4, 2024 at 2:07 am | #

    If my Google Fu is up to par, IU Bloomington doesn’t offer a specific Culinary Arts degree, but they do have a certificate in “Food Studies” under the Arts & Sciences umbrella.

    https://bulletin.college.indiana.edu/programs/4215/FOODSTACRT/

  29. Holly
    Holly
    November 4, 2024 at 2:54 am | #

    Eh, don’t worry Joe, you can learn to be a chef after your degree.

  30. Farmer_10
    Farmer_10
    November 4, 2024 at 3:27 am | #

    Sometimes, I forget these are very young and dumb kids. Joe, you cooked blue box Mac and cheese, one time. Don’t decide your entire future on that.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      November 4, 2024 at 6:13 am | #

      But it was such a rewarding experience!

    • Michael Steamweed
      Michael Steamweed
      November 4, 2024 at 9:12 am | #

      I think Joe has a good insight. Ya gotta hand it to him.

    • Segnosaur
      Segnosaur
      November 4, 2024 at 10:03 pm | #

      But he learned he likes to put things on women’s mouths to make them feel happy!

  31. Daibhid C
    Daibhid C
    November 4, 2024 at 4:12 am | #

    Part of me is honestly waiting for the comments about how incredibly self-centred Danny is for automatically assuming that Joe’s talking about him, because nobody in this strip is ever allowed to be kidding.

    • Needfuldoer
      Needfuldoer
      November 4, 2024 at 6:13 am | #

      He didn’t say “slash-S”, so how do we know he’s kidding?

      /s

    • anon
      anon
      November 4, 2024 at 4:00 pm | #

      LOL it would’ve been a nice detail if it’s like “oh i remember you being a better cook when we attempted to make things” as kids or so if not “right you helped your mom everytime i was over for dinner” or so. If not “Ah, well, i kinda learned some basics/quick things to make an after hookup breakfaskt or so” for his flings lol, since i guess a guy that can cook does impress girls but i guess back then all heh ad to do was flirt and look ‘attractive’ as opposed to other forms of ‘wooing’

  32. Bittersweet
    Bittersweet
    November 4, 2024 at 5:04 am | #

    Joe, bb, as a person who went to culinary school married to another person who went to culinary school, most places treat having a culinary degree (especially from a nice program and not a CC) as a massive red flag. If I had a dollar for every time a hiring manager voiced having a culinary degree as a reason to not hire us because we’d “be bored and try to change the menu” then we’d have almost $50. Le Cordon Bleu gave all of us bad names.

    The real way up in the culinary career is to start as a dishwasher. You can’t cheat it easily. My husband had to give up on being a chef and went into management (where he really needs a hospitality bachelors but some jobs seem pleased with 5+ years of management experience). You have to work and put the experience in and climb tooth and nail that way. You can also join the military or go to prison for some extra boost, and you will likely end up on drugs or alcohol if you stick with it long enough. Being a chef is a grueling career.

    Also, all you really need schooling wise are your food handlers and ServSafe. You can also work on building other certificates if you do baking, I do not remember if there are more for general cooking (which are treated as their own career paths in schools).

    • Dante
      Dante
      November 4, 2024 at 11:58 pm | #

      So the thing with culinary school, I’m not sure it’s how it goes here (hotel kitchen jobs practically require it, for example, and neither military nor prison experience are well regarded) but…

      Starting as a dishie and climbing his way up, though? Yeah, this one rings true for me. It’s one of the last careers where you can do the apprentice – official – master thing, truly medieval in that way. Which is nice. I eventually went to cooking school but this was a result of my experience rather than a starting point.

      (I also need to point out that Not All Chefs are addicts sldkjgs.)

      IDK. Grueling it may be but seriously… If one loves it, one loves it. And one might fall out of love – it’s totally fair! But it’s been really sad to see all the people coming through to say how a terrible decision this would be.

  33. Amós Batista
    Amós Batista
    November 4, 2024 at 7:23 am | #

    Pls Joe, hug Danny

  34. staszu13
    staszu13
    November 4, 2024 at 8:07 am | #

    Wow it’s deja vu all over again (Joe deciding on an engineering major in the Walkyverse)

    • clif
      clif
      November 4, 2024 at 11:50 pm | #

      Gustatory Engineering is the best.

  35. thumb
    thumb
    November 4, 2024 at 10:11 am | #

    Should probably hold out to see if the positive connotations with kitchens persist.
    This is just such an impulsive young man decision to make. (I said, ignoring my recent mid-life out-of-the-blue decision to change career to something completely unrelated).

  36. Pat
    Pat
    November 4, 2024 at 10:25 am | #

    JoeXDanny OTP

  37. Aus
    Aus
    November 4, 2024 at 11:36 am | #

    Maybe I’m ignorant and culinary programs are different, but tbh most careers it doesn’t matter much at all what your major is on your bachelor’s degree. Joe could major in business or something since that’s important for managing employees as a chef and pursue it through other means, perhaps as a Master’s.

  38. Banana Slamma
    Banana Slamma
    November 4, 2024 at 12:32 pm | #

    Don’t let Danny be your academic advisor. IU has a literal Food Institute in the Department of Anthropology. Like, I know we crave drama, but this could also just be a fun arc for Joe.

    • Yeet
      Yeet
      November 4, 2024 at 1:02 pm | #

      I’m not sure if danny knows anything about the college, he already knew he wanted to do computer shit and just followed dorothy there like an idiot

      • Banana Slamma
        Banana Slamma
        November 4, 2024 at 2:35 pm | #

        Every once in a while, I have to remind myself it’s called ‘Dumbing of Age.’ But I’m rooting for ya, Joe!

    • Yumi
      Yumi
      November 4, 2024 at 8:51 pm | #

      Only it looks like the Food Institute program closed last year. Other food-related programs at IU that I’m seeing are less connected to cooking and more about sustainability and food justice. Some classes in this could be good for Joe, but the overall program doesn’t seem as aligned with his interests.

      That said, there are a lot of approaches Joe could take toward this that involve staying at IU.

      • Handley Ramirez
        Handley Ramirez
        November 6, 2024 at 9:48 am | #

        Hold your horses. Joe’s level of interest right now is boxed mac-and-cheese by the directions and handjobs. It’s pretty hard to say the remaining program is beneath him.

  39. Azu
    Azu
    November 4, 2024 at 2:47 pm | #

    looking back at the last couple, I’m beginning to wonder if one of the few singular unmixed flavors joyce enjoys is “semen”

    consider:

    · joe got pleasure from cooking for someone — classically a component of this concept is the other person enjoying the food

    · joyce had almost no concept of needing to go wash her hand off

    IF it’s less literal than that, then this would require our known promiscuous horndog to have somehow never have experienced someone enjoying being with him, right? Like if his “cooking” is:

    providing an experience to the other person that is largely composed of ‘them getting to see him experiencing pleasure‘”

    then it seems remarkably unbelievable for that NOT to have happened already.

    …unless this is then somewhat a comment on Joyce’s extreme ability to show appreciation? Has all of Joe’s experience been meeting average levels of expressed appreciation and she’s enabled him to realize he has a dragon he can chase outside of the bedroom?

    • Azu
      Azu
      November 4, 2024 at 2:49 pm | #

      forgot the / in my closing blockquote 😭

    • Taffy
      Taffy
      November 4, 2024 at 3:34 pm | #

      The hell are you on about, she just got overexcited about the handjob and forgot to wipe up, and he enjoyed the experience so much he started getting ideas.

    • Jeremiah
      Jeremiah
      November 4, 2024 at 3:38 pm | #

      These are very weird assumptions to make.

  40. Marvelman
    Marvelman
    November 5, 2024 at 12:06 am | #

    Y’know, Joe, you should probably work in an actual kitchen before making such a large investment. The kitchen is a very stressful place.

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