Discussion (142) ¬
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Robert Downen @robertdownen.bsky.social ⋅ 4h
Matt G / AwesomeToyBlog @mattguzy.bsky.social ⋅ 3h
Scott Rivers @alasbabylon.bsky.social ⋅ 10h
Assigned Media @assignedmedia.org ⋅ 1d
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Phil Lewis @phillewis.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
preternia @preternia.com ⋅ 1d
preternia @preternia.com ⋅ 1d
David M Willis! @damnyouwillis.bsky.social ⋅ 1d
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hey, don’t knock anal-retentiveness getting the job of passion done
Particularly if it’s a passion for organization.
It’s impossible for everyone to have the job they want, but intense organization works on all of them.
Indeed. Honestly, I actually lack in passion. I find Becky’s assertion that Dotty doesn’t have it, to be the most insulting thing Becky has said.
Who needs a personality when you have ORGANIZATION
Congratulations. You are now the chair of the personality committee.
Just remember that it’s masks all the way down and you’ll be fine.
Did you forget the four elephants?
Elephant.
Elephant.
Elephant.
What are YOU doing here?
“This one’s marked ‘Food’ – cinnamon rolls and Mac’n’Cheese, mostly.
‘Dexter And Monkey Master’ – obvs.
‘PSL-1’? ‘PSL-2’. ‘PSL-3’…
Aww! ‘David’!
…Wait. ‘Yale’??”
Dotty looks so cute here
If Mitt Romney can have binders full of women, Dorothy can have binders full of anything she wants
Whoa. Mitt has binders full of women? What the heck?
Is it possible that this particular reference to the 2012 Presidential election has become dated? Romney said that when he was governor all the candidates for his cabinet seemed to be men, so he got his staff to bring him “binders full of women [to interview]”. It was a simpler time with a Republican candidate who could use full sentences so this particular choice of words was the biggest gaffe of the debates.
Becky has found ways to get Dorothy to be irritated.
The road to nemeses starts here!
Dorothy’s ready for the syllabus quiz, then. (Yes, this is something a lot of professors do.)
OF COURSE I HAVE! HAVE YOU EVER TRIED CATALOGUING YOUR DESIRES IN A 2-RING BINDER!? IT’S NOT THE SAME!!!
4 rings or bust!
3 rings seems really unbalanced somehow.
6 rings, you know Dorothy has a filofax / Day Runner around somewhere.
I feel like Walky is in that binder
Well somebody better get him out. He’ll get the pages all sticky.
All I can think of now is that Foxtrot strip where Paige doesn’t want Peter’s old textbook.
Thank you, that’s a great one!
I think there is a distinct possibility Becky irritates Dorothy out of Indiana and into Yale (or causes her to stay out of spite???)
So far we’ve seen no sign that Dorothy has a large capacity for spite.
Certainly not “wreck my own future plans to better annoy you” levels of spite.
I don’t know what to make of it yet. Willis dropped hints left and right, but also has an aptitude for delightful subversion of expectation.
Oh this is actually really cute. Maybe Becky will stop being a rude butthead!
I like Becky! But she’s been annoying me.
Shs’s still being rude though? She just told Dorothy she doesnt have any passion.
Oh my. I think this may be a first. They’re actually having a conversation that doesn’t boil down to “You stealin’ my BFF, so get lost, haha j/k OR AM I?” –“Heh, sure, whatever.”
This is promising.
I dunno, Becky’s still subtly pointing out that she’s done more real political stuff than Dorothy ever has, without even trying, and then insulting her. I suppose it’s promising that she’s not trying to pretend it’s a joke, but it’s still “I’m better than you, haha.”
And Dorothy is reinforcing the fact that Becky is stuck doing a course she doesn’t want to or have passion for, rather than the one she actually did want.
To me it read far more like Dotty trying to encourage Becky to be enthusiastic. Becky is the one who described her situation as having to take the course because she fell into it via requirements of coincidence.
If not that, then at *the most* Dot is just mirroring Beckster’s dialogue to carry on the conversation.
And they aren’t even RED binders. Come on!
…I wouldn’t mind taking a peak in that binder.
Shhhhhh, be careful or you’ll summon Stealth Mountain!
Dorothy’s sounding increasingly off baseline rn
She the mythical ‘Binders full of men”.
Dorothy sublimated the shit out of Walky.
I know we have seen him fart, but it strikes me that it would produce *significantly* more gas and be far more silly if your assertion were true. Then again, perhaps this will give Night Guy the power of flight.
I think I’d rather Billie and Ruth get back together than this passive aggressive tango.
Surprise: Becky has a crush on *Dorothy*
Someday those binders will hold a place of honor in the Dorothy A. Keener Presidential Library.
I think her middle name is Margot?
Unless someone can show me a strip with her middle name or initial in it, or a “Word of God” declaration, I’m sticking with ‘A’.
For Alexandra.
“Dorothy Margot Keener!”
https://www.dumbingofage.com/2018/comic/book-8/04-of-mike-and-men/uglycrying/
I forgot about the freckles on her legs. Innapropriate crush re-intensifies. Also feel dirty/akward about having seen her indelicately.
Thank you for that, King Daniel. I stand corrected.
Since it wasn’t there before, I have also updated the Walkypedia entry for Dorothy with this information.
Her middle name is B for Beatrice except she doesn’t like Beatrice so B. She just likes B.
The novelization of Dotty’s Documentation of Discarded Desires and Dreams, Docketed and Cross-indexed by Date (future-dated where applicable), Duration, Daring, Desiccation, and Dewey Decimal, now available on Audiobook, in over 40 languages.
I hope Becky still gets to take at least some of the science classes she actually wanted to take.
My experience with my sisters scholarship is that she was required to…
1: Take at least classes A, B, and C.
2: Maintain a minimum GPA.
So my assumption is so long as Becky takes the minimum classes required, she can pick and choose the rest.
She should still be able to double major so hopefully she will.
Yeah, but she’d better be careful to finish the requirements for her “other” major before the scholarship major, or they’ll kick her out with one semester left.
Becky and Dorothy having an ACTUAL social interaction? What sorcery is this?!
You can be both passionate AND anal-retentive Becky.
is everybody the new mike now?
Without Mike to focus and control the Asshole Side of the Force, it will grow without limit and spread everywhere.
Hundred bucks says their teacher is Robin.
BTW, Dorothy is very cute in that … hat? Is that what those are called? Ugh I feel like I’ve aged 50 years and lost all my vocabulary.
It’s a beanie on a beanie
And whatever Becky says, she’s full of beans. Beans for organisation.
In Canada we call them ‘toques’ (can rhyme with either ‘look(s)’ or ‘Luke(‘s)’) but in America I see ‘beanies’ the most, but also some other kinda weird words now and then that I can’t recall rn.
“Watch cap” is an older term for them. I mostly hear “beanie” now (or “toque” from Canadians.)
When Mike Nesmith wore one continuously on “The Monkees”, they called it and him “Wool Hat”, but I will agree that my Kentucky Mom called it a toboggan.
Southerners call them toboggans. Apparently they associate them with sledding somehow and only know the one word for sled or something. And they all get confused when you tell them a toboggan is a particular TYPE of sled. I had to look up the whole etymology one time to prove to my souther husband that he and all his people are nuts and that when it comes to things you wear in the cold they really shouldn’t try to argue with us northerners.
In Wisconsin, where we have reason to wear them four months out of the year, they are generally called “knit caps” or “stocking caps”. They come in varying lengths, which allows them to sometimes be ‘cuffed’ at the bottom (like the one Dorothy is wearing) to create a second thickness for more warmth about the ears, and some versions also feature a little decorative ‘pom-pom’ at the top.
People from Wisconsin are allowed to call them whatever they want. People from places where they maybe wear them twice a year and then try to steal the name of a sled are wrong. I’ve also heard stocking cap or knit cap (grew up WNY). I feel like that’s the sort of term my grandparents would use whereas beanie seems like something more common among approximately gen x and younger. Idk what my parents’ generation says. I feel like mom always just said “wear your hat!”
It’s only 6:30 and you’ve ruined my day with this.
That hat is very cute!
Thanks for all the comments. Now that I’ve had more sleep, I guess “wool cap” feels most natural to me, though not particularly distinctive.
No bet.
Yeah, I mean it’s obvious, but someone had to say it.
Haha. Not gonna lie, it’s cute to see Dotty trying her hand at dishin’ out some sass at Becky. I mean, it’s still a touché for Becky with the binders, but it’s way more fun if they’re both having fun bantering.
Their interactions keep filling me with anxiety. I used to like Becky a lot. I recognized she could be obnoxious sometimes, but it made for a balanced character and all that good stuff.
Dorothy on the other hand… I wasn’t particularly invested in until the Yale Reveal, like. She was cute, super white, and full of both neurosis and good intentions but not that interesting?
Now I want Dotty to evict Becky ASAP. Nobody should live under attack like this. Look at this poor woman trying to banter back (does she really believe Becky is doing this in jest?), just to get a low punch in return :/
I agree. Living in a constantly confrontational space is exhausting, and Becky needs to either chill out or shut up.
Dotty’s not using the round-ring binders, is she? The D-ring/Slant-ring type binders are clearly superior in every way.
Except ease of drawing. A circle makes simple visual shorthand for “this is a binder, not a book”.
But you know it’s a D-ring, and they’re the kind of rings where a pin on one half goes in a hole on the other too, not the kind with meshing S-shapes that don’t line up half the time..
Of course! And not the cheap ones that just pull (or pop) open on their own either, but the quality binders that have the sliding mechanical tab lock, so they can’t open unexpectedly when dropped, bumped, or editorially nudged for unfortunate but comedic effect.
Dumbing of Age Book 11: Do You Know How Many Desires I Had to Sublimate to Get to Where I Am?
I think everyone who is bothered by Becky has covered that base enough, but man I am not liking Dotty in panel 3. Both that I feel like she didn’t actually hear anything Becky just said, or at least didn’t process the point of it, and that she’s claiming that her passion will make her better at it, which maybe doesn’t count as it’s own complaint as it just emphasizes her not getting the point.
idk, saying “I’m happy for you,” in response to Becky reiterating that she has no choice about her major and little over her classes because of it just makes me really uncomfortable. I know Becky has been antagonizing her a bit but I don’t really think there’s any way to read Becky’s words+facial expression as her bragging about the class being paid for, and that’s the only thing I can think of that Dorothy would be claiming to be happy for her about.
Unlike Becky making ‘Joyce is MY best friend’ comments I don’t think Dorothy is necessarily doing this on purpose, but I also think that (Dorothy) being that tone deaf in this context is a bad sign (for her interacting with people nor for doing any good if she does remain in a politics career), and also seems like… I can’t think of the right word, something related to ‘negligent’ or something. Like she’s really neglecting to pay attention to what’s happening, and not just in a ‘this isn’t being a good friend to Becky’ way.
In fairness, ‘I’m so naturally good at politics that I’m being paid to be here so meh I’ve got it already’ DOES sound just a little bit like bragging.
I didn’t really take it as even saying she was good at it. As well as what DinaJoyce said, it read more like “this happened to happen to me, and it’s the only option I’ve got so I guess I’m doing that.” She also probably doesn’t think she’s good at it, because she got the opposite of her goal- she wanted to tank Robin subtly, not make her win, so she is actually very bad at getting her actual political goals met,* and aware of it, based on her reaction to Robin almost winning.
*Robin dropping out at the last second doesn’t count as being good at politics, because that wasn’t achieved through any political movements and Becky had already given up
tl;dr Becky isn’t good at politics, probably doesn’t think she is good at politics, probably wasn’t implying that, and definitely didn’t say that.
So what exactly does, “I fell back-assward into politics and did so well people are paying me to be here,” mean to you?
Because it sure isn’t modesty, nor does it imply that this is Becky’s only option. She is of age, fully emancipated and lives in the USA. She has more options for choice available to her right now than many, perhaps most people on earth have. That Becky is choosing to take advantage of an *amazing* opportunity is great, but she is *far* from not having options. Recruiting centres are open every weekday.
“Homeless teen lesbian” is privileged is kind of bad take.
Yeah, things could be worse in much of the world, but she did come really close to living on the streets and that rarely goes well.
She’s certainly doing better now, but that’s contingent on her sticking with this major.
I will say I gorgot about the ‘and did so well’ line but bruh when you are homeless, penniless, making min wage or otherwise unable to afford rent (not to mention somehow save up a security deposit) and at best are couchsurfing, and your safety net is just other broke young adults, you do not have many viable choices. Recruitment centres don’t necessarily get you hired either, and this is all before taking her age and visible queerness into account
THIS! And, @anonymsly, I really don’t think “so men I’ve got it already” is in there. She’s saying “I was really good at this on accident and now people expect me to be really good at it long term and they’re expecting this to be my long term major and that’s terrifying because it’s not something I ever really thought about and idk that I’m actually good at it or even want to do it.” I think a lot of people DO look at statements like “I’m good at this but i really don’t like doing it” as arrogant, and I think that really puts unfair guilt on people. You’re allowed to pursue dreams in areas that are harder for you. You’re also allowed to be good at several different things and like one better than another and not do all the things. That’s not actually arrogance.
No, but when you are good at something and whine about that being why you have to do it, it does make a person sound like a brat.
Becky *accepted* those conditions for the terms of her scholarship when she *chose* to take the scholarship. She found a job at Gallaso’s easily, and then the politics job. She has charisma and an ability to find work. Becky defijitely had other options.
The job at Galasso’s wouldn’t have kept her off the streets if she didn’t also have people giving her a place to live. Luckily she did have friends.
And Robin kind of screwed her on the scholarship, since that wasn’t the original deal. She bargained for tuition, with no constraints mentioned, but got a political science scholarship, channeling her into something she doesn’t want.
Sure, she could give up the scholarship, drop out of college, go back to working at Galasso’s and couch surfing at friend’s places. Or join the army, as you suggested above. Neither are really appealing options.
I had friends growing up whose parents said “we’ll pay for your college if…” and then added a lot of conditions. For most, the condition was that they go to a Christian college, or even a particular college. For others their parents dictated their major. Others had to keep their GPA above a certain level, which can have the impact of forcing someone into a major they’re good at instead of one they’re passionate about. My friends were grateful their parents paid for college and all, but I think they all resented the restrictions to some extent or other, even if the specification pushed them toward something they might have picked anyway. Could my friends have gotten loans on their own or joined the army or applied for a ton of independent scholarships? Yeah, probably, but none of those things was the most logical or practical course of action, so they did what their parents wanted, resentful or not. Becky is in a very similar situation.
I think Dorothy has been off since getting back because she’s distracted by the Harvard letter. She didn’t notice Sierra’s reaction to her before the meeting, her comment to Ruth was not great, and as you point out she just congratulated someone who just said they aren’t happy about their major.
I think eventually someone’s going to say something.
that is a good explanation as to why. assuming it’s that, I wonder whether she is distracted and not noticing this stuff, or if she’s conscious that she’s acting weird but just refusing to acknowledge it. probably both I guess
I took “I’m happy for you” as a response to Becky’s comment about her full ride PLUS stipend to be here (paying me vs paying for me). I don’t think it was meant meanly, and if it was… meh. Becky is constantly openly antagonistic towards Dorothy. Rooming together is an awful idea.
Becky gets being organised. However, Dorothy being organised to the degree where she seems to download parts of her brain so that she doesn’t have to think about certain desires and alternate goals anymore is a mite bit freaky.
Also, what is this binder marked “Julia Grey/President Keenest Smutfic” about and why is she afraid to read it too?
So, Walky was a desire, huh?
I sort of feel like Becky got as far as she did because she had passion for politics.
Her penchant for mischief opened the door.
Definitely got a talent for it.
Yea she got lucky and has talent but she got into polatics because she actually cared about the issues and was hoping to change things at least a little.
Be it by sabotaging Robin, exposing Republicans to ideas they might not have heard of, or pressuring the republican ticket to switch sides.
Cataloguing your desires in three ring binders, Dorothy? I’m sure Twilight Sparkle would approve of this level of organization.
Dorothy is the DoA universe’s version of Twilight Sparkle. I think that we all know that in our hearts.
Dorothy’s definitely unhappy about sublimating those desires. If her heart were truly in it, she would have used a 5-ring binder.
… this can’t be healthy lol
Sarah once noted that the explosion when Joyce finally let go of her self control might be a fearful thing to witness. I would say that Dorothy is a solid order of magnitude more potentially explosive!
If Dorothy didn’t let herself have outlets sure, but she does have outlets and manages her mental health instead of ignoring or hiding her own internal changes
You know, it makes more sense now why Dorothy tends to fall for shiftless bums like Danny and Walky. They enable her to let go and enjoy desires, without having to shoulder the burden of maintaining her work-life balance.
And how many are caramel-related ?
W.r.t. the Patreon comment: that reminds me of a joke from a comic a while back that explained how random props would appear from nowhere from time to time for the sake of a joke.
They referred to it as the gag reflex.
Y’know, dotty’s while motivation is pretty sad honestly
Whole*
Godammit
Oh ,look, a Becky v Dorothy storyline. I can’t wait to see the opposing fandoms battle it out in the comments.
I think it’s pronounced, “Let’s get ready to RUMMMMMMMMMMMMMBLLLLLE.”
I actually like and root for both Becky and Dorothy. Today I’m seeing bokder and more innaccurate representations against Dorothy, so am defending her, and on days when I see bolder and more innaccurate statements about Becky I’ll defend her.
To add a point to something I wrote higher up, I don’t feel like Becky was whining in the strip, but as a retort to the associated comment, the point stands that Becky isn’t being railroaded into her current situation.
I was cool with Becky until recently, but her neverending “get away from Joyce, you friend stealer” to someone who has been nothing but fully supportive of her has put her past likability for me.
As for Dorothy, she’d make a terrible president. She’s a “bridgebuilder”, which is American political slang for “will cave to Republicans 9 times out of 10, and will do the shitty 10th thing of their own accord”. The only reason why you should build a bridge near Republicans is to drop it on them.
All talk about Dorothy and Becky aside, but 3-ring binders? I don’t think I’ve ever seen one of those, but they actually seem to exist, they look…. weird, and not in a good, lovable weirdo, way.
So I checked, it’s yet another thing were the US wants to be special (other from the top of my head: football, system of measurement, constitutional gun rights) – rest of the world uses 2 or 4 rings.
we can’t even go to the doctor, do yall gotta make fun of literally everything we do? it’s a binder, calm down, let us slowly die in peace
Maybe if our country wasn’t made into a global laughingstock by the people running it, we’d get made fun of less. This post brought to you by Coke. Drink it.
Well, so long as we’re wrong. /s
Freedom fries, american geese, possibly excessive democratic processes, Nukes, mind boggling control of international copyright treaties, and yes, the afformentioned carry ball.
(I may be a little bitter over the chaos of standards that living beside them entails. After all, I just learned that we’re stuck with *their* binders also?)
For a two ring binder, if the paper tears at either ring then the page flops around and will shortly tear at the other ring as well. Three ring distributes the tension making any tear in the paper at one of the rings less likely and if a tear does occur, the page is still held in place. Four rings are overkill without adding appreciably to the stability.
So once again the American system is perfect.
Ah yes, thank you for the reminders Clif: Cannot take criticism of national identitiy, mass delusion about being the indisputable best.
Oh my… Dorothy, that is most definitely NOT healthy. I don’t think you really have the authority to chastise Joyce about being sexually repressed anymore.
Keep this up and one day you’re gonna be caught in some dirty club’s bathroom in a compromising position with a lover, like most politicians seem to be at some point or another.
So, I’m waiting for this roomie timebomb to go off. “I don’t care about a thing you sacrificed for, since I (without effort) Won at it to the point of having what amounts to a full-ride scholarship. When you attempt a polite withdrawal (because I just implied your field of choice is a waste of time), I will casually haul out psych terms against you for a cutesy burn. I’ve also been looking through your stuff.”
As someone with absolutely no dog in this race (because I’m fond of neither character), I’m gonna have to point out that Dorothy’s remark is NOT a polite withdrawal. It’s a “oh, you’re totally unprepared for this and to be good at it you need to change to be more like meeeeeeee” remark.
Ugh… reply shifted:
Dorothy didn’t say anything about Becky’s preparedness, all she pointed out is that passion for something will drive a person further than a ho hum attitude about it. This is not wrong if all other factors are equal. However, I think that passion, perseverance, and a preternatural proficiency are all pillars of success at something, but to go really far at it also requires a particular plethora of probability-padded possibilities.
i.e. You need motivation, work ethic, tallent and no small amount of luck to succeed wildly at something.
p.s. Sorry for tail-duping this post.
Dorothy didn’t say anything about Becky’s preparedness, all she pointed out is that passion for something will drive a person further than a ho hum attitude about it. This is not wrong if all other factors are equal. However, I think that passion, perseverance, and a preternatural proficiency are all pillars of success at something, but to go really far at it also requires a particular plethora of probability-padded possibilities.
i.e. You need motivation, work ethic, tallent and no small amount of luck to succeed wildly at something.
Speeling hilps twoo.
Know weigh!
Whey!
Call me evil, but can’t wait to see Dorothy finally fall under her absurd sacrifices.
Rabisch the Evil does have a certain ring to it.
Man i legit do like the dorothy Becky strips, i think they’re fun and interesting. But God do they turn the comments into a mess
You misspelled vigorous debate.
Look, when you people stop blatantly ignoring Dorothy’s actual, literal murders, we can stop pretending Becky didn’t totally eat that guy’s pet crocodile.
They’re worse than most, but literally every strip is apparently an opportunity to nitpick each and every word balloon.
We have to see who’s behaving the worst at every moment, so everyone can know………..something.
Becky is wrong about passion. Dorothy has that, but I fear she will burn out if she doesn’t have a healthy dose of cynicism. Both Becky and Roz gave her a run for her money and it wasn’t even for altruistic reasons. Becky needed a place to live and tuition. Roz just wanted the private suite so she wouldn’t have Mary as a roommate. I think Dorothy wants to genuinely make the world a better place, but people have a hard time believing that.
What did Dorothy sacrifice?
Everything.
It’s always a good idea to do opposition research on your future political adversaries.
[humming to myself] What is this feeling, so sudden and new.