Ack, I have to apologize. I’m sick. Actually, a bad cold has been bouncing back and forth around our house for several weeks. I got it again…and really bad this time. I posted that we had a news entry yesterday, but I had put it on the blog. Then I came home, realized my mistake, and fell asleep doing the comic. I probably should have just mentioned it in the posting, but I had hoped it wouldn’t get the better of me…but it did. Ugh. I often comment I hate November and March, since those two months seem to hit our house the worst with illness.

On a brighter note, Raif’s appointment yesterday went well. No permanent damage, and he is without pain. He got a clear to go back to school. Again, a big thanks for the outpouring of support.

We’re gonna follow the paperboy story for the next few strips, with a little more light being shed on this mystery. Stay tuned.

Oh, and we’re gearing up for the Booyah next week, as well as our upcoming 100th strip! Yay!

A special thanks to everyone for their concern and well-wishes for Raif after his injury last week. He’s doing much better. With the holidays, we didn’t have a ton of time for work on the comic. Today we have some follow-up doctor appointments for Raif. We still plan to put up a strip today, but it will be later in the day. Thanks for your patience.

Strip #97 finally gives our readers some information about the paperboy. And, to our astute readers, it may even give them the hint to what movie we are parodying with this whole storyline.

Oh, and I should note that this is the first strip that has even the remotest hint of a political commentary. It was not intentional. Frankly, I am not into Bush-bashing, or any political bashing for that matter. Certainly I have my opinions of these issues, but a fun family-friendly comic is not the forum in which to get on my soapbox. So, fear not, this isn’t the start of a precendence. However, Verde’s line originally was written to use the word bush. By capitalizing it, the phrase has double-meaning, and still is very much in-character for Verde, considering he works for the mayor and therefore has political preferences.

Strip #98 is just a simple slice-of-life comic. No, it’s not over the top funny, but it’s amusing…and true. The story about the hot dog/pigs-in-a-blanket actually happened at Tess’s school a couple years back. I should note, the pigs-in-the-blanket were supposed to be pancakes wrapped around a sausage link, but instead the lunch ladies used hot dogs. Dott’s reaction was pretty much the reaction of the whole school. Tess said that the kids were so grossed out, they gave them all free ice cream to make up for it.

As for the flooding of the bathroom, I think any parent who has a 2 or 3 year old can relate to this. That whole “too quiet” moment, when you realize your little one is getting into mischief. Our kids love of water, and flooding the bathroom happens every few months. Why, you ask? Well, kids need to use the bathroom, and they need to wash their hands. Believe me, it can take just a couple of minutes to overflow the sink and start a waterfall. If someone isn’t constantly playing potty police (which is sometimes not possible), these things happen. Of course, having older kids who are *supposed* to be watching little siblings but aren’t is just as plausible in these parts. Makes us consider getting those automatic sensor faucets they have in public washrooms. Hmm….