Jan 9th – Family Circus & Snow Birds

Hello everyone!

Many parts of Canada and the United States are in the middle of a very cold January right now!

Today’s comic is a Family Circus with a theme of escape from the cold climate.    

Comic Breakdown

“Grandma says a lot of her friends are like the birds.  They fly south for the winter.” 

– Dolly to her brother Jeffy

What are they talking about?

In the winter, many elderly and retired North Americans love to vacation and live in a warmer climate for a few weeks to months. 

A popular region to go to is the American south.  Many people love to vacation in the states of Florida and Arizona.   

 Map of the Southern United States

The nickname for these people is snow birds.  Like birds from a colder climate, they migrate (go) south for the winter.

Today’s images are from here, here, here, here, and here. 

Jan 7th – Hi & Lois and Synonyms

Hello everyone!

Today’s comic is Hi & Lois featuring the topic of synonyms.

Comic Breakdown

“It sure is breezy and blustery today, isn’t it, Trixie?” – Lois speaking to Trixie

“Yeah and it’s windy too!” – Trixie’s thoughts about Lois’ comments on the weather

What is going on?

Three different words with the same basic meaning have been used in this comic.   They are breezy, blustery, and windy. 

The words breezy and blustery are synonyms of the word (verb) windy.  Though breezy and blustery have the same basic meaning as the word windy they are not identical in meaning but similar in meaning. 

Breezy: a light and easy wind

Blustery: a very strong wind

Windy: exposure to wind (any type of wind)

Synonyms are words that are similar or the same in meaning.  In some situations synonyms may have an identical meaning to another word and in other situations they only share a similar definition.  It all depends on the context.  When looking up synonyms, you use a thesaurus rather than a dictionary.  

Example of Synonyms

It is good to use synonyms because it makes you less repetitive and therefore creates more interesting conversations and better writing.

In conclusion…

The day was summarized by Trixie as being windy.

Today’s images are from here, here, here, here, and here.

Jan 5th – Family Circus & Malapropism: Sleep vs Steep

Hello everyone!

Today’s comic is Family Circus featuring the topic of malapropism.

Comic Breakdown

“Be very quiet, Jeffy.  Grandma’s tea has to sleep for three minutes.” – Dolly to her brother Jeffy

What is going on?

Dolly has mixed up two similar sounding words with two completely different meanings.  This is a malapropism. 

She mixed up “sleeping” with the word “steeping”.

What does steeping mean?

Steeping is when you soak something, usually food, in a liquid. 

Steeping one’s tea is when one soaks tea leaves or a tea bag in hot water for several minutes in order to increase the taste and flavour of the drink. 

What did Dolly mean to actually say?

“Be very quiet, Jeffy.  Grandma’s tea has to steep for three minutes”

To read more about malapropisms, click here and here.

Today’s images are from here, here, and here.  

Jan 1st – Family Circus & Calling it

Happy New Year Everyone! 

Many people around the world are tired today because almost everyone stays up late on New Year’s Eve (Dec 31st) to celebrate the New Year at 12 midnight.  Today's comic, Family Circus, highlights this.  

Comic Breakdown

“That’s it, I’m tired.  I’m gonna call it a year.” – Billy speaking to himself

What is going on?

Billy is tired so he has decided to go to bed and sleep. 

Why is he “calling it a year?”

Billy has been up late because it was New Year’s Eve.  There is a popular expression, “calling it a day”.  This means one is declaring the day to be over.  In Billy’s case, because it is the end of one year and the start of the next one he is declaring the year to be over.

What does “calling it” mean?

Call has two meanings.  The most commonly used and understood meaning is to get in contact with someone by saying their name out loud when you see them or to pick up the phone and literally “call” them in order to speak to them.

The second meaning of “call” is figurative and means to declare something.  The word “call” is popularly used in many expressions today when one is declaring a fact or opinion.

Ex) Calling it a day – Stating or deciding it is the end of the day (literally or figuratively)

Ex) Calling it – Declaring the end of something

Ex) Calling the race – Declaring the end of a competition (athletic, political, etc.) when there is no clear winner and one must be chosen

Ex) Calling it off - Declaring something to be cancelled (usually an event or deal) 

Today’s images are from here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Dec 31st – New Year’s Eve

Hello everyone!

Today’s comic is Family Circus. 

Comic Breakdown

“Mommy says we get to have midnight at 9 o’clock!” – Dolly to her brothers

What is midnight?

Midnight is also known as 12 o’clock at night or the 24^th hour of the day if you follow the 24 hour clock.  Midnight is the end of one day and the start of the next.  In this case, midnight is the end of one year and the start of the next.

What is going on?

The children are celebrating the New Year!  It is New Year’s Eve, the night before the New Year which starts at 12 midnight.  But because the children are young and need to sleep early they must celebrate earlier in the night at 9 o’clock instead of 12 o’clock. 

Today's images are from here, here, here, and here. 

Dec 28th – To be naughty or to be nice?

Hello everyone!

Today’s comic is Family Circus.

Comic Breakdown

“Mommy!  Can we start being naughty again or do we still need to be nice?”

– Dolly asking her mother if she can fight back against her brother

What is going on?

Santa Claus sees all and knows all.  He keeps a list of all the children in the world and of who was naughty (bad) or nice (good).  If you were nice you got a good gift for Christmas.  If you were naughty you got a bad gift, no gift, or traditionally a lump of coal.

Christmas is over now and Santa Claus has finished giving out the gifts to the children of the world.  There is no Naughty or Nice list to worry about for another year. 

Do the children still need to be good or can they be bad again? 

To read more about being good for Christmas, click here and here.

Today’s images are from here, here, here, and here.

Dec 27th – Turkey & Smother

Happy holidays everyone!  Christmas might be over but it is still the holiday season. 

Comic Breakdown

“Isn’t it true that you had plans to smother my client?” – Lawyer (who is a turkey) questioning the gravy (sauce) 

What is going on?

Christmas might be over but many Christmas and holiday events such as holiday gatherings, parties, and meals between friends and family take place during the entire month of December.  Companies may have holiday parties and dinners as early as December 1st and some people even have holiday meet ups, dinners, and gatherings after Christmas.

Why is the gravy on trial? 

Turkey is a popular holiday food to eat.  Other popular Christmas holiday foods include duck and ham or other special foods that are not eaten all the time.  People love to “smother” (cover) their food in gravy; especially turkey.

To read more turkey, click here.

The word "smother" is a synonym for the word "cover".  Both mean to put or place over something.  

Today’s images are from here, here, here, and here.