For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for April 11, 2018

time sure flies by fast; you’re only a teenager for six years… becoming a 113-year-old is rare

Seems Mike is the oldest of the three.

Sorry Michael. Teenagers are still called a kid and then told to grow up and act like an adult, often in the same sentence.

Yep! The big study comes after you turn into a teen.

You don’t want to be treated like a teen, Mike. Every word out of your mouth will be viewed as “teenage rebellion”, and will be instantly discredited. You won’t even be able to hang out with your friends without people side-eyeing you as if you’re about to mug them.

It’s sad the way we stigmatize different age groups!

Respect is earned, not given out just because you turned to a certain age or wear a certain uniform or job title. As an ex-U.S. Navy petty officer, I had to earn the respect of the men under me, (I was also 19 at the time). I have seen green Ensigns who one had to respect the uniform but the person inside was an idiot, they grew out of it and, (usually), earned the respect of their men, (it was a learning experience for them). In the civilian world, I have seen people who had a collage degree and thought that they were hot stuff. They weren’t. They demanded respect while at the same time they didn’t give two-hoots about the people under them. And they never received any respect, just a lot of disrespect because they didn’t try to earn it. They thought it was theirs by right and job possession.

As far a parents go. No mater what you have done, they will always see you as a little kid. Just a fact of life.

We now know why Michael been acting the way he has.

I was listening to a radio show talk about American history, and it mentioned how in early America (as well as most other places), youth meant by and large helping out your parents, most often on a farm or ranch. If the work did not get done, nobody ate. There was no time for “teenage angst” or any of that nonsense. A shift was seen in the post World War 2 era, which also saw less dependence on agricultural labor (namely due to advances in technology). The show remarked “Dick Clark invented the concept of the American teenager, and Walt Disney invented the concept of the American childhood.”

It always struck me as an odd quirk of language that 11 and 12 are not considered teen years simply because of the names we give those numbers. Why do we wait for three beyond ten to start reckoning ‘teens’ (Spanish goes further, not starting their equivalent until 16.) And if we did start right after ten, what would we call those first two? Would 12 be ‘twenteen’ to be consistent with ‘twenty,’ just as ‘thirteen’ and ‘thirty’ match?

sometimesiwish iwas13again

I’m with Michael, still remember the thrill of turning 13.

First, if they really want to aggravate Michael, they could call him “adolescent”. Now, having gone to college and raised 4 kids, it taught me that college and the years of our youth create the foundation upon which we build our lives. These efforts are only the beginning and, yet, are the most critical times. Without a solid foundation in either of these endeavors, the rest of one’s life can be very frustrating. Parents are responsible for the years of the child, which, during the adolescent years, is often not appreciated at the time.

It’s a big deal to most every kid when then become a teenager, let him enjoy his moment.

When I was a teenager there were two women living nearby that made money baby sitting and at Christmas time they sold cookies. I went over to their house to bye some cookies. The older women was disagreeing with her unmarried daughter over something. They both recognized me as adult. The mother 97 years old said her kid dosn’t know what life is about. Daughter was 74 years old.

It was sad for me when at 65, I became my mother’s guardian. Before that I was always asking her for advise! Now I was supposed to be, basically, the parent! I guess turnabout is fair play, but I missed the old days!

Mike, if you want to be treated more like a grown-up, you need to act like one. Spraying people from the drinking fountain is not a good way to do this.

how inaccurate…where is his smart phone!?? LOL

Kids today go from being tween agers to screenagers when they transition from 12 to 13.

I looked forward to being 13 for the same reason Michael did, but my major youth milestones were 14, 16, 18 & 21 : Fourteen – because I could get my Social Security card that allowed me to work; Sixteen – My Driver’s License; Eighteen – Draft Registration and legal to drink in New York State; and finally, Twenty-one – legal majority and right to vote.

I know some things have changed since my teens ( 1957-63 ) like the Social Security, voting laws, and the draft but to a teenager back then, those milestones meant a lot.

Once upon a time, kids who turned 13 were called “teeny-boppers.” It was pinned on the kid until the age of 15, maybe 16. It was especially but not uniquely applied to girls.

My son will also be 13 in just a few days, so this is very much on our minds. I love how this comic (apart from missing a child my middle child’s age) parallels our lives!