Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for October 26, 2021

Hmmm… which girl here has the better job… I mean life?

So, as long as she doesn’t have a high-paying job, she won’t be able to afford the training required to get a high-paying job.

All this high finance talk is making my head hurt. But that seems to be the way of the world sometimes. Sometimes it takes money to make money.

Ouch, my head hurts!

One non-accredited child care worker for 18 kids? As near as I could google the question, that may be six kids too many. Also impressed that could divide $14 by 18 kids in her head in just a second. And finally, how much of that $40 an hour Tara boasts about does she have to share with the owner of the archery range? And if she is making $40 an hour as an archery instructor why is she in college? She’s already making more than most college graduated ever will.

Besides if she teaches you archery you might try to take her customers away.

Certainly don’t want you cutting into her profits!

Was making $14.00 an hour, what a bargain for Kids 1st?

Yes, but how many students does Tara have?

Tara, Luann went out on a limb and gave you access to the Fuse so that you would have a place to sleep at night, risking her family’s livelihood. You were also allowed to sleep on Luann’s bedroom floor and the family couch. For all we know, you are still sleeping on the couch. The least you could do is give Luann free archery lessons.

Not sure what the point is here.

An underpaid school teacher’s life would probably be better if they could charge by the child.

Luann tried being a tutor before, the girl who she brought out of her shell, and her mother put her right back in.

Luann is getting an education about $.

Seems to me that if Tara was doing so well, she would not have had to sell the weather enclosure/top for her Jeep and have had to hit Luann up for a place to stay. I know part of it was getting away from her cousin, Stella, but she was griping that she had to sell the Jeep top.

Luann is support staff at the school. Most are paid minimum wage with no benefits and little to no acknowledgement for the work they do. Teachers are important but are not the only ones at the schools.

If Luann lives in Orange County CA she is making minimum wage ($13-14/hour depending on the size of the business). Seems like she could put her talents to better use and earn more coin! Alasko mentioned a return to tutoring, that could be a possibility for acting, if she can find a few students. I am wondering if she is still a TA for Prof Zebo or the science lab,? If she is, she’s probably making minimum salary there as well (work study salaries at community colleges range form minimum wage to a few bucks over depending on the job description). If she does not have these gigs, I guess she will soon encounter a money crunch and then it is “Thanks a lot Tara” time!

Anyhow, as wrong as it may seem that Tara has apparently got Luann fired, this may be just what she needs to kickstart a new adventure and perhaps find a rewarding career that does not involve dealing with preschoolers for under $15 and hour…… Lets see if Tara has any bright ideas.

There no way in hell that Tara is making $40.00 teaching archery.

Darn. I thought Tara was going to explain why she has a problem with “educators”. Like maybe she was mistreated by “educators” and that’s what motivated her to steal stuff from dorms. But now she’s on about how much money she makes. Which is not a very good reason to steal stuff from dorms. Or to have your hair trimmed by hungry mice.

Luann has a stable job which she enjoys…that is better than giving an occasional Archery lessons at $40 an hour. I assume Luann will be working to become a full time teacher, and then make a lot more than $14 an hour. Right now she needs to go back in the office and apologize….she and Tara were in the wrong.

Nope. GNK aren’t going for the “Stand Up For Myself” angle. Luann is such feebleminded. I would like to see her say, “Wow, so archery pays more, huh? Do you have the personal satisfaction from teaching archery for a good job done and witnessing a skill acquired or are you in it for the money?” Of course, we know Tara is in it for the money and Luann in it for the kids. But Luann wouldn’t get to say it thanks to GNK.

Luann loves her little students and likes to teach to the children. But that doesn’t justify her having to accept to be underpaid AND that Principal Mr. Worm can yell at her and treat her badly. Tara’s speech is not just about money, it’s about Luann agreeing to live in very unfair conditions and how that is no good! By taking her away and having this talk with her, Tara shows that she cares a lot about Luann and that she knows her friend has the qualities to aspire to a better life and job.I hope Luann understands this and she’s not completely conditioned by the school system by now.

So the jury’s still out on whether Tara is a keeper.

Tara may only have one student.

Luann’s job is basically to gain experience in handling kids and better enable her for a full-time career.

Tara’s just in it for the money!!

Luann’s least helpful friend, “Biarro Bernice”

Tara’s right. Teachers are underpaid.

Oh.

Forty bucks an hour just for teaching one kid, Tara?

I hate to break this this to you “Miz William Tell,” but last week you just taught a bunch of kids for FREE.

Well a lesson in economics. But the issue is whether Luann is training in a field she personally enjoys which could lead to an 80k or better job, depending on where, and if there is a strong union, or Tara’s gig employment. Can Luann find satisfaction in working in the field of education, or hire herself out in a free market environment. Kind of heavy. Tara is challenging old ideas for Luann.

For all practical purposes Luann has been absent from all of last weeks strips and and looks like she will be absent from this week as well. At no time has been allowed to finish one sentence without Tara talking over her. This makes her look like the donkey in some badly written comedy revue. We may as well go back to Bernice and Nil where they have agreed to do nothing risque. Or to Tiff and Staph who apparently have nothing to do with their lives except yo bed Kip. Why not a week of Gunther trying to apply for a job at the college IT department. Or a week of Leslie trying to flirt with a customer. The joke being that he doesn’t know how to flirt — successfully. Or how ‘bout a week where Luann does not make dumb decisions. When I read strips like “Crabgrass” or “Heart of the City” it’s like night and day == good stories consistent characters, and above all likeable characters.

$40.00 an hour? Is that realistic or just exaggerated for this scenario?

Luann! You better get a backbone by Saturday!

WTF….. that is…. What the French, toast??? This arc suddenly petered out into nothingness…

Tara is a self-centered jerk as always.

Tara’s math is a bit off. She also needs to subtract the cost of Luann’s credentials, fingerprinting etc. I know it cost me about $100 per application to just apply to work at San Diego districts, on top of my yearly credential costs. Plus Tara can set the terms of her payment. Per California law I was paid once a month by the schools, making budgeting a royal pain. & Neither Tara nor Luann is working full time or has health benefits.

Also, Luann is 19, a para professional, and the only adult responsible for 18 kids?! That is WAY out if line, and the principle of Kidz 1st needs to answer to why there was not another adult in the room to stop Tara’s lecture.

You’d do better as hostess at the Fuse and let your mom rest her aching feet.

I once paid an archery instructor $20 for 30 minutes of training, so $40/hour. However, I was one of 2 students and we only needed 30 minutes to learn the basics. I think it’s very possible Tara is making $40/hour, but I’m guessing she only works a couple hours a week. Luann is making less but she has guaranteed hours.

The jobs that take heart usually don’t pay much.

Welcome to capitalism, ladies. Maybe learn how to do spreadsheets, and you’ll get a slightly higher-paying job (but still earn less than men, I mean, c’mon).

I think Luann should cut the conversation short and head right back inside if she wants any chance at all of keeping her job.

The pay stinks, but if you love the field, maybe you should keep at it. The pay will increase, and there is almost nothing better – and rarer – than doing something you love for a job.

She probably won’t be able to afford a lot of things now that Luann is on the cusp of being fired, thanks to you.

Whatever happened to that budding singer and stage actor in her? She needs some options.

I know people like this Pink Disaster. She’s a real Know-It-Nothing.

LuAnn works for the school system, Tara works for a private citizen. There-in lays the difference.

Poor Luann is so easily distracted and dim-witted. She’s moved on to having a conversation with her friend and seems to have completely forgotten that her job is on the line. She left her boss standing there and seems to have completely forgotten about the situation. Is she just going to just leave and not speak with the principal or give him an explanation? Does she think she can become skilled enough in archery to start giving lessons and make enough money before her next car insurance payment is due?

Tara is a bad influence. Dump her.

The light bulb lights up.

Tara IS overstepping her bounds here.

I think the point being made here is that teachers don’t make a lot of money. This used to be offset by their satisfaction of a job well done and the respect of their community. Sadly, all that has changed now. And all the Woke behavior and PC expectations have made it worse.

Tara is truly a loser

In my industry, to even qualify for an entry level position as an unskilled labor, between background checks, physicals, drug screens, government fee’s and required classes, the cost of admission is around $2500.

Well Tara, you’re not much help.

$40 for a private lesson is a bit steep, honestly, so Tara is only teaching kids whose parents don’t know better. That limits the pool considerably. On top of that, they likely can only take lessons on evenings or weekends, to avoid conflicting with school, so you’re not getting full time here, and since it’s self-employment, you’re not getting benefits either.

Ignoring benefits, Tara has to teach at least fourteen lessons a week to make more than full time employment at Luann’s rate. Students aren’t likely to take the lessons for very long, either — archery isn’t THAT complicated, and is frankly mostly a matter of practice. So there will be a lot of turnover; she will need to continue to recruit students constantly in order to reach Luann’s maximum rate of $560 a week. That’s again excluding benefits — Luann may qualify for benefits through the school district, which if it’s a public school are generally union negotiated and relatively generous. (Or she may not; it may depend on the number of hours she puts in.) Plus, Luann doesn’t need to pay for the facility or equipment; Tara will need to supply her own equipment and possibly also loaner gear for her students. If she’s to be competitive as an instructor, she should also have multiple types of bow. Arrows eventually break or at least need to be refletched as well, so she’s going to have an ongoing expense. And if she isn’t teaching at a public archery range, she’s also got facility costs to pay out of that $40.

The bottom line here is that neither job is particularly well paid, but Tara may actually be making less overall, and her pay is less stable. It’s easy to fall into the trap of looking at just the hourly pay, but there’s more to it than that.

just wondering how l’s boss feels about her walking out of a potential disciplinary meeting

New Survivor Show – Teacher Version________________________________________Have you heard about the next planned “Survivor” show?Three businessmen and three businesswomen will be dropped in an elementary classroom for 6 weeks. Each business person will be provided with a copy of their school district’s curriculum, and a class of 28 students. Each class will have 5 learning-disabled children, 3 with ADHD, 1 gifted child, and 2 who speak limited English. Three will be labeled as severe behavior problems.Each business person must complete lesson plans at least 3 days in advance with annotations for curriculum objectives and modify, organize or create materials accordingly. They will be required to teach the students, handle misconduct, implement technology, document attendance, write referrals, correct homework, make bulletin boards, compute grades, complete report cards, document benchmarks, communicate with parents, and arrange parent conferences. They must also supervise recess and detention and monitor the hallways and restrooms. In addition they will complete drills for fires, tornadoes, or shooting attacks and assist with fundraisers.They must attend workshops, weekly faculty meetings, school improvement sessions; and curriculum development meetings. They must also tutor those students who are behind and strive to get their 2 non-English speaking children proficient enough to take the SOL and SAT-9 tests. If they are sick or having a bad day they must not let it show. Each day they must incorporate reading, writing, math, science, and social studies into the program. They must maintain discipline and provide an educationally stimulating environment at all times.

The business people will only have access to the golf course on the weekends after all teaching and preparation tasks are completed, but on their new salary they will not be able to afford it anyway. There will be no access to vendors who want to take them out to lunch, and the lunch hour will be limited to 30 minutes while supervising students.On days when they do not have recess duty, the business people will be permitted to use the staff restroom during the 15 minutes that another survival candidate is supervising their students. They will also be provided with two 40-minute planning periods per week while their students are having music or art class in the classroom and one 40-minute planning period while their students are having physical education in the gym. If the copier is operable, they may make copies of necessary materials at that time.The business people must continually advance their education on their own time, preferably during the summer months, and pay for this advanced training themselves. This can be accomplished either by moonlighting at a second job or marrying someone with a lot of money.The winner will be allowed to return to his or her corporate job

Money before friendship!

If I were that principal I would be in my office RIGHT NOW preparing Luann’s termination papers. Then I would be placing calls to all the former applicants to conduct interviews and fill her position. There is no way I would tolerate this self absorbed, entitled behavior. But I guess there are those out there who think the principal should be in his office wringing his hands about whether or not she will deem to continue working there.

Greg Evans is a master of lobbing hand grenadines! LOLOnce again he has managed to inflame passions within us all brought by our own personal experiences. It is really cool to watch and be a part of, well done sir! Comic On!

You nock the arrow. You aim. Twang. What’s the mystery ?

Except Tara makes $40 per hour because she has a SKILL, and one that’s not very common. While Luann may get along with kids okay, the ability to do so is not that rare, and in her case it’s offset by how often she lets them walk all over her (it’s so noticeable that one commenter even said it was a kid’s fault that Tara was in the classroom, as if Luann herself had no control over the situation.) She’s a glorified babysitter and not even all that great at it (speaking of babysitting, did TJ ever find out how much of his hair product Luann and Shannon stole?) There’s a reason she’s not being paid as much as Tara.

Maybe Tara’s right.

Actually about 78 cents per kids

Umm… zero. And zero.

inflation…

And there it is… basic economics 101

What makes Luann’s job and salary any of Tara’s business? I know it’s a cartoon, but that’s gutsy to ask personal questions like that.So it’s revealed that Tara does have a job, but school is still vague. Wonder if she works for someone, has an independent business, or has side job. She is not an endearing character. :-/Does Luann still have a job?

The more money people make the more it negatively affects their personality. I previously thought Tara might be a positive influence on Luann…maybe not.

Prices don’t apply to friends, Tara!

Private sitting or tutoring pays more but not as fun/interesting/exciting.

Know parents that would definitely jump to the “warfare” assumption, but really should have given ID into to school.

Ummm apples and oranges, Tara.

Certain businesses like barber shops, plumbers, electricians, and carpenters hire helpers who are just their future competition when the helpers go independent.

Tara here would have been a perfect collegiate in the early ’70s, when the “free thinkers” demanded complete and total compliance with their lockstep thinking.

I understand Tara’s POV, but she shouldn’t be making decisions for Luann.OTOH, Archery has not been ‘warfare’ in 200 years. Today, it’s an OLYMPIC SPORT!

BIG MONEY!! Luann is doing right well fer herself.

Well actually she doesn’t have ANY Kids 1st kids now that you just got her fired. Also this job is valuable for Luann’s career path plus she enjoys it, or make that “enjoyed”.

With a valuable skill like archery you can shoot apples off people’s heads, but you may not know how to read

Where is the administrator who wanted to see her in his office immediately?

Ge

Gee, sort of makes me wonder. Who do I despise more, Tara or Betts?

I wonder how Ruth is doing handling Luann’s group of kids. “Miss Ruth, where is Miss Luann? We miss her…”

too much math today. I retired from physics so I wouldn’t have to do math. :-p

65% of people can’t do basic elementary school math; the other half don’t care.

Tara thinks more about the pay because she’s living on her own. Luann is still living at home and doesn’t have expenses.

Luann:Thanks Tara…My job might be in the toilet; and no Free archery lessons from you Either!

1. Tara has audacity to charge Luann for an archery lesson? After Lu broke rules to let her stay at Fuse, then let her stay in parents’ home. Then called 911 to get her medical care after accident.

2. Perhaps having been on the street, money is the greatest reward for Tara. For most of us, we also value power, ability to help those in need, creative fulfillment, love, etc.

I think it’s about time for Luann to cut someone out of her life. Toxic friends are not friends.

So, I’ve seen a lot of comments on here criticizing Bets and Tara for being ambitious and “in it for the money”. Those are good qualities. A woman should be fiscally smart and ambitious. And it makes me think those comments say more about the commentators expectations of women to martyr themselves & there finances than about the characters (of which Luann is martyr #1).

Well more accurately Luann USED TO HAVE 18 kids and $14 an hour. Now she gets to apply for unemployment which she won’t qualify for because she’s a student., 0 kids and $0 an hour of income thanks to Miss Buttinski.

Though being nude for school art class is an easier grade just no money in it.

When did it change from Kidz 1st to Kids 1st?

Looks like Mr. Uptight A**h*le may soon be joining the ranks of people putting a “No One Wants to Work Any More, Boo Hoo” sign on the front door

Welcome to economic reality, Luann, ever-befogged. Tara may be brusque, but she’s teaching you a valuable lesson….

I think Tara is going to talk Luann into quitting. Stay tuned.

My wife is a librarian. She has about 100 kids a day. She makes $16 per hour.

Well, that was to the point.

Oh, reality, you’re such a harsh b*%X+ … ;)

I’ve known for quite a while that a good teacher is not paid near what they’re worth. Some are fortunate, in that, they are able to find positions in private schools, which treat their teacher’s better than in the public school environment. Sad, but true … :(

Hey, people. I think you’ll like what happens in tomorrow’s strip. If you can’t wait, head on over to Arcamax. . .