For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for July 09, 2024

She is probably right you know. Mothers usually know best!

Would Elly rather her son become the stuck-up snob she is?

Claiming that it’s good advice, so it’s not really criticism, is passive-aggressive.

I’m looking forward to seeing the professional who will be helping Mike. Betcha HE’LL be casual!

Our 17 year old son is looking for a job now. His hair is past his shoulders and rather wild-looking. He can apply for jobs on line now, but I’ve explained to him he will have to at least tie it back for almost any job.

My mother’s advice was always followed by “. . . of course, it’s your decision”.

An accurate statement. And it’s also not objective advice el: You’ve been gunning for his beard since his first return from college and don’t get why he has it (Because he wants to look older), nor try to be sympathetic.

Parents always believe their advice is good because that’s the way they would have done things. One of the hardest things for a lot of parents to recognize when their children are getting older is that they will have different opinions than they do and will start making their own way through life base upon those opinions. This really bothers some parents and will strain relationships because their children (regardless of age) don’t listen to them any more and aren’t doing what they should be doing.

I was clean shaven when I went to work at our local newspaper. I looked around the newsroom and several reporters and editors had either beards or moustaches (or both). It took me a year more to mature enough and, I too jointed great unshaven. Fifty plus years later I still sport facial hair … now grey!

Good job, Mom, destroy his confidence right when he needs it.

A quote I heard the other day: Advice is the sunny side of control.

Mothers do nag at times, but most times, children would do well to heed our advice. In most cases, been there, done that.

What’s missing here is Elly’s finger being raised up in the air.

You’ll be sorry if you don’t take your mother’s advise.

trim the beard into a neat vandyke, comb your hair, nice clean adult clothes, and you’ll make a good first impression.

I never advised my son on interviews, he is capable and I have faith in him.

I believe the lesson Elly is teaching is that, no matter how hard you work and how ethical a person you are, your appearance is the only criterion by which people will judge you. I’m not saying she’s wrong, but, that’s just depressing.

Whether you like it or not, we are under a microscope every day. Our bosses, coworkers and customers judge us by how we look, how we dress, our grooming and our table manners. On seldom occasion we get judged by the work we do.

I have agreed with that assessment (Elle’s) since I first saw Michael after he went away to college ! ! ! !

Actually the beard makes him look older. With a sportcoat and a hair cut would look professional as any other journalist.

There’s nothing wrong with hair, but you can’t look like you just rolled out of the gutter. Some shaping/grooming and looking neat is necessary. You don’t have to wear a 3 piece suit, but business casual is still a kind of uniform.

I was barely a journalist, more of a stringer. But the outlet I worked for required we look neat. They gave us nice uniform shirts and required we act professional. It worked, we got an interview with a legend in our world that got lots of envy from others.

Unsolicited advice from parent to an adult (or near-adult) child will only drive a wedge between you. “Parental rights” and good intentions can’t change that.

Wait till Elly gets a load of tattoos.

He can set up interviews by phone. He just needs to use deodorant

People expect certain looks depending on one’s position. If Michael pumps gas and looks like that, people might call him a strange weirdo slob but then forget it. If Michael gets elected the President of Canada, everyone is going to be watching him on TV and elsewhere and expect he will always look sharp. His appearance must convey confidence and respect for the people, and most of all, himself.

Well, the beard does make him look older – which is a help in his job search at his very young age. Also, let him have the facial hair before it starts to turn gray.

Clean up your act or you might become the next Hunter S Thompson.

One (chemical) plant I worked on banned beards. They could interfere with the tight seal of an air safety mask.

He needs to just to trim the beard. Put on better clothes. Look professional when he is on the job.

Lynn Johnston has alluded to it before, such as when Elly lost her job. The unemployed Elly was going to a job interview where she was talking to herself how we are judged by our appearance. Elly practiced what she preached by looking sharp and getting ready for a touch interview, only to be greeted by a gum-cracking airhead who looked like she was not serious about her own employment.

Love the picture in the second to last frame! lol!

True.

Want a professional job? Then look like a professional. This means putting some effort into grooming and attire. Take some pride in your appearance; it is a reflection of your character. A slovenly look says “I don’t care.”

Well? You usually DO look homeless…Mum has a point. Just because one thinks something SHOULD be doesn’t mean it IS.

But the reporters at the Daily Revolution, the Anarchy Gazette or whatever papers the ol’ hippie read in the early 1970s didn’t concern themselves with such matters. A bit of, “Do as I say, not as I did”……

He doesn’t need to shave but he could trim his hair and beard. He looks like he just rolled out of bed

Her Husband is a Dentist – since when does she have some level of expertise?? She can’t train the dog…

I remember getting this in high school, maybe this can shed some light:

Being An Individual

Those who had the pleasure of watching Glenn Miller saw a rather ordinary-looking man wearing wire-rimmed glasses and Army dress blues. They also saw a man who could play coronet and lead a big band like no one before or since. Others who stood out from the flock include Zora Hurston, Ernest Hemingway, Joe DiMaggio, Harry Blackstone. They were recognized for excellence.

Some have attempted to get attention through modish attire or dyeing their hair blue, green, purple, or colors not found in nature. They somehow think mediocrity will gain new credibility through external appearances. But this is nothing more than the same person with a funny-colored head.

The student who gets all As on his report card has somewhat grasped the concept of individuality, as has a wrestler who helped take his team to the state championships. The Boy Scout who has earned the top honor of Eagle Scout also realizes this, as the Girl Scout who has earned the paramount Gold Award. Other students who know this are one who has won the science fair, or one who can name all the countries of the world as well as their capital cities. Those who get piercings, tattoos, dyeing or outlandish clothing, or who let their hair and beards grow long and scruffy are just along for the ride.

Well, at least we’re off the dog for a while, welcome to the summer doldrums folks!

As a meme floating around recently puts it: “Any unsolicited advice is criticism.”

Please, Pleeesssseee, shave!

I never did drugs or pot. Now at 84 I do drugs. Prescription drugs.

Especially a mother like Cru-Elly, who generally starts foaming at the mouth when her kids don’t take her [unsolicited] advice!

Unasked for advice is often criticism.

That last panel makes him look incredibly old. Less due to the facial hair, but more because his face looks smaller or gaunt to my eyes.

First impressions mean a lot, no matter the profession, dress the part. Get your foot in the door and let your performance speak for itself.

The only time my mother commented on my beard (I’ve had it well over 40 years), I was around Michael’s age, but mine was really thin and scraggly. Eventually I got the message and got rid of it. When it did grow in more fully, Mom never said another word — until about 3 1/2 years ago. Near the end of her life, on a FaceTime call, she commented on “that stuff on your face.” I chalked it up to FaceTime making it look even heavier and darker than it was — or were her meds letting the truth come out? I still keep it neatly trimmed, but shortly after she passed, I grew it out to where it now occupies somewhat more of my facial real estate. I sometimes wonder what she’d think, but it doesn’t keep me up at night.

In 2017, I had to lose the beard for a few weeks for a seasonal job with UPS (they had an “appearance clause”). My brother was impressed — said I looked much better and younger without it (I hated how I looked). But we never agree on anything, so I shrugged that off without a second thought.

Have faith,loyal readers,the lawn mower is coming!!