Frog Applause by Teresa Burritt for October 09, 2010

It is a human thing. Few suceed.

My real first name is Ransom. Is yours?

I’m still young enough to die young.

Normally I put cartoonists who make me put on my reading glasses and lean close to the monitor to try to read obscure background text in the old pootbutt category. I’ll make an exception today, as the background text appears to be an exquisite northern Italian lasagna recipe.

Amen, brother.

T., is there a ‘d’ where a ‘t’ ‘spozed to be? Just askin’.

one foot in the grave….

Wait. Was this strip here yesterday? I checked and saw no new strip. Today is Sunday. This is Saturday’s FA.

Being old sucks.

I’m waiting for Flight Suit to explain the BOAT post. Whose hand is that?

http://obituarytypo.blogspot.com/2010/10/boat.html

Grammar police here. eagleskies is correct, and Teresa is not. The word here should be “content,” not “contend.” I attribute this to her fever-fuddled brain and let her off with a warning this time.

–Official FA grammar police officer Sisyphos

I would argue that “content” is a state of being… while “contend” is a verb… as in to deal with, or strive for, and taken in the context of the sentence Teresa used, she is correct.

But I’m still trying to contend with the image of The Man Who Laughs so perhaps I’m the one with the brain fever!!

(“I look forward to your letters….” ~Craig Ferguson)

His shadow looks content. Does he contend his shadow? Is he looking in his trousers for an answer?

“Contend” (meaning struggle) is something you do with something else - you can contend with yourself, but you can’t contend yourself. However, you can content yourself (make yourself content). So in this context, Gabriel, Teresa *is* mistaken (a rare thing, it’s true) and I’m sure the Whipping Boy will hear about it.