Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for January 24, 2014

I smell stink In 4…3…2…1… “Booom”!…..— Wow, that’s Cold !”…… “Sniff” icantly so!… – Lu is picking Tiff’s brain, but Tiffany thinks she’s gone far enough….. She also thinks Lu doesn’t have room to talk… or… eh.. Maybe she does …..but at any rate, it’snot what what one nose, it’s what one does…. and Lu now nose this subject is sore and sensitive did they both blow a chance at clearing the air between them?….is Tiffany “Coasting” on a change of her name to “Charlie Brown”?…Do the girls now think that small talk stinks?….

“The Personal Section”“Boogie Fights”“No Room To Breathe”“Pick Of The Sitters”“Honk If You’re Too Close”“Sniff-icant Information”“Why Are You Hounding Me?”or“Nobody Nose The Trouble I’ve Seen”…

Luann had better do the hair flip and keep on walking. Lol

You can pick your friends, you can pick your nose. But you can’t pick your friend’s nose.

Undoubtedly Luann will want to talk to Quill about this. Luann needs to frame the debate. She should say, "Tiffany said my nose is wierd. Well #%&* Her!!! ". That would steer Quill toward an appropriate response.

“Snifficant contributions made” by the following…. – Pop’s Ol’ Factories…. “Our production plants are expert importers and exporters in all things air…Movers in the air business for… well, for a long time!..” – Common Scents Parfums…. An Earl de Turlette Colleciton… “You really don’t have any scents…. Unless you have ‘Common Scents!’’ …” – and by… the Precision Rhinoplasty Center, Drs. Baba Streiss and Jim Durr-Antte….

Poor Empire beautician… – (Blonde Vader:) “I find your lack of cosmetology skills to be disturbing!….”

If her dad is willing to pay for college, she shouldn’t ask too many questions!

I thought a while back that Luann was interested in theater. She talked to her mom about it and that was before Quill came along. Why doesn’t she go to Moony U?

Tiffany can talk about her looks…and maybe some assorted small talk. Looks like she may never become a real companion to anyone. I suspect some movie stars are like that. So at least she is qualified in this respect.

@JPuzzleWhiz (yesterday) Fun dayn moyl in gots oyrekh.

Tiffany: Can’t Understand Normal Thinking…

I’m so tired of this Tiffany ends up at the same place as Quill and throws herself at him story. C’mon, it’s getting old.

“My nose isn’t weird. It’s just a botched plastic surgery job.”

I never thought that Moony University would be so exclusive. I mean they are accepting Luann after all. I don’t see why they wouldn’t accept Tiffany.

The consensus is that your nose is weird, Luann. Or at least “cute.” Would you prefer cute?

Tiffany is very defensive about her home life and her dubious relationship with her father. I wonder if there will be a big revelation concerning that?

Lu?

A Much BETTER Question Is: Why Do YOU Continue to HELP Someone Who CONSTANTLY Tears You Down All the Time???

Oh, and One MORE Question: Why Can’t YOU Get Into Moony U?? Is the College Only Accepting BRIBES Now???

I was thinking more Norma Desmond in “Sunset Blvd”…

I actually think this one’s kind of sweet, Tiffany getting support from Luann’s peeps

Probably one of her best performances. Loved the movie, not the rat part. The rest was great.

It depends on what you consider “weird”. I mean, it’s perfectly normal, for a snout.

no-one else commenting on Greg once again tearing down the 4th wall? He must be responding to all the comments about Luann’s nose! If he mentions duck lips next ….^^I saw that right off, made me laugh out loud! :D

that kid’s one to talk. her nose looks like a ski jump

Tiffany gets this feeling everyday as she’s harassed by her fellow classmates. Her life just keeps getting worse.

^^Well, whenever Luann tries to reach out to her, she acts the way you see above, Tiff is a hateful and very selfish person, who treats any might-be friend like garbage, why would anyone like her, unless she “lets them in”?

CLICK THUMBNAIL

Luann started their conversation by saying Tiffany’s life has no meaning^^By asking about her Dad?

Someone donated good money to get Tiffany into drama camp last summer. Tiffany’s daddy. Tiffany tries hard to make herself beautiful to be accepted by her father, I bet.

, but someone told me yesterday that her parents gave her 7,000 dollars to spend on makeup and other girl things.^^To be precise, he let’s her use his credit card, with a $7000 limit, in 1980s money(Click thumbnail for strip)

Luann started their conversation by saying Tiffany’s life has no meaning and by teasing her about Quill. Why would Tiffany want to ever open up to Luann? Luann bullies her everyday.^Really? where did she say that? She asked a question. Than another based on the response. Then Tiff went off on her AND insulted her. ^^^^Wednesday Luann told Tiffany that teaching may give her life “some MEANING”. Not deeper meaning, but implying currently her life has no meaning at all. Thursday, when Tiffany asked to whom Luann was referring, Luann told her “Quill is mine”. Those were both, on some level, antagonistic comments. -I think Tiffany is selfish, somewhat unintelligent and she does make rude, snotty comments to her frenemy. It’s just that Luann is ALSO selfish, somewhat unintelligent and makes rude, snotty comments to her frenemy.

“Y’know, teaching might give your life some meaning, Tiffany.” – Luann, after observing Tiffany helping someone^^Your interpretation doesn’t jive with Luann’s personality, what Luann is saying is “Tiff, I know you feel like your life is going nowhere, you have a chance at proving yourself here, maybe this is your calling, think about it.”

“…about Luann’s nose! If he mentions duck lips next ….”

^And don’t forget feet! Luann has been known before to be pretty self-conscious of her feet……

Oh, by the way, Luannhater, recall the ONE person who purchased Tiffany’s PR photo after the Theatre…. Camp play.^^Exactly, if you go back to the beginning of the strip, Lu and Tiff WERE friends, Aaron Hill seemed to put a wedge into their relationship. Over the years Luann has tried several times to repair the gap, only to have Tiff double-cross her. (Lu tries for cheerleader story- Volleyball team story, etc)

Actually it’s your eyebrows in the middle of your hair that’s weird.

We don’t KNOW if she has rich parents. We don’t know anything about her home life. ^Her daddy gave her a card with a $7,000 limit. You tell me how that is possible if there isn’t some money in there? It may not be “Dynasty” rich, maybe not “Dallas” rich… but it sure is “Pitts” rich…… – And a lot of times, if one is above what is perceived as “middle class”, in the eyes of the people “below”, then those people “above” are at the very least going to be perceived as “comfortable”… or from that “lower” position looking on, they’d also be likely to regard them as having some kind of money (at least more than most)….

A comparable example of the Farrell’s possibility of being “comfortable”, is the Huxtable household… with a successful gynecologist with a private practice and working also at a hospital, and an attorney who eventually came to be a controlling partner at a law firm, they were perceived in that series by various outside characters as being “rich”, though they didn’t live the lifestyle of a rich family….

Due to a lot of issues that go on with school systems, sometimes teachers aren’t put in the best light… – My wife is a teacher’s assistant at a school for children with special needs )…. including behavior problems, mental and physical challenges, and kids that somehow get sifted out of the “regular” school system… -She also has to train in how to physically restrain a student who “goes off” (they use the term “go into crisis”) and is a threat to the safety of themselves and anyone else around them… sometimes , this has to be done in public… – Lawyers, Doctors, Police and a few other professions get maligned a lot, but for Teachers, it is not an image that is “one size fits all”, or “if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all”… Knowing some who are in the other professions, I could definitely also say the same for the others (Doctors, etc.) as well…. - Having assisted some of the staff of this school in an outside fashion, volunteering my clerical and a few other skills to assist various ones, and having a good idea (and personal knowledge) about what they go through, I can verify that there are educators, and other various support staff in the schools that are worth more than the salary they earn….

“…nor removed her ‘MissC of C’ crown.” ^Two words: "T….J…. " – That time, that was the reason she lost that crown…

Methinks ye put too much on Tiffany.Most of what you consider attacks on her are responses to her words and actions.For the most part people treat her better than she deserves, just as most treat most of us better than we deserve.

Mentioning what others have also said is not the same as breaking the fourth wall.If I say the sky is blue and a comic strip character says it is blue, does not mean the former caused the latter.

I like that movie! – seem to watch it every time it comes on at 2AM….

Teachers work more than six hours a day. They grade papers and plan their lessons. Those plans have deadlines, too. The prinicpal checks those weekly plans every week. They buy things with their own money for their classroom and students. Some take college courses during the summer or evenings.

The unfortunate thing is, way too many people have bought into the idea pushed by today’s politicians that the sole and only reason for failure of kids (esp low income kids) is because of teachers. It amazes me that anyone still goes into that profession, in light of the total lack of respect shown for it.- And interestingly, as the much-hated post WW 2 generation of teachers is retiring, colleges are reporting that fewer kids are electing to pursue teaching degrees.-Just a few days ago, I made the mistake of posting an opinion that when Luann was suggesting that Tiffany consider teaching because it was meaningful, that it was actually Greg speaking. Most posters who responded eviscerated me for not chastizing Luann for suggesting someone’s life wasn’t meaningfu. But there was one who opined that teaching gave people information they baredly needed, and Tiffany’s desired profession, acting, at least made people happy.-I wonder how those posters learned to use words in order to write posts on this board, if not from a teacher? But supposedly teaching provides nothing of value.-I am not a teacher, but have relatives who were (most retired now), and a niece and nephew currently teaching English as a second language in other countries. It would not suprise me at all if US students who are still interested in teaching all end up working overseas. And the kids generated by the teacher-haters here will have to be either home schooled, or taught by the foreign immigrants who are now learning English from US students in their home countries….

My impression is that Tiffany has always been interested PRIMARILY in beauty, clothes and makeup. The passion for acting is relatively and a most important development (I wished Greg had gone further into that and Tiff’s enthusiasm for being a part of something bigger than herself.) I saw that strip as Luann seeing Tiff helping the bullied girl and suggesting that teaching could also act as a meaningful endeavor.

This from Greg’s “Luann” Facebook page, courtesy of MJ…..

For some reason, he wants Luann to be at a different school than Quill and Tiffany and Bernice, but still in the same town.^Pretty much = instant conflict and story, it would seem if it works out that way… All the “dramatic” plots involving Lu trying to keep an eye on Quill at Moony with Tiff, and at the same time trying to keep her college grades “stay worthy”…

Luann did not tell Tiffany her life had no meaning.She STARTED with the reasonable assumption Tiffany’s life had no real meaning since it seems to center on self-glorification rather than helping others. She saw something Tiffany might be good at and which helped others and suggested Tiffany nMight find personal fulfillment in it.Friends try to help each other. Even though Tiffany insists on denying they are friends, Luann treats her otherwise because Luann is a good person and Tiffany is not a lost cause..And while we are at it, it is possible Tiffany’s parents are deeply involved and have tried to help her in every way they know. They may not do it as wisely or as well as you or I would, but that does not automatically mean they are not trying..Further, even IF Tiffany’s father is NOT showing her the attention shee needs, it is possible what he IS doing is demanding his attention. Since we’re just imagining, maybe he is trying to broker a peace deal in Syria, possibly saving tens of thousands of lives. Maybe he is involved in a vaccination program which will save millions of lives. He could be starting a factory in a third world country which would bring thousands out of abject poverty. Even if he loves Tiffany with all his heart, he might have to sacrifice her perfect upbring to the demands of the desperate. Cut him some slack ere you project the failings of others on him.

-Maybe Luann and that little girl can get a ‘two fer’

-The old slogan was ‘Better living through chemistry’. I guess today’s would be ‘Better living through plastic surgery…’-Both slogans are equally sad…

-I thought maybe you were a new reader, identifying with Tiffany because you had been bullied.-Even though I haven’t read the comic as long as some on this board, I’ve read it long enough to recognize that Luann is not a bully.-There are a significant number of folks like you online, who continue to read comics that annoy them. To all of you, I ask this (even though I’ve been attacked for doing so): Why read something that bothers you? Life is short enough. Why volunteer for additional annoyance?

In the January 7 strip we saw that Luann’s nose looks normal, from underneath. It looks OK in profile, too. It’s when it’s seen face-on that it is snout-like. Perhaps that’s what Tiffany means when she says it looks “weird”, that its appearance so much changes with orientation.

Remember when “Moonie” meant something else entirely….or Moony…..

One with a weird nose, one stacked.

-I know I haven’t been reading the comic for more than a year or so, but I haven’t seen anything to suggest that Tiffany has bad grades at all. -There have been several suggestions that Luann isn’t concentrating much on school work, so it’s logical to conclude that her grades would work against admission to a university. But I’ve seen nothing that suggests that Tiffany has bad grades. -There are a lot of kids who have to work part time (to help with family finances, or save for college if they want to go), and there is no automatic connection between spending free time on something other than studying and earning bad grades. In fact, most public high schools will notify kids that they have to improve their grades if they want to graduate on time, and I’ve seen no info suggesting that Tiffany ever got a notice like that….

- Luann did not go “oops, I didn’t mean it like that.” -Luann really didn’t have any time to jump into the conversation to say ‘I didn’t mean it like that’, because, if you will remember, a little kid came up to them to tell Tiffany that he saw her picture. And the conversation went in a different direction.-I still believe that the words put into Luann’s mouth about ‘meaningful’ were a direct message from Greg to teen readers. The comic has had numerous arcs recently that deal with kids deciding what to do with their lives after high school. Since Greg’s own daughter trained as a teacher, it would be no surprise that he would use his comic characters to suggest that as a viable option to his readers….

-Please tell me what college offers a degree in ‘janitorial studies’….just sayin’…..

Those that can, do.Those that can’t, teach. Those that can neither do nor teach become administrators bossing the doers, or critics of the doers.

“Note that buying her way into college doesn’t help her, she’ll still have to get good grades there and she likely won’t if she can’t in high school and all her horrible friends are joining her at Moony to make fun of her”*ReallyBad, unfortunately, that’s not true. Decades ago when I went to State U in the pristine days of innocence, some of my wealthier dorm-mates had daddies buying papers for them, taking tests for them, paying grad students to write papers for them.*Yeah, on the job they weren’t much. But heck, as long as they had underlings to handle the details, daddy’s money did the rest!*Note: I’m not bitter, just amused. I’ve had a terrific, challenging life doing important work— which they wouldn’t have the ability to fathom.

What I would think would be fabulous would be if we find Ann working there, running the campus bookstore. She has experience in that field.^^ And in sexually harassing teens of both sexes

-Although I haven’t seen any evidence of the school notifying Luann that she might be in danger of not graduating, taking a look at ‘Luann Again’ from time to time shows her as less than academically inclined. So I concluded that she is one of many (like my sister) who may or may not have put the effort in, but still didn’t succeed in high grades.-Luann did not spend all of her free time goofing around. She had a job at the library until cutbacks eliminated that position. Now, she works in an after school child care program for grade school kids. Again, since there’s been no arc showing that she received a letter of warning from her high school, there’s no reason to assume all her grades are bad. But college these days is much more competitive than when I was going, so grades now have to be better. Especially in science and math classes.

-Kids are not identical robots. Just because my brother was great at math didn’t mean I would be. Despite working hard, I just made it through math classes. On the other hand, I did well with history, English and science. Our sister had trouble with everything. Our parents were equally supportive of all of us. It isn’t all about the parents. Kids have inborn abilities (and disabilities, like reading disabilities). It’s important to be aware of individual characteristics and not assume that someone who doesn’t do well on tests has been ‘goofing off’.

Having Luann go to Pitt Community College while her high school friends to to Moony Uni (also in Pitt) will let Greg Evans have the best of both works to work with, since Luann can continue to interact with the old cast while she starts meeting new people at Pitt CC. That will allow a gradual transition from one set of characters to another, without a sharp change that might cause some long-time readers to lose interest.

The little girl has a nose that resembles my grandmother’s nose, may she rest in peace knowing that she passed her nose down to no one in the family. The little girl is just saying what she thinks Tiffany wants to hear.

And that is the one indictment of some school systems….. – Either "pass ‘em up and out’ all unprepared like, (and for some, possibly become someone else’s problem), or make it so that the system looks as though it’s more successful on the surface… – In the 70s and 80s, the Public Television I grew up with had shows like “Jackson Jr. High”, which taught Middle and High Schoolers about the importance of learning what alcohol is, it’s consumption, history, and especially how to view the potential dangers that come with it’s abuse… and children’s shows taught social and behavioral skills and social consequences, along with the entertainment…. and puppets weren’t afraid to bang their felt heads on pianos… – Fast forward to today?… No more shows to to reach out to the older kids, and all of the younger kids’ shows seem little more than half hour merchandising infomercials with some incidental education.. – In this same way, some academic programs seem to take the same approach…. and as I mentioned earlier, there are many teachers who are not allowed to reach their students in the most effective way, and instead are made to “dumb things down” as was mentioned, in exchange for being able to say: “We’re number one again!” in the ‘success rate’….

Belief in a Master Plan assumes control over waaaay too many factors. Grade inflation is interesting when usually reasonable want a high score just so it will be high. People cheat for good grades in subjects they don’t care enough to learn.Florida adjusted their grading because it was obviously flawed because it indicated our kids aren’t all Einsteins. We also dropped the FCAT, Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test, because it kept assessing them to be “no comprende”. Simpler to just give all A’s and let them try to convince prospective employers they they are better than the special ed kid they just tried out. ( My wife had a student complain about an ordinary A rather than an A+. People especially wanted Special Ed kids to feel special — to the point “special” is now used as an insult.)

Luann’s nose may be “weird”, but Gunther’s is completely deformed. It’s like a curled-up elephant trunk. See the January 2 strip.

We certainly need to make sure that there is absolutely no risk whatsoever in anyone’s lives… ^Which is actually part of the subject matter of “Canary In A Coalmine” by the Police…..

Look at what Tiffany is teaching that little girl…that calling the shape of one’s nose (or feet or legs or etc.) is OK because Miss Tiffany said so… :P As far as Tiff goes about getting into MU, it seems a bit of a stretch that there is any other way she gets in except for Daddy (who must have promised the school a new building or something). There is usually a procedure for getting into a freshman class: SAT, good grades, extracurricular activities (well, she does have that one), the desire to succeed, the desire to act like an adult and put petty high school tantrums aside… ;)

Replying to yesterday’s post: I agree…Luann does need to know that Quill has her first in his heart…things can change pretty quickly once one goes on to university… ;)

“The little girl that agrees Luann’s nose is weird looking in panel 3 may have a surprise in her future, as her nose is far weirder than she perceives Luann’s to be. I was able to travel into the future and bring back an image of her…”.Yay, Hildegard Hamhocker! I loved that strip,Tumbleweeds, when I was a kid.

Now we know who Tiffany’s benefactor was that got her into drama camp!

It’s such a part of the pattern that I didn’t even think to notice it, but pointing out perceived physical imperfections in others is typical of those only interested in physical perfection.