Friday, September 6, 2013

The Straight Line has been Crossed


READERS- Rather than keep everyone on pins and needles (including those of you who might enjoy that sort of thing), I've decided to let you know what the future holds for Hope n' Change Cartoons. The answer may be just as vague, but far more honorable, than anything Barry has said about his plans for military engagement with Syria - though I'll have to admit that he didn't raise the bar very high.

Put simply, there are two dynamics which I have to balance. The first is that upon long and careful consideration my family situation simply won't let me commit to a reliable Monday, Wednesday, Friday publishing schedule at the present time. The second dynamic is that if I don't say SOMEthing about the jackass-in-chief on a semi-regular basis, I'll blow myself off the toilet by rocketing blood out of my keester. Which is actually sort of fun, but Mrs. Jarlsberg frowns heavily on the subsequent clean-up and decontamination procedures.

All of which boils down to this: Hope n' Change Cartoons will continue, but with no set publishing schedule.

So maybe I'll post every day some weeks, or maybe I'll go a week without being able to post anything. Maybe I'll post a cartoon, a cartoon and commentary, or just a graphic. When an idea and a little "me" time coincide, I'll post what I can - and when they don't, I won't.

I'm truly and genuinely sorry that I can't currently make a firmer commitment than that. I'm so humbled and honored that many of you have told me that you make a visit to Hope n' Change a regular part of your daily routine, and I don't want to disappoint anyone.

But wait! I've got a fiendish plan! At the top left of this page, you can add your name and email address to the Hope n' Change mailing list - and I'll send you an email whenever there's new content. There won't be any spam, and I won't reveal anything to the NSA because, frankly, I have no idea how this stuff works (much like Barack Obama and foreign policy).

Of course, you can still drop by as often as you want to chat with friends in the comments area, and I'll be there as often as possible too!

SOoooo, that's the new gameplan. I'm going to be attending to family issues first and foremost, but will also try to grab my bullhorn as often as possible (despite the danger of growing hair on my palms) because I genuinely believe that under current circumstances silence is a sin.

Thanks to ALL of you for your support and suggestions, and for staying with me on this wild ride. You have no idea how important all of you are to me.    -Stilton

PS: My other webcomic, Johnny Optimism, will continue to publish every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

31 comments:

Sparky said...

Your comments are always so liquid-spewing hilarious! I'm gonna have to buy a new keyboard if you [cough] keep that up. RE the continued posting "Yippee!" but concerning the family situation, still, lots of prayers for you and yours. This sounds like an excellent game plan. And that's guaranteed to not produce hairy palms. :)

txGreg said...

sounds like a great plan to me - best wishes.

tude dog said...

I wish the best for you and as usual look forward to your comments and pics.

WMD said...

I knew you wouldn't leave us hangin'. Thanks Doc.

Illegitimis nil carborundum!!

George said...

Keep those loved ones your priority. Thank you for whatever you 'feed' us on a weekly basis. With this administration, as you know, you'll NEVER be at a loss for content, regardless of when you have the time and motivation to create. All the best!

Anonymous said...

H&C will always be a major stop for me. Your family comes first.
- BarbaCat

Queso Grande said...

Just glad to see that things are balanced enough for you to be able to escape to this, your very own private Idaho.
I, and presumably we are all happy to have you keep us smiling in the face of such absurdities as..."I did not draw the red line" and........well, anything outa Biden's yap.
Even as lactose intolerant as I am, tonight I eat cheese in your honor!!!

Keep on keepin' on, Stilt.

JLVecchio said...

Don't worry about emailing me when you do an update, you are my homepage when I start my PC for the day. Then I check FB for updates rather than waiting another day for you to put it on your site. Take care and know that a lot of people are here for you should you need. John

Anonymous said...

Any little bit of anything is much better than nothing. You are the high point of my day and one of the few sane people in cartoon land. Thank you for sticking around. Jon

CenTexTim said...

Do what you need to do. We're behind you all the way - kind of like leading from behind...

I can't speak for the other readers, but for me HnC is kind of like dating back when I was single. I didn't get lucky all the time, but when I did it was damn sure worth it.

Hang in there...

Bruce O'Hara said...

A very Solomon-like solution :-)

graylady said...

Whoopee, Yippee, Hooray....... this is me dancing around the room. First thing I did was make sure I'm on the mailing list.

That said, never, never short change your family for us, Stilt. We love the cartoons and commentary but we all know family comes FIRST!

PS.... I had a cheese charm attached to my rosary. It's official you and yours are on the prayer list.

Larry Sheldon said...

I'll take it.

And thank you.

Let us know if we can help.

Bruce Bleu said...

Oh, this parody is SOOOO unfair. lamont didn't say ANYTHING about a "red line"! His is the "food stamp presi-dunce-y". He was referring to a "BREAD LINE" being crossed. You racists (he wasn't playing SPADES, he was playing AFRICAN-AMERICANS!) are all the same. Just because his stratospheric intelligence and his stellar communication skills make you feel inferior, you lash out at this poor man who is just trying to make frank marshall davis and the New african-american Panthers proud.
BTW, did you hear about the circus performer who trained his primate how to drive a German sports car instead of ride a dog? He got fired when he introduced him as a "Porsche Monkey".

Anonymous said...

Always enjoy your stuff. It's worth waiting for. :)

Anonymous said...

Glad to see you back no matter what the schedule. Hope the health issues in your family are improving!

Grafton Cheddar said...

Great resolution!

I love the toilet metaphor (and sympathize with Mrs. Jarlsberg) - it's tough having an ass-tronaut in the household.

Be well!

Anonymous said...

Email? The RSS feed works great for notifying me when there's a new comic out.

idahobob said...

Family is so very important.

And I'm glad that you will not be blowing blood out of your rectum for your wife to clean up. Yuk, what a mess that would be!

Will be enjoying what you post whenever you post it!

Bob
III

Necron99 said...

@Dr.J; I'm so pleased you've struck a "Happy Median" and decided to post when events allow. I, for one, am more than willing to wait for a "Hit & Run" posting (rather than have no posting at all)!

By all means, take care of your family first. They are the core of what makes us who we are. And as my Father used to say, "Son, we don't do things for ourselve's, we do them for the otther people in our life... And we do them without expecting anything in return."

I sympathize completely. In the past I may have mentioned my Father in Law has Parkinson's. Its getting to the advanced stages; body failure, dementia, etc. So I understand how hard it is to balance family, work, play, and rest. You do what you have to do and never give up the "Good Fight".

Life requires Noble Purpose... And you Sir, have one.

Thank you for your wit, wisdom, and patience.

Stilton Jarlsberg said...

@Readers- Fooey! Last night I responded to a bunch of your comments, and today I find that my remarks didn't post. Perhaps the NSA hasn't finished deciphering them yet. In any event, let me try again...

@Sparky, txGreg, tude dog, WMD, George, BarbaCat, Jon, Larry Sheldon, Anonymous 1 & Anonymous 2 (weren't you guys in "The Cat in the Hat?"), and IdahoBob - Thank you, one and all.

@Queso Grande- I have to admit that when Barry said "Hey, I didn't draw the red line!" I knew that I couldn't just keep my mouth shut...now, or in the future. This yutz can't say this stuff and have it go unanswered - even from here in the peanut gallery.

@JLVecchio- You've definitely got the situation covered! By the way, I sometimes post little things on Facebook that don't appear here, but that will probably change in the future so that ANYthing that tumbles out of my head will end up on this page.

@CenTexTim- Just don't go around telling your friends that I'm "easy."

@Bruce O'Hara- I appreciate the Solomon-like comparison, although "cutting a baby in half" seemed a lot wiser when King Solomon only proposed it than in current times, when King Obama demands it - and carries through.

@graylady- You put a "happy" tear on my cheek (no kidding) when I read about your rosary. I am humbled and deeply touched. Thank you.

@Bruce Bleu- I've been trying to think of "red line" jokes and completely overlooked the "bread line" connection. Well played, sir! And yes, I'll admit to laughing at your monkey joke.

@Grafton Cheddar- The trick to being an ass-tronaut is recognizing when things are about to hit escape velocity.

@Anonymous- I went with the email notification system because not everyone understands how RSS works. Or, more accurately, it's me who doesn't understand how it works, though I'm glad it does. Technology is increasingly something I grunt at, poke with a sharp stick, and then back away from.

@Necron99- Thank you for the kind thoughts. This is a good opportunity for me to say that I know that everyone has challenges in life, and many people (including many who have posted here) have far greater challenges than my family is currently dealing with. I'm so sorry about your Father-in-Law, and so grateful that you've taken time out from carrying your own burdens to try to take a bit of the weight off of mine.

And that goes for everyone here. Again, thank you all so much.

Preacher Webb said...

May the God of Israel bless you and show you the way,...may He do that for ALL of us! (especially our president!)

DougM said...

No to the email.
I'm keepin' you on the second tab for my daily web exercise.
That way, if you've posted something new, it's like finding an extra french fry in the bottom of the bag.

Anonymous said...

Yeah! The cheeseman stayeth! Life absolutely would not be the same without your outrageous takedowns of the walking turd.
Thanks and God bless.

Pete (Detroit) said...

Greylady, in re the rosary - Brilliant! I love the technique, agree w/ the sentiment, and the delivery on your sharing of it was perfect - I LOLd, tehn had just a bit of eye sweat. Well DONE, ma'am, and WELL said.
In general, I agree w/ the others, I'll not sign up for the email - I check 3+ times, most days, just to see who's saying what. Don't comment myself so much, as if I don't happen to be early, someone else has probably said what I want to, and often better. While I have nothing against 'like' buttons, I'm not going to go through the bot hassle just to put 'yeah, whut they sed' out there.
Which is the ONLY reason I'm not echoing the unanimous sentiments on your work, your family our prayers, and Klingons around Uranus...

It's a lovely community you've inspired here, Stilt, and my life is better for having you all in it.
Thanks!
(and yes, even the occasional troll is part of that - it i healthy to hae defend your self / beliefs once in a while, and 'the test of a man is not how he acts when life is easy, but how he behaves in the face of adversity')

Pecozbill said...

We obviously will miss the regularity, Stilton, but then, at our age, irregularity is the name of the game..

Hope all continues to go well -- look forward to your occasional offerings...

Be well, my friend.......

Sarah Rolph said...

Good plan! THANK YOU!

Well, I signed up for the email, not only because I, too, am at the grunt/poke/back-away stage when it comes to technology (ROFLMAO at your phrase), but also because it will help me join the conversation earlier! Best comment community on the internet.

REM1875 said...

Doc- thank for the warning on grasping the bullhorn- no hair on my palms yet but I have been squinting a lot and may need glasses.

TrickyRicky said...

I actually have been on pins and needles and am very pleased that you can find the time to continue to post your hilarious comments on a far from hilarious decline in our 200+ year experiment in personal freedom. YAY! I hope that your family's medical situation improves rapidly and significantly. Hang tough.

IGnatius T Foobar said...

No worries ... I'm signed up for the RSS feed so I get all of the smarmy goodness whenever it's posted.

I appreciate your candor and wish more people would give the socialist scum the disrespectful shaming they truly deserve!

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear you're back. A wonderful surprise!