2011-11-20

A four-panel SMBC comic narrated in captions. Panel 1: "When I was little, I would wait by the street for Mom to pick me up from school." A young boy with bright orange hair and a backpack sits on a curb. Panel 2: "Mom drove a blue minivan, and I would try to estimate its arrival time." A close-up shows the boy resting his chin on his hand, thinking. Panel 3: "My method wasn't exactly scientific..." The boy says, "Okay... I just saw a red car then a blue car, then a turquoise minivan. I think we're getting close." Panel 4: "Though sometimes now I think this is how most adults experience waiting..." The boy, now a slouched, weary-looking adult on a couch, says, "I was excited when young, hopeful when I got older, content after that. Happiness must be coming soon..." The joke equates a child's hopeful guesswork about an arriving minivan with adults endlessly waiting for a happiness that may never come. Votey (aftercomic): captioned "More accurate me:" with an unflattering close-up of the orange-haired boy's face looking grim, tired, and miserable, undercutting the wistful tone.