A pithy comic strip about life, love, lust and puthy cats.

Est. 1985

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Café Arlo & Janis

By Jimmy Johnson


Buy the new book, "Beaucoup Arlo & Janis!"Today's "Arlo & Janis!"
Have I shown you this little drawing? I thought I had, but I couldn’t find any evidence of it searching the blog archives. Anyway, I have always liked this vignette. I don’t know why; probably because I like to waste time in cozy cafés myself. I can’t remember what I had in mind when I drew it. Perhaps it was intended for coffee-cup art. There must have been some purpose, because I seldom draw for my own amusement. Whatever the project, it was never realized. I like this scene so much, I’ve drawn several versions: a larger version, a warm-weather version, a less somber, more frivolous version. OK, so maybe I do draw for my own amusement now and then. There is even one mirror-image version, with Gene seated on the left and Arlo and Janis on the right. This leads me to think the purpose of that particular piece was coffee-cup art, for that would have put Arlo and Janis front and center for right-handed coffee drinkers. I’m thinking I might work a version into the new Web site. Remember when the Worldwide Web was new? It was perceived as a gathering place, often a metaphorical café. I have always liked that, too.

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159 responses to “Café Arlo & Janis”

  1. emeritus minn. biologist Avatar
    emeritus minn. biologist

    OF due 1608-1628 CST. No bison in sight. Have no idea where the Anons. came from in the earlier posts. Maybe they had not recovered from the anesthesia. Peace, emb.

  2. emeritus minn. biologist Avatar
    emeritus minn. biologist

    Ruth Anne: Thanks / pitching in while I was in la la-land.

    ““Why name something that isn’t going to answer to it anyway?” Do any cats really answer to their names? “Far Side” or some such had two panels, each owner and pet. In dog panel, owner’s balloon said, ““““`Rover! ““`.” Cat panel, “““““`!““““`.”

    Also, I’m not sure about some dogs.

    Time to check out TIP.

  3. anon Avatar
    anon

    Anonymous: Would an artifical inseminator be a sowing machine?

  4. Old Bear Avatar
    Old Bear

    emb
    Our Rose comes when called – mostly. All know their names it is just a whim
    if they come. The look we get sometimes. And there are times they read our mind.

    Good luck with procedure

  5. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    At least he didn’t say, “I’ve been practicing animal husbandry all my life, and I know a sweet little heifer when I see one.”

  6. TruckerRon Avatar

    Whoever did the edit did it on purpose! I’d rank it not quite as evil as NBC’s edit of an infamous 911 tape which made the caller sound racist, but it was insulting to the couple.

  7. anon Avatar
    anon

    emb, on the topic of how well our pets understand what we say, this old one from The Far Side: https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/28/86/74/288674c2d17547b9805710aa611be4ee.jpg

  8. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Kanye West pulls twofer at Grammy Awards…proves he is even less relevant than his wife in the scheme of things that matter, and at the same time maxes out the Jerk-O-Meter. I suppose I’d be disturbed by his antics if I actually cared anything about the Grammy Awards. But I don’t.

  9. emeritus minn. biologist Avatar
    emeritus minn. biologist

    I once watched part of the Oscars awards decades ago. There are better ways to waste time.

    Bear: explanation of: “No milk in tea or decaf; I found that tea made with clear apple juice isn’t bad.”
    Prep day you’re allowed tea, coffee, decaf, but no milk products [real or fake], clear fruit juices & soft drinks, none of it red or purple. I like milk [no sugar] in both tea and coffee [+ a touch of 1/2 1/2 in coffee]#.

    Black decaf at home yesterday was tolerable, but relatively strong* black tea was a little much. I brew a cup of tea by nuking a small ceramic pitcher of water, pouring the water into a mug containing a tagless [damn speelczech] tea bag, squeezing most of the air out, then putting the cup in the m’wave for about 4 min. So I tried pouring boiling house brand apple juice in instead. That tea wasn’t bad. When what you take in all day is liquids, you get creative.

    #I get an 8oz 2% from the cafeteria to milk my coffee from the pretty good machine by my volunteer desk at the hospital. [Volunteers eat free at the cafeteria.]
    *Taylors [no ‘] of Harrowgate Yorkshire Tea, by appt. to HRH the Prince of Wales, etc. Much as I dislike Charles, I like their tea. Peace, emb

  10. emeritus minn. biologist Avatar
    emeritus minn. biologist

    Whoops: “…then putting the cup in the m’wave at Power 1 for about 4 min.”

  11. Mark in TTown Avatar
    Mark in TTown

    emb, yes, liquids in and liquids out. Been there, done that. At least they have that flavorless powder that you can mix into liquids as you did.

  12. Mark in TTown Avatar
    Mark in TTown

    Good luck with the procedure, and you will really enjoy your food afterwards, having been on liquids for over 24 hours!

  13. Charlotte in NH Avatar
    Charlotte in NH

    Dear emb, I’ll bet you are glad to have the procedure over and done with. And best of all, they didn’t find any problems! All was negative, as you said.

    I wonder how Jackie is doing with her Smartphone; remember, she said it had been Mike’s so she was going to have to learn how to use its features. I can just imagine myself trying to do the same thing. It would take a while!

  14. Mark in TTown Avatar
    Mark in TTown

    If it is from ATT, she can go to their website and most likely find tutorial videos and slideshows to walk her through some of the most common things. They had them for mine when I changed last December.

    And if it has Google Maps, it has free voice-guided GPS directions. That’s handy, but like a politician’s promises, should be taken with a grain of salt!

  15. Mark in TTown Avatar
    Mark in TTown

    Debbe, here’s one for after work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKITpZRDEW4

  16. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Jackie, I missed where you said you already had a Smart Phone. I believe it will make you wonder how you did without one all this time, especially when you begin to travel extensively. As far as operating it, don’t worry. There is a learning curve, but it’s not exactly rocket surgery.

  17. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Debbe 😉

  18. Jerry in Fl Avatar
    Jerry in Fl

    I just drink flavored water as a chaser. It’s clear and gets rid of the bad taste of the medicine. One other thing-when the doc says ok, you’re good for 10 years, I politely tell him bs. I’ll see you in two years. Those that have been here for awhile have heard my prostate cancer story and I prefer surgery to being dead, which is where I would be now.

  19. Debbe Avatar
    Debbe

    Good morning Villagers…..

    Yes, there is an abundance of “Crazy Cat People” here, and I love it. Nothing like sitting in my recliner with two cats lying on my lap and chest…purring. Monday night is grooming, brushing the cats…they love it when the brush is used on their cheeks…that’s how they ‘mark’ us, the glands in their cheeks.

    Mark, love the tune, thanks. A while back you posted a link your ex sent to you of your cats. Wasn’t Annie in that video…I enjoyed watching it and the music she put together for you.

    Emb…so glad things turned out for the good for you.

    Denise…dust masks are always there….the last cleansing took place in August, in the heat of summer, when I did wear a mask, it was torture..hot, mucky, and unbearable to breath. But, I learned a lesson…wear the dang thing when .chick$hit dust is flying. Last week, Ian cleaned the fan shutters and outside walls below the fans…dust was thick, and he wore a respirator. Still came down with a respiratory infection….it still comes thru the tear ducts…the dust is so fine. We have eye goggles, but they don’t fit well over glasses….must look into seeing if they have goggles for those who wear glasses.

    Jackie is in for a long ride home with those cats in cages….I hope they give her peace and quite….I know that some of my cats did not enjoy the ride into town…meowing all the way.

    Old Bear…lots of crazy farmer here. My one nephew-in-law is supposed to ride with a crazy farmer friend of his to Pennsylvania….seems this guy met a lady over the internet. I asked my husband if he had met her thru that farmersonly.com. site.

    Jerry, glad you see your doctor every two years…would miss your postings 🙂

    I don’t feed my cats canned food, they get hard food….and there is a big difference in the litter box too besides the smell on your hands.

    Got work clothes in dryer….later…

    =^..^=

    …as always, GR 😉

  20. Mindy from Indy Avatar
    Mindy from Indy

    Today’s real-time is perfect. Draw me one too, Jimmy!

  21. Debbe Avatar
    Debbe

    Gal…..how are you doing?

  22. Debbe Avatar
    Debbe

    Indy Mindy…..ya better stock up…..the low on Saturday night here will be 6 degrees, with a high tomorrow of 47 degrees…….up and down, up and down….this is starting to make my nose bleed…the temps…up and down. 🙂

  23. Ghost Rider 6 Avatar
    Ghost Rider 6

    Well, that’s one way to get Janis back in her yellow bikini. Which she seems to be filling out better than she once did.