From FOMO to IMO
“Did I miss anything?”
Is there a more loaded question than that one in this era? These days, you can miss a LOT just by blinking. But then again—these days—most of what you’re missing is stuff you wish you’d never seen.
I like the term “FOMO,” which stands for “fear of missing out” and describes that sense that many people have of wanting to attend all the right parties and events in fear of missing out on something.
I used to have a touch of that when I was younger but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to believe the most important things we miss are much more likely to be interior than exterior. Our move to Mexico was an attempt to escape the ludicrous, utterly unnecessary toxicity that the U.S. has descended into. We’ve gone from FOMO to IMO: Intentionally Missing Out.
Call me crazy but I still believe that a majority of adults in the U.S. are smart enough to know when they’re being conned and enough of them will shake off the hangover of living under the thumb of a spoiled rich kid’s tantrums and vote against ignorance and bullying and send the majority of the GOP packing. Time will tell.
But let us speak no more of this unpleasantry.
Instead, let’s talk about the new direction of our BIZARRO SHOP!
We’ve decided to scale the shop down to a few very fun, completely affordable doo-dads and thingies. We have a few enamel pins left but when they’re gone, we’re not reordering them because they’re an expensive hassle and we’re all about not doing expensive hassles anymore. We hope you’ll like the tchotchkes we’ve added and will grab a handful of fun stuff for yourself or your friends. Take it from me, putting a pie sticker in a random place is a fun way to avoid a few minutes of pandemic bullshittery.
The Jazz Pickle Koozies are made of high-quality neoprene so, in theory, you could buy a couple hundred, glue them together and create a wetsuit. Just saying.
And what would my blog post be without a mention of my graphic novel, Peyote Cowboy?
Don’t answer that.
Anyone with Internet access (or with a neighbor with Internet and some binoculars) can read it for free online at PeyoteCowboy.net. I’m only 8 short episodes into the book so you can still catch up easily in a few minutes. If you’d like to get an amusing email with a link to each new episode I post, sign up here.
Below is a super sneak preview of episode 9, which posts on Tuesday, 6 Oct. (Pixellated here to avoid plot spoilers.)
Now let’s see what alchemical concoctions of comedy Wayno has been dipping his Bizarro cartoons into this week…
I think it would be fun to have a cell phone that looked like that and you just carry it around awkwardly sticking out of your jacket pocket or shoulder bag. I’m not sure where the screen would be. I’m still working on this.
I used to feel kind of sorry for spoiled rich kids until one of them ruined the country of my birth.
Dude, jest get over it.
Sorry, pops. As an essential, front-line worker you’re going to have to lose a few more limbs while the rich folks sit comfortably in their castle complaining about you wanting handouts.
There is much about this cartoon to love, from the multi-layered, surreal combo of two different kinds of dummies and their relationship to safe driving, to the hilariously wasted look on the ventriloquist dummy’s face and the home screen of the other dummy’s phone. The line is perfect, too. I just love it.
Dinner was good but the cobbler could have been hotter. Don’t forget to check out Wayno’s weekly blog post about this batch. He always provides amusing insights to his cartoons and includes a fun, oddball song via video at the end.
That cacophonous sound is us slamming into the wall of our comedy crash-test, Jazz Dummies. Thanks for buckling up for the entire trip with us. If you like what we do and want to help us keep doing it, please consider bouncing your eyeballs off of a few of the links below. All of us at Rancho Bizarro will be tickled to hear of your support!
Until next time, be smart, be kind, and vote to save the world.
…King Features Subscription + archive access
…Signed, numbered, limited edition prints and original Bizarro panels