#995 + 996 – call her back

Atmospherically I was thinking about an ex who worked the last shift at a coffee shop in Noho, who I'd sometimes join at closing time. It's one of those time periods I both miss and find completely unrecognizable. I struggled with the message of this one, but I think it works. I think I wanted to show how easily Jane detaches from her job, and how therapeutic that is for Mar, who finds hers inescapable. When she thinks she's been recognized by her boss, Mar summons her own private reservoir one last time, one final wedge between her and Jane that is quickly dissolved. Why you quiet??

5 thoughts on “#995 + 996 – call her back

  1. Oh yeah, not remembering people, while working in retail. Ick! 🙁
    FWIW- I once worked for a small toy store, + this store was part of a chain of stores.

    I once helped this office-worker-looking woman, when I was on a register.
    She was very friendly, + Said, "Hi, TRA! How's your parents?"
    I said, "OH, just fine! Thank you", while not recognizing her at all.
    Then after, she left, I said: "Oh Geez! That's Sally! I literally see her + her husband, at their cabin, each summer! XD

  2. I've worked in retail for a long time, and Jane's line "I see that exact person like 5000 times per second" always hits me in a very real place.

    1. I don't work in retail anymore, and every time say good morning to the gate guards and flash my badge, I am reminded and happy that I don't have to see Mar's boss anymore. It's been the routine for six years now, and it still hits me every morning.

  3. I feel like this sort of ties into the earlier comic where Mar’s coworkers had no idea who Will was despite all she told them about him. She and her boss get along, even bond over their shared heritage, but Mar just had mop a coffee shop floor to be unrecognizable. I think part of getting older is realizing you’re just an occasional fixture in people’s lives and other people really don’t think about you that much. It’s kind of sad but ultimately helps you be way less neurotic

  4. That "kkh!!" is just perfect for a certain kind of surprised chuckle.

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