Okay, it's getting a little scrambled, so I'm going to break it down for you:
1) Toby has volunteered to bring a dessert to the Charterstone Meeting and is feeling overwhelmed.
2) Saul Wynter's cousin has died.
Now, this is where it gets confusing...
3) Saul's cousin's son-in-law or daughter-in-law has called his or her mother-in-law's cousin to notify him of Saul's cousin's death. Got it?
4)Apparently, Saul's cousin's son-in-law or daughter-in-law is a single parent who relied on his or her mother-in-law to help take care of his or her rebellious daughter appropriately named Madi because she enjoys death metal.
Everyone got it now? Should we expect Saul, who is good at taking in strays, to take on the task of raising Madi at Charterstone where she will eat Toby's dessert and find love?
Poor Madi. I hope she likes wearing yellow bow ties.
22 comments:
My first thought was, oh, goody, a brand new character! Then the memory banks started creaking into gear. Long ago, my children, before Moy, before June, before Uncle Joe (I think...Granny is old, poppets) way before Wanders and this magical blog, before blogs, in fact...Wilbur Weston lived alone in his condo. Then one day, his ex-wife either died or got tired of motherhood, and sent teenage Dawn to live with him. Dawn looked a lot like Wilbur then, chunky, wore glasses, but with lots of hostile attitude. This could be as long as 35-40 real world years ago.
At any rate, Madi is not really an entirely new character. She is merely Dawn 2.0. She’s already got the bad haircut.
Today's Boldface Haiku is titled
"A Muffin And A Meeting May Brighten Madi's Day".
Sister moved.
Hard. Took care.
"Is?"
{♪!@$%!♪}
Could Madi end up in the care of Toby somehow? Why else would Toby be brought into the story line? Saul might take up the entire Charterstone meeting with his long tale about his cousin-sister and Madi, and Toby somehow ends up helping Saul out. Or Toby could just be a false flag and a distraction.
Saul’s Parents ---------- Saul's Aunt or Uncle
......|..............................|
Saul ............. Saul’s Cousin - Spouse (?)
.....|...............................|
.....|___________ ............Saul’s Cousin’s Child - Phone Calling Cousin's Spouse
.....|...........|...................................|
.. Bella (RIP) Gretta ............................ Madi
This is more confusing than the Hobbit family trees in the LotR Appendices.
(ps. Sorry for the formatting.)
Oh Wanders, Wanders, Wanders... See, this is why you have to compulsively read this strip every single stinking day! While you were amongst the missing yesterday, Saul called this person Lyle. So... while I suppose a girl baby might have been named Lyle, I think it's unlikely. I suspect Saul's caller is a guy.
HelenClark
Wanders, like you, I am confused. It reminds me of the I Love Lucy episode where Tennessee Ernie Ford came to visit and Lucy described him as her "mother's friend's college roommate's cousin's middle boy."
I'm looking forward to Madi. She's my type of kid. Like me, she listens to what appears to be death metal. Either that or it's rap. Take your pick. They both have ♪!@$%!♪
I’m relieved that I’m not the only one baffled. You can’t tell the players without a scorecard. I appreciate everyone’s efforts to sort things out, including RobC’s chart. Wanders, I used your excellent archives to refresh my memory of the name of the late Bella’s successor (yep, Greta).
Nance, I love today’s BFH title. Also, how thoughtful of KM to supply you with some salty language by Madi. I expect she’d tell Mary what she can do with her muffins.
How old was Saul’s late mother-in-law? He looks 85 at least. Madi looks about 13, so even if the late MIL cared for Madi since she was a toddler, that’s 10 or 11 years. So many questions today! Say, wouldn’t it be great Madi bumped off Saul’s MIL? Madi, the bad seed.
ummm, KitKat? It isn't Sauls MIL who's dead; she was his cousin. It's caller Lyle's MIL who has died.
Jeez, yet another disappointment. I don't care about Old Man Wynters and his family tree, I want to see how Mary's practical joke on Toby plays out, and I want to see it every day!
-- Scottie McW.
My guess is that KM is attempting to jump start the ?energy in this strip after the nearly comatose rendering of endless repetition we experienced over the past two weeks by throwing a smorgasbord of characters old and new at us, with issues big (new orphaning of Madi) and small (Toby's non-crisis over needing to produce a dessert for a Charterstone meeting). I, for one, have whiplash from this story line already. It's more exhilarating than an amusement park ride, which I am longing for after months of cabin fever. Thanks, KM for the virtual thrill (sort of..) And a big thank you to M. Wanders for the summary...
Thanks, @KitKat.
Today's dialog reminds me of my friend who started reading the Anne Rice Vampire series. She had to keep a spreadsheet of who was who and who was related to/connected to whom or she would have to keep rereading earlier chapters to keep everyone straight.
I told her that it sounded like way too much work just to read some book about vampires. (And added it to the list of Reasons Why I'm Never Reading The Anne Rice Vampire Books.)
Why all the mention of relations in this plot? Is it really necessary?
Sorry, folks, I just can't concentrate on Saul's family tree, perhaps because I'm still obsessed by the teeny, tiny, razor-thin plate under the muffin that Mary and Toby were fighting over yesterday.
Yes — but who’s on first?
I believe this overly-convoluted set-up will pay off when young, rebellious Madi chokes to death on one of Toby’s nasty muffins* at the Charterstone meeting and nobody will know who to call. “Does anybody know who this chick even is?” Mary will ask — and eventually, Madi will end up in the community garden, buried next to Aldo and all those stray dogs Mary killed with her bare hands.
Finally, a plot worthy of the legacy of Mary Wor ... ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Sorry, did I miss something?
I wonder what Madi's tummy brain is telling her . . .
Thanks, Anonymous at 10:48 a.m. I was even more confused than I thought. Sowing confusion is KM’s favorite plot device.
When I think “dessert” I do NOT think ”muffins.” As was pointed out on Monday, there are plenty of desserts that are not baked. Toby could set up a sundae bar at the meeting, for instance. Maybe that would appeal to her (ha ha!) “artistic side.”
Madi is going to make (or have delivered by Seamless) the best dessert for the Charterstone meeting, and she and Toby will become life long rivals.
Maybe Madi would be less frustrated if she wasn't using her smartphone upside down. The Worthiverse, where grandparents teach their grandkids how to use tech.
All those expletives translated would read: Dagnabbit, bejabbers, thunderation, these flippin' letters are arse over teakettle, Mavis!
Grumpy OD
“Poor Madi has been arrested in Peru, and needs $500 to get out of jail. Can you wire some money to help her out, Cousin-in-law by marriage twice removed Saul?”
Hilarious observations today, everyone! Slap a ♪!@$%!♪ Worthy Award statuette sticker upside your heads!
-- S. McW.
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