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Out of Time

The title panel shows a tea pot and three green leaves falling over a splash of orange, along with the title "Out of Time" "by Vanessa Davis." The rest follows in Vanessa's typical style of bright watercolors and funky lettering. 1. "In 1991, my dad, a photojournalist, was sent to Alaska to cover the guy who raced the Iditarod with standard poodles." A man in a blue snow suit races the Iditarod with a bunch of standard white and gray poodles pulling his sled. In the background are snowy mountains and evergreen trees. 2. "But since we lived in Florida, the magazine gave him a budget to buy clothes for the trip. Sweaters, flannel shirts, a parka." Vanessa's dad, an older man with balding hair and wearing a purple polo shirt and blue jeans with a belt, browses clothing in an Eddie Bauer store. 3. "I know. More shopping. But can you imagine? These days, the amount of money a magazine would pay you for a whole STORY wouldn't get you one sweater." An adolescent Vanessa, with above-the-shoulder hair, holds a cream-colored fishermen's sweater in her hands. Across from her is her dad, who we now see has a mustache, and who wears a green sweater with a blue winter vest. Vanessa asks, "How come you got cotton, Dad? Isn't wool warmer?" He replies, "You know I'm allergic to wool." 4. "I'm drawing this on Labor Day. Everyone's celebrating the end of summer, which I just never get." A woman with glasses and a light blue turtleneck sweater holds a mug of hot tea and smiles. She says, "Mm, pumpkin spice. Mm, tea." A woman in a red beret hat and black long-sleeve shirt hugs herself and smiles. She says, "My feet never warming up! Never-ending darkness. Bleak, sunless days." A man wearing a green shirt smiles widely and says, "That sad feeling that lasts for months!"

5. "Growing up in West Palm Beach, I only knew about traditional seasons from movies and pop culture. So the concept held some allure." Younger Vanessa wears the fishermen's sweater from before ("My dad's "fishermen's" sweater for Alaska."). She is sweating profusely and red in the face; she looks uncomfortable. Vanessa notes that it is "85 degrees outside" and that she "read about "fishermen's sweaters" in Sassy." 6. "When I lived in New York, though, everything was on a schedule." Vanessa, with longer hair, braces herself against a harsh wind. Green leaves blow around her. She smiles and says, "This is crazy! It was so hot yesterday!" A blonde woman wraps her cardigan tighter around herself for warmth. She also smiles and says, "It's September! It's like a school play. The teacher is offstage, whispering, 'Cue, leaves! Cue, wind!'" 7. "Since I moved to California 11 years ago, the time difference, trying to freelance, and the weird summer weather has put me totally out of sync." "Some random Tuesday afternoon:" Adult Vanessa lounges on a couch and watches "Just Between Friends." "Most holidays, astronomical events, weddings:" Vanessa hunches over her desk, working on a comic. Her hair is in a bun. 8. "Trevor and I are both drawing today, but 'celebrating' by listening to Keith + Rusty Mcneil's 'Working + Union Songs with Historical Narration.'" Vanessa, still working on her comic, turns to Trevor and asks, "So when did the Labor Movement start to fail?" Music plays in the background: "Which side are you on?" Trevor replies with a wry smile, "After its gains were cemented people became complacent and individualistic." 9. "He also made a plain red flag out of a USC business-school tote bag and put it up outside our apartment!" A red flag is hangs from a column/support beam of their apartment. 10. "Summer in both Northern and Southern California doesn't seem to kick in until everyone's talking about going back to school. Everything ends just when it starts to get good." A tranquil lake scene, with bushes and evergreens in the background.

11. "Four years ago in September we moved to L.A. from Santa Rosa, and it got so beautiful before we left, it hurt." Vanessa sits outside in an Adirondack chair, resting her feet on a tree stump in front of her. Above her is a blossoming apple tree. She cuddles with a purring cat - her "neighbor's cat, Tango" who "finally liked me." Wind blows in the background against a blue sky. Vanessa looks solemn. The cat looks blissful. 12. "Just a week or two ago, our friends in Santa Rosa moved out of their rental house and offered it to us. A 1930s bungalow—a dream house." A beautiful 1930s bungalow, with Spanish-style terracotta tile roofing, stands on a bright green yard with a tree in front and lots of trees in the back. 13. "Santa Rosa has always been expensive since it's SEMI-close to San Francisco, but it's going through a housing bubble, resulting in OBSCENE hikes in both home prices and rentals." Vanessa and another woman, perhaps her mom, sit on a couch with a bunch of little kids and babies sitting in their laps. Vanessa says, "This is literally the only way we could ever have a house. EVER." The other woman looks upset and replies, "Why don't you guys save up money and get like, a condo?" The oldest kid yells, "STOP TALKING!" All of the kids' eyes are firmly fixed ahead, watching Dora. 14. "The house thing basically sent me into a tailspin, forcing up a lot of questions I had pushed to the background." Vanessa is on a phone call and looks angry. The person on the phone says: "You know I want you near Ariella so you can be as close to Chichi as I was to my Aunt Anna!" Vanessa replies, "Mom! That'd be great but you can't control these things!"

15. "I only just started liking it here." Vanessa runs through the house with a child in her arms, who shrieks with glee. Vanessa also looks gleeful, with a big smile on her face. An arrow labels the scene, "How I babysit." 16. "We had to decide by the 1st, though, and we weren't ready. So we had to pass on the house. Either yes or no felt like a crazy choice." Vanessa is in the middle of a dental cleaning. Her dentist, wearing a surgical mask and lab coat, says, "Wow, so you moved down here from up there? Don't you miss it? It's so much prettier up there." Vanessa looks strained. 17. "I've given up a lot of precious things. And not even with good reasons to justify it, usually. The relentless passage of time is both oppressive and a relief." Outside the house from before, a packing box of dolls and other colorful items and a county trash can sit on the side of the road, getting soaked by rain. 18. Maybe I'll never be in then right place at the right time. I think I'm learning that the concept itself is a fantasy." Vanessa kisses goodnight the child she was babysitting before. She says, "Good night, Baby." The child leans in for a hug and kiss. There is a stuffed teddy bear on the bed, which is fitted with pink sheets. Pink flowers decorate the panel.

Tags: Diary, Humor, memoir, non-fiction, slice of life

Published On: November 17, 2023

Lynn's brother Adam, as a boy, wears a red vest and black bowtie over a white button-down and black pants. He has on his signature thick, square glasses. He is attempting to tap dance. He looks off balance and awkward. He grimaces.

Sunny, Derek's acquaintance smiles while ringing a doorbell, "DING-DONG." The onomatopoeia is drawn in big block letters. Sunny wears a sweater over a turtleneck. His hair flows effortlessly.

Kim pets her dog on the back. The dog smiles widely at the viewer. "May 21. Did bills, homework in the morning. Worked, then picked mom up at the airport."

Lynn's mom Lorraine uses a handheld vintage film camera: "WRRRRRR."

In block letters, the title sits at the top of the page: "Priority." Derek sits on a stump outside. His knees are tucked close to his chest. He hunches over slightly. He holds his phone to his ear and hides part of his face with his other hand. He looks nervous as he talks to someone on a phone call.

From above, we see spread of fruits and vegetables - pomegranates, pea pods, a mango, a pepper, etc.

Adult Vanessa sits across from her therapist, a woman with a brown bob and bangs, glasses, and a blue suit. The therapist asks, "Is that a FEELING or a THOUGHT?" Vanessa crosses her arms and scowls. "Both!" she replies.

Young Vanessa, with short hair and glasses and a pink one piece swim suit, floats in a tube along a marshy spring. She is drifting into the marsh despite trying to steer with her hands flapping in the water. In a panic, she shouts out to her peers who have floated much farther past her, “Guys!! Wait!”

Outside on a winding sidewalk path, a man with floppy hair and a dark parted pencil mustache approaches Derek. The man wears a shirt with a large collar and three large buttons, and pinstriped pants. He snaps he fingers with one hand and holds his other up with a limp wrist. He shouts out, "There he is! [in big block letters:] World's Greatest Dad!" Derek looks over at the man, smiles, and replies, "Haha, Sunny!" He looks relaxed, shoulders back and hands in his jean pockets. He wears a tight-fitting t-shirt with a large number one in the center.

A hand firmly holds a bunch of lemongrass. There are trees and a fence in the background.

The episode's title is drawn in large block letters: "Modern! Cartoonist" Derek sits on the ground with his legs criss-crossed before some sort of stone altar letting off a thin stream of smoke. Derek appears to be meditating. He wears glasses and a jacket with a large decorative collar and other stylish elements. Text, ranging from speech bubbles to onomatopoeia, surround Derek.

Kim looks at her reflection in the mirror. She has pulled the her shirt sleeve off of her shoulder to examine it. She looks tense. "May 3. Monday. Pulled out a bunch of dead Areca balm branches. Came inside and about 20 minutes later noticed a big bug on my shoulder. Put it in a big jar with water, watched SAW workshop video and started sketching ideas. Sent picture of bug to Tony. He texted back, 'Yikes, it's a bot fly!' I looked it up and panicked, was I bitten? Made an appointment with dermatologist for tomorrow."

An older man, with grey hair that's balded on top, wears dark shades and a green collared shirt. He looks straight ahead as he drives a car. There is a girl in the back and a woman in the passenger seat. The woman says, "To the mall, Jeeves!"

A guy in a blue snow suit races the Iditarod with standard poodles.

Lynn as a young girl wears a pink dance dress, with spaghetti straps and decorative bows, and white tights with the black tap shoes from before. Her hair is tied up in a pony tail with a white ribbon. Her hands are on her hips. She thinks to herself, "shuffle, ball change," "whoops," "step, ball change, step, ball change." An arrow points out that she is "mostly copying the other girls."

Enzo sits on the floor of his room shirtless, back turned to the reader. In front of him is a wall of floating shelves holding books and trinkets. Next to him is a clothes hamper. He is holding a book open. "April 27. Worked. Had an early work meeting. After work, chopped a bunch of Mexican sunflower to feed some plants in need. Enzo dug through his comic collection."

Lynn's brother Adam reaches into a crib and touches baby Lynn's eyes with his "grubby mitts." He says, "Open your eyes, baby sister!"

Enzo waits in a park for Kim to pick him up, on a strip of sidewalk surrounded by grass. He wears a t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers, all black or simply silhouetted. There are lamp posts and palm trees in the background. "April 20. Worked. Enz left school early, coughing a lot. Went to Mom's while Enz did mock trial. Picked him up from the park."

Vanessa sits on a couch hugging her knees to her chest. A man sits next to her. They both look solemn, and are colored entirely in blue, except for their brown hair.

Vanessa lies in a neon green hospital bed with her legs in stirrups. She is actively in labor. Two people hold onto her legs, encouraging her.

Lorraine wears a pink-orange Butterick 2920 dress and jewelry. She smiles and holds up a dirty martini. She says, "The doctor says it calms my nerves. We won't be out too late."

Kim sits at a desk but is turned to face the viewer. A PC, keyboard and mouse are on the desk, and there is a chair a couple feet away. She is wearing glasses and comfortable clothes. Her legs are crossed. She holds a pencil in one hand, and grabs her shoulder with the other. Her dog sits at her feet; his ear is turned inside out. She points out that he's worried. "April 14. Worked on final project for class all day. Neck hurt. Tony took this picture because Molly and I both looked a mess. Enzo got a bad report card yesterday so we laid out some repercussions."

Lynn, in black and white, chugs from a glass.

A cat sits at a window sill, looking boldly at the reader. The fronds of a palm tree are reflected in the window. "April 8. Thursday. Worked. Tony had a union meeting, via Zoom. I had a call w/ team member from class. Enzo had mock trial."

Derek, wearing an orange turtle neck, poses with his arms outstretched above his head and making peace signs. His eyes are closed and he is smiling; he appears smug. There are camera flashes surrounding him, and two people hold microphones up to him. He says, "Hey! There's nothin' wrong with crying. Or been' soft. Or pig boys. I'm still a nice guy and that's what matters."

A person dressed in a green park ranger uniform holds a boom box over a beaver's dam. It plays water sounds. A beaver works on the dam and thinks, "Whatever, I don't care where I build it."

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