Sunday, November 25, 2012

Shut Up, Mouth!




Recently, I was fixing myself a sandwich for lunch at work...













Sometimes I feel like I should come with a warning label.







34 comments:

StephanieC said...

I do this all the time.

I make it soooo awkward for myself, so I feel your pain.

I try to lie when I am conscious of it, but most of the time I absolutely scare people away.

Like your animations! They're great! Mmmmm, avocado...

Suzi said...

I love the facial expression in the last panel. Awesome.

Leauxra said...

StephanieC: It only FEELS like I am the only person in the world that can't make non-crazy small talk... I think there are a lot of us.

I think the coworker just caught me at a bad moment. I hadn't talked to anyone other than email all day. I think it makes me even weirder.

And the drawings are an experiment. I feel like I could do great things with the format.

Suzi: Awww. Thanks. Pretty much the expression on my face when I realize that the long weekend is over already.

MakingSpace said...

Oh yeah, you gotta keep drawing!

Also, the lack of filters when asked a question like "How are you?" - definitely intensified after a day of only email.

The movie Waiting to Exhale has a very satisfying scene where a woman sets fire to her ex-husband's car with all his possessions (but, to be clear, not him) in it. And then there's the famous blow-up-the-truck scene from Thelma and Louise. I'm just saying, you are not alone in the impulse.

Oh. Terminator 2 is also a good watch for those times when you want to either save or blow up the planet and you can't quite decide which it's going to be.

Ash-Matic said...

You should use this to look badass if you ever lose a limb or something.
Coworker: 'Oh my god!! Are you okay?'
*Blood splatter across distant furniture items...*
You: 'I'm fine. How are you?'
Badass.

Rebeka said...

haha! Been there so many times. Ever have someone call you on the phone (i.g., telemarketer) and they ask "How you are doing today?" Wouldn't you just love to be outright honest? I bet they wouldn't call you or me back ever again! :) Great post! Love the cartoons, too!

Jim said...

I hate saying "fine" when I'm not fine, or when "things" aren't fine. But I NEVER gesture with a knife while I talk about my day. Ever.

Tim said...

Am I really the only one who does this intentionally? If more people did this, we'd have to deal with this vacuous question much less.

Anonymous said...

Ok, first . . . I love that your shirt is half and half of 2 different colors. Are we starting a fashion trend? ;)

Also, since when is it not totally normal to say everything that pops into your head to anyone who asks how you are? Wait . . . you're saying that's NOT completely normal? Crap.

At least she'll stop interrogating you all the damn time, right? So . . . there's that.

Leauxra said...

MakingSpace: Best not to think about Terminator at work... It just seems like a BAAAAAD idea. :)

But yeah, going to make an effort to keep drawing things.

Ash-Matic: Brilliant! Next time I lose a limb, I will totally do that.

Rebeka St John: You mean you mean you DON'T launch into a deep and meaningful dissertation about your life, and what it means to be fine when those people call? Just me? huh.

Jim W: I wasn't doing it on purpose, it just happened to be in my hand when I was ambushed. :)

Tim: You probably ARE the only person who does this on purpose, but that's not to say you're WRONG.

Leauxra said...

Misty: "Normal"? Apparently YES, according to my blog comments. Buuutt.... it seems like wildly gesturing with a knife while threatening to burn down my cubicle may have been a bit much.

Also, my jacket really is two toned. It looks like this: http://www.modcloth.com/shop/jackets/leipzig-hoodie-in-sky-and-grass

I Looooooves it.

Anonymous said...

Great comic! I always have to bite my lip so I don't TMI all over the place- I learned it from my mom

Stephanie said...

Oh, I do that too. Verbal diarrhea. It's a thing.

kimberly said...

Oh boy, I always pick the wrong time and the wrong person...then get home to the right person and say...um, nothing. This is great, great, great. Love the illustrations. Fun stuff.

JnetRuns said...

Amazing comic, and your blog is my absolute fave.

Totally can't shut myself up sometimes.

Leauxra said...

Winopants: Thank you! It really feels like you're alone in the world when something like this happens... but it turns out that there is a support group for it. It's called the internet.

Stephanie: I try to call it "needing new brakepads for my face", but verbal diarrhea works. :)

Kimberly Speranza: I do the same thing. Boyfriend: How was your day? Me: Fine. EXCEPT FOR THE WHOLE SCARING MY COWORKER WITH A KNIFE thing. Ugh.

JnetRuns: Awwww... so nice to me! Glad you enjoyed it. I feel so bad for the people around me sometimes. :)

Stephanie Iris said...

I did that the other day to my coworker who was standing behind me.

By the end of my 45 second ramble, said coworker was gone.

It was both a blessing and a curse.

Leauxra said...

Stephanie Iris: Oh, I wish she'd just left. But we were stuck in awkward silence while she microwaved her Lean Cuisine or whatever it was, and I was still making my sandwich.

Yay, for long strained silences at work!

Ugh.

blessedmama said...

Oh, I can totally relate! This was so funny. I often hear myself talking and wonder why my mouth won't just stop moving.

momnextdoor said...

Hilarious! I definitely do that too!

And lady, you are so talented! I'm super jealous of your awesome drawing skills!

Leauxra said...

blessedmama: Hahaha! It takes me a dozen seconds to even realize that I'm talking, and then I have to try to remember and catch up. It's so ridiculous!

momnextdoor: Awww, thanks for the compliment... I spent WAY too much time creating the character. Once I did, it was pretty easy, but I must have deleted the original picture about twelve times. :)

A Beer for the Shower said...

I do this too. You know why? Because if you don't want to know how I am, then don't ask the damn question, that's why! Just say "hi" and keep it at that.

Leauxra said...

A Beer for the Shower: (which is the most awesome name ever, I might add), I agree with this, but being the awkward person I am, sometimes I ask people how they are doing when I don't really care, because I am mostly trying to fill in dead space with my voice because I have nothing to say to them. It's really a societal problem, I think. heh.

Karen Woodward said...

I love this blog post! It's kinda like a graphic novel, only better.

Btw, oh boy can I empathize. My mouth and brain can have serious issues in the communication department.

Leauxra said...

Karen: Thanks for saying. I am still experimenting with my format 3 years after starting the thing. But that's kind of the point of this blog. :) Do things.

And yes! My brain and my mouth at times seem to be completely disconnected. It is so painful!

Scarlett said...

Hahaha I do this too!!! Xxx

thoughtsappear said...

I love the pic of you looking at the knife!

Sometimes, it just all comes tumbling out. Been there. That's why I blog.

Anonymous said...

I used to do this all. the. time. To the point that inside my head, I'd hear my voice actually saying, "Shut up! Shut up! Just stop talking. Nobody cares!"

Then I was diagnosed with ADHD and given Concerta. Now it doesn't happen near as often. Better living through chemistry. :)

karensomethingorother said...

yeah, and that makes me wonder if we truly only ask that to not hear the answer? I mean, when we ask "how are you," do we have a script in our mind of appropriate answers and that's it? Ah well, you be you. You're more interesting.

Leauxra said...

Thoughtsy: I'm pretty sure my slow posting this year has only exacerbated the problem. :)

nagzilla: Huh. I've never been diagnosed with anything, but I probably should be at some point. :) And this is kind of a daily occurrence for me. Just not usually while I am wielding a knife.

Karen: Yeah. I keep forgetting the lines of that little script. Heh. I could never be an actor.

Leauxra said...

Scarlett: It seems that a lot of people do! Maybe I am not the huge freak I think I am, or no one else notices because they're freaks too. Or... yeah. That's it.

Jocelyn said...

Gracious, yes, keep up with the drawings. They're excellent.

Plus, I want the sweater you're wearing in these panels, so maybe you could draw me one.

bevchen said...

Brilliant! I am ok at answering the questin "how are you" but tend to say waaaay too much (or just the wrong thing) in other circumstances, and not notice til everyone is staring at me like I've just grown n extra head...

Leauxra said...

Jocelyn: Thank you! I am enjoying doing them, and I'm finally getting faster at it. Also... the green and blue hoodie is real. http://www.modcloth.com/shop/jackets/leipzig-hoodie-in-sky-and-grass

It's everything I hoped for and more. I wear it ALL the time now.

bevchen: Ha ha ha! I am an "open mouth insert foot" kinda gal myself, so I totally get what you're saying. Also, I am TERRIBLE at keeping secrets or playing a prank. My mouth never cooperates.