695 Before She Became A Dog.

I’ve gotten a few messages about the RSS feed being messed up. I don’t use them so I don’t know how they work, but if they need to be refreshed whenever changes are made to a site you might want to do that. We’ve been trying to repair all the damage done to the site over the course of its existence (culminating in the unexplained loss of the files that made it work after the last update…) so the RSS may have been connected to some random file that it shouldn’t have been, which is now deleted or updated. As far as I can tell it’s still working, so it may only be certain RSS readers that are effective. If you notice a problem please let me know, and give me any information you think might be pertinent.

Holiday weeks are notorious among webcomic artists for having low traffic. Especially the actual day off the holiday in question. Then it snaps back when people have to get back to work. The reverse of that is that you get an influx of bored kids who suddenly have some time off and are stuck with their boring families.

I also usually get at least one email from some kid on their break who recently found themselves stuck in retail. If you happen to be that kid this year please know I look forward to hearing from you. XD Also, stay strong, support your coworkers, and try to keep a positive attitude. If all else fails packing a small Nerf gun does wonders for relieving stress. Especially if you work with people who wear glasses and you are a good shot. >:3

Seriously though, don’t shoot at anyone who isn’t in on the game.

I worked so many holidays over the years it soured me on them for a long time. Even now I bristle at the thought of them. The negativity doesn’t go away until I’m actually with my family on the day.

The day after Thanksgiving is, or course one of the biggest, and most mean spirited, shopping days of the year. I worked almost every Thanksgiving Eve for years to avoid having to endure it. Most of my employers valued my services, so they avoided placing me in situations that could lead to disaster.

The American economy relies almost exclusively on consumerism now. Over the years I’ve come to understand exactly what that means. Every store I ever worked at ran in the red the whole year and made up for it in the span of 3 months. As annoying as it is, America runs on Christmas, and not Duncan as certain doughnut manufacturers might claim. Without it the whole system falls apart. So no matter how frustrated you get this year, while you track down whatever trinket is going to make someone else happy, remember to be nice to the people serving you. They have a thankless job and without them everything falls apart. EVERYTHING.