I work with youth, and one of the trends I have been noticing as of late is the tendency to be completely immersed in one’s phone. The more I look around, the more I realize that this isn’t something that is unique only to adolescents and teens. In fact many adults are guilty of the same compulsions. I too, have noticed that I spend more time fulfilling the need to look at my phone screen than I would like.

It’s time to re-enter the real world people. It’s time to actually LIVE, instead of posting pictures of it so that our friends think we lead interesting lives. It’s time to raise our heads, look around, and have an actual conversation.

It’s easier said than done. But let’s give it a go, before we realize that we’ve posted and status-updated our lives away.

The post Living Life appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

Seems like everyone has World Cup Soccer fever right now. I’ve watched a fair amount myself.

GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAL!!!!

The post Soccer appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

Sadly, all the quotes in today’s comic strip are all authentic encounters that I have had in the last month with women that I was [up until that point] interested in…

As my single life progresses I start to think maybe I could be able to overlook the reality TV watching tastes of the woman in the first panel despite the fact that she’s never seen Star Wars, Indiana Jones, or Harry Potter. Maybe I could even put up with the supposed “huge baseball fan” who leaves the game an hour early for no good reason whatsoever. (Hint: there IS no good reason for such behavior.) I start to think after a while, maybe my standards are too high. Maybe I’m being too selective. Maybe I need to overlook minor differences of opinion or taste.

And then this week a girl said to me, “I hate cartoons. Cartoons are THE WORST.”

…

And that’s when I realized that she had no soul, and that I needed to start being far more selective in my dating.

The post Dating 2 appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

Maybe it’s the stress of a few extra jobs lately. Or maybe it’s the late night glasses of chocolate milk before bed. Whatever the cause, I have been having some crazy whacked-out dreams lately. It’s as if my mind is trying to play back every single movie I’ve ever seen all at one time in one messy garbled smorgasbord full of confusing narratives, loads of terribly scripted dialog, and excessive examples of failed continuity. So basically it’s any Hollywood movie in the past several years. I don’t know what that says about me or my subconscious, but there ya go.

The post Riddles appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

We’ve gone digital folks. No more trips to the art supply store. From here on out I’m drawing directly onto my new tablet/computer/mega toy. Please be patient with me as I learn how to draw on it. It’s going to take me a little while to get used to doing it in this way. But I love the idea of being able to produce a comic strip anywhere at anytime, and that is a good good thing.

The post We’ve Gone Digital appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

Regular readers may have noticed I’ve been kind of busy lately. I took on an extra job…in addition to my four other jobs. But this is a good one. So I apologize for mailing it in the past few weeks. But don’t worry. One or more of these jobs will eventually fall by the wayside. Eventually. But Raccoon Toons is forever.

The post Rushing Rushing Rushing appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

Sometimes, no matter how convincing your friends might be, certain things just seem like a bad idea. Probably best to trust your gut on that one.

The post Show a Little Trust appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

I started a new job this week that’s been fun and exciting, but it’s also been keep me pretty busy as I get acquainted with everyone and everything. So getting a new comic strip this week was going to be a bit of a challenge. As a result, you get a colorized version of this sketchy comic strip from last year. Whoo!

The post Sharing Redux appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

The other day I was sitting at a desk I’ve been working at as of late, when I noticed one of those Magic 8-Ball things. Only this one was yellow and had a smiley face on it. I figured it was some sort of positively-influenced brand of Magic 8-ball, so I thought this would be my chance to get a ridiculously positive response in regard to my fortunes.

I uttered my question quietly so that others in the office wouldn’t hear.

“Magic Smiley-faced 8-Ball…will I ever find love?”

I shook the ball and turned it over to reveal the long awaited answer I’ve been waiting for:

“Have you lost weight?”

…thanks a lot 8-Ball. That was a lot of help.

The post Magic 8-Ball appeared first on Raccoon Toons.

It’s flu season folks. Let’s stay healthy. For your general well being, I have prepared a handy list of instructions that will help you stay healthy this winter season.

1. Go to sleep. I’m not sure why, but every night around 12:00 am I kind of get tired. It’s so weird. It’s almost as if my mind and body had been up all day and was suddenly in need of sleep at certain late hours of the evening. I’ve learned not to fight it. Apparently sleep helps you stay healthy. This further supports my belief that anyone who wakes up before 8am is INSANE. That’s just not right man. Not right at all. Get some sleep people, the internet told you so. You’re welcome.

2. Eat food. Apparently along with this whole sleeping thing, is an eating food thing. Apparently, our bodies need to consume foods to continue living. I feel like I should have learned this in science class somewhere, but to be fair, I was drawing cartoons most of the time. Anyway, eat food, the internet told you to. Again, you’re welcome.

3. Wash your hands. Please for the love of all that is right in the world, wash your hands. Don’t be the smelly roommate who doesn’t wash his hands after he poops and then goes and eats his Taco Bell that’s been sitting out on the counter for a couple of days. Don’t do it. I know you’re tempted, but please don’t do it. You’ll thank me later. The world will thank me later.

4. Avoid that kid with the drippy runny nose and cough. Sometimes it can’t be avoided, I know. Sometimes you’re quietly minding your own business when all of a sudden they strike in a barrage of snot-nosed eruptions. But this can go a long way in your overall health this season. Do whatever it takes. Don’t let the Johnson kid cough on you. I can’t emphasize this enough. He’ll get you every time.

5. Doctors. My lawyers tell me that I should NOT tell you to skip seeing the doctors. Hey whatever. If you want to go sit in a room full of MORE snot-nosed sick people and sit in a stuffy room for a few hours so a guy in a lab coat can look at you and say “yup…you’re sick…you should probably stay in bed.” then by all means, go right ahead. You’ll be billed accordingly.

Follow these critical steps and you might just manage to stay healthy this winter. If you do get sick you’re likely to end up in bed for a few days. Fortunately for you, there are websites like this to help you pass the time.

Feel better.

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