Soundtrack: Sisters In the Struggle by Lesbians on Ecstasy, from Montreal (what is it with Montreal these days?)

This week's cartoon was originally written a few years ago. I knew at that point that Celia and Horst would break up. How or when, I didn't know. Originally, the cause was to be that Celia slept with Cindy, and Horst found out. But then, the plot evolved on its own, a combination of the circumstance and character: Stephen Harper was elected and global warming finally started becoming a dominant issue. As a result, Horst became more and more difficult to live with. When Horst fought with Celia about the thermostat setting and canceled their Cuban vacation, Celia called it quits.

Nine years ago (though perhaps not so long in Weltschmerz time), Cindy came on to Celia. I've just posted that cartoon (excerpted above), part of a series that brought Cindy back into Celia's life. Celia's response then was, "If you're coming on to me, Cindy, I should tell you, I'm ambiguously, reluctantly hetero, despite the gravitational pull of Planet Lesbian Chic." Cindy said she'd file that for future reference. Since then, Cindy's attraction to Celia (and dislike of Horst) has been alluded to. And now, here we are, in the future.

As I mentioned, I wrote the "sex got a little Republican" line two years ago. When I revisited the cartoon last week to bring it to fruition, I realized the meaning of Republican sex had changed. So I built that realization into the cartoon, making its double meaning (both prudish and sordid) a source of humour, and coming up with "GOP 2.0."

I did feel a little wary tying the Republican sex scandals to this significant development in the lives of my characters, for fear of grime-by-association. But a more extensive rewrite would have been necessary if I didn't reflect on the current state of U.S. politics. So I adapted -- and the cartoon became more relevant and (I hope) funnier.

Next week: Creationist blahs.

Earworm: Midnight Snack by You Say Party! We Say Die! (great name!), from Abbotsford, BC.