Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for July 25, 2018

so Jack should be a dog sitter?

I’m enjoying getting to know Jack. I think Luann is, too.

@TIARELLACLARK, Are you still reading this strip? T’is been over a month since we’ve heard from you.

But how much money can dogs pay?

Jack, food for dogs.

Some people just have “sucker!” in dog language written on their foreheads. My wife is one of them.

Jack’s career ought to be an animal trainer or veterinarian

I have relatives who weren’t that good with science, but were really good with animals. They took tech classes as veterinary assistants, and make a decent wage while working with dogs, cats, even horses. Jack might find classes like that at the community college…

Jack there is more to life then being a football player you could be good at a animal trainer are a vet.

Let’s see.

Jack the:

1) Dog walker.

2) Dog Groomer.

3) Veterinarian.

4) Nude Model.

5) Middle to High School PE Coach.

6) Male Escort.

7j Pet Shop Owner.

8) Gunther’s hired bodyguard.

9) Secret Service Agent.

10) Voice Actor.

11) Officer in the Police K-9 Unit.

12) Member of the House Of Representatives.

13) Member of the Local School Boarder.

14) Landscaping Specialist.

Jack, the career possibilities for YOU are neatly ENDLESS. Certainly better than Les’.

#FREEGB!!!

Criteria #4:

Ok… you are all overanalyzing, and judging the character, or LACK of character, as applied to a… hmmm… how to put this… fictitious character…As you worry about his intelligence, did it occur to you that in reality, he would have come to grips with NOT being an NFL player if he is at a Community College?

Yeah… Y’all are diving into he can’t be a vet (or dog groomer, or whatever…), but NFL player was legit in the running?

I like this strip… I try to avoid the comments… for (I’m guessing) close to 10 years now I have resisted pointing out that…IT’S A COMIC STRIP.

I am not sure just how much one would earn if one was to sit around the park all day scratching dogs on the head while being licked by another dog.

why she stating the obvious did Greg forget to put a punchline?

There is actually a huge market for things like doggie daycare. Boarding kennels, etc. I could see Jack having a doggie daycare and really enjoying his work! I’m starting to like him more and more, too. First impressions are not always accurate, even in comic strips. Greg fooled me on Jack!

Alright, any guesses on his career? I’m going with dog walker, but it’s hard to make a living with that job.

Owning a dry cleaners is a good business, look at George Jefferson

Dogs always know. They can sense good people. Chances are that if my dog does not like you, neither will I. I always trust my dog’s instinct.

Actually, A dog handler/trainer for LEO/first repsonders can make a pretty good wage

People pay a premium price for animal caretakers that truly love their charges and that their pets trust..it’s harder to find than you think. He could also end up in one of the paid positions at a shelter or rescue group making the city a no-kill operation.

You all are assuming Jack is a dumb jock. We’ve seen him take 1 class at Mooney Uni with Luann—Art. Who’s to say he’s not a diligent and intelligent student

Is this a “Jack character development” arc or a “Jacj career change” arc?

So far Luann has been notably, and uncharacteristically, passive. When is her BFF or mentoring gene going to kick in.

Are we seeing a continuation of the Jack/Luann relationship or is he going to drop out of Pitts C.C. and subsequently the strip? (Jack looks to be a good fit for Military Working Dog Handler. He has the physical attributes, patient disposition and… some special animal skills apparently.)

This arc is short on clues to interpersonal futures. A decided characteristic of ALL G&K arcs lately!

So… He’s a Jack of all trades?

This is one of the cutest things ♡. I always try to do the same at the dog park. But not with Jack’s success.Luann can seriously be the one that will help Jack find his way. Maybe he will do the same for her.

Maybe Jack should open a mobile dog grooming service, I know a couple who do that and clear over $100 K per year (granted they have been at it for 15 + years and work 7 days a week 11 months straight – They like to take February off and spent it in the tropics)

So NOW we know the purpose of this week’s arc.

Luann giving career advice? Isn’t that a bit incongruous? I mean, LuAnn is taking classes at the local JuCo with only a vague idea as to what her career goal is.

If animals love you then you can’t be all bad!

Go into the dog show world or field trial world. Get a Business degree first though. Vets like science, not necessarily animals. One of my neighbors own a huge piece of land where he runs field trials for gun dogs. His pointers are worth THOUSANDS. Folk lots of careers out there beyond doctor, lawyer or CPA. Get a business degree and make a business of what you enjoy.

@KENHENSE AND SACTOSYLVIA: Vet techs do a lot more than euthanizing sick animals. They are usually the first employees to see a pet brought to a vet, so they often are the ones to do the ‘workup’; take blood, sometimes take X-rays or C-T scans if they have that training and the animal is favoring a paw; if the animal is having upset stomach, take samples and a history (has food recently changed? Is animal now digging up plants? Are leftovers now being fed, etc.). Techs, if trained in this, can assist with anesthesia during surgery. Can also bandage wounds or change bandages. Can administer meds that were prescribed by the vet. Even basic exam to detect possible wounds, signs of cancer, so the information is available for the usually very busy vet once she or he reaches that exam room. There are even vet techs who can do physical therapy or basic exercises with animals that have had surgery.

Boy reading this blog only confirms that a high percentage of newspaper readers, or online readers of comics (generally educated, and/or successful people I would think) can be horribly judgemental for all kinds of stereotypical reasons. Jack is being smushed into a dumb jock, uncertain with life flirt, who is too dumb for veterinary school, or pretty much for anything else that requires a brain. As a community college professor I take personal offense that students going to community college are somehow deficient in the brains or career department. I have had the opposite experience, and in fact going to community college can make a lot of sense for a young person trying to get either the required courses done at a much cheaper cost, or take certificate or vocational courses that can lead to well-paying jobs. Jack has a lot of good things going for him, he is a gentleman, he is aware of his own shortcomings and does not lord over others that he was the high school football star, I think he is quite intelligent, and saying he isn’t is just operating through stereotype. I mean this is a comic strip, but so many of my fellow bloggers allow prejudice and judmentalism unfairly modify perceptions of this cartoon character. I should point out that Luann herself is also considered kind of a dumb flop because she is going to community college, The type of kid she is portrayed to be would the kind of student I am used to, and I am sure she would do well. Give that prejudice a break, jeez.

Even if he was the star of the teem, does Jack really believe that NFL teams recruit from Community Colleges? Walk away, Luann, this guy is dumber than a sack of hammers.

I kinda am liking Jack. He can be a vet or vet tech.

So we are supposed to assume that Jack was trying to make the NFL by planning football at the community college? Seriously? And why assume he would be a vet. Why couldn’t he run a pet care/boarding facility or dog walking service?

There are some startlingly bright individuals who do not come off that way interactions, ditto ones who come off as smart but not as incredibly smart as they are. We certainly know and have known some like that, including ones with major international awards. So, Jack might be smarter than people think that he is.

Perhaps the broader topic here (and forgive me if someone said it above but my eye limits how many comments I read) is that it is not in the least unusual for people to recognize their own strengths. A great many people have abilities that they just take for granted because they are used to having them, but those abilities can be very useful in shaping their goals.

♪♪ “Well I’ll be doggone, If Jack didn’t MOPE all Day!”

♪♪ “And I’d be Doggone, If Lu didn’t SHOW Him the WAY! (BA-BEEEE!)”

♪♪ “But if Jack ever caught Max, Runnin’ around,”

♪♪ “Chasin’ that Poodle all over this Town,”

♪♪ “Then He would be Doggone! He’d be Long Gone! (He’d be Long Gooooone!)” – Marvin Gaye

#FREEGB!!!

Just as a side thought, I think Luann needs pick up her purse and not walk away from it.

I like Jack simply because he is Jack. The kid has a way of enriching other folks lives, and isn’t that a good thing?

There’s always the CFL (Canadian Football League)

8

A delightfully pleasant arc thus far this week. Jack is feeling rather introspective and thoughtful…. and Luann is being a great friend and is listening and trying to help. Very, very nice.

If Jack does continue in the way this arc is suggesting and then pursues some sort of career path that relates to dogs…. there are a variety of possibilities, and the options have a variety of different degrees of effort required, depending upon the energy/effort that Jack will want to devote:

1. Veterinarian – perhaps one of the more challenging types of career. Jack would have to devote considerable energy towards study of a science major prior to post Baccalaureate veterinary school. I suspect he would do this if so inclined, but the pricey nature of Veterinary School may be BIG roadblock as could also the competitive application process to veterinary schools.

2. Veterinarian Technician – another good option that is less pricey, but also a bit more limited in potential income as well.

3. If Jack pursued a Business Degree, he would have the basic underpinnings for a variety of more commercial, dog-related careers…. Owning and operating a pet store, owning and operating a kennel/daycare facility, etc.

Now, the big question really is…. does Jack’s affinity for dogs give him a real direction for a career path he would like…. or does his liking dogs (and their liking him) simply mean he is a great guy…. and his career path may be elsewhere? A person can be good at MANY things… but not everything a person is good at will make a satisfying career choice for them. There are other variables Jack needs to think about…. Where would he like to live (urban, suburban, rural)? How does he envision his future family life and how he wants that to be (some careers are better or less suited for family than others)? And there are of course many other questions as well.

Jack will have to decide these questions.

Jack must have that animal magnetism, but none of the little fuzzies are sniffing Luann’s butt. I think that we have discovered “Tarzan of the Dog Park.”

Many here say Jack is not very bright. Where is the evidence of that? Is it just his jock-like appearance? Jack says he likes college; that’s a good sign. It suggests he’s connecting with his studies and is probably doing well. That doesn’t sound like someone who is not bright (to me).

How about a dog-walker? Or a dog-sitter? How about just working at an animal shelter cleaning out stalls, walking dogs, helping them get adopted?

When I think about today’s strip, Jack reminds me f St Francis of Assissi. He does everything but “talk to the animals.” Dr. Doolittle, move over.

If he becomes a show dog handler he’ll make 60K. His clients pay for his hotel and transportation.

In the second panel today, Jack says he likes college. I’m guessing he is an above average student, because people who are not very academically inclined usually don’t enjoy college classes. Just a thought from a retired college professor. Most of those 40 years were teaching upper level classes as well as directing a graduate program and directing research. After early retirement, I taught five sections of Introductory Psychology at a community college which was aimed at first generation college students. In my opinion Jack will do well in vet school.

I’d say Jack is perfectly suited for Breeding, Raising & Training Support Dogs.

Seeing Eye, Emotional Support for PTSD, Hearing dogs for deaf people, etc.

There are Never enough to fill all the needs.

Hey, we actually get to see Puddles’ poodle playmate!

So, Jack has a Way With Dogs. Maybe he could become a vet’s assistant, an honorable profession. But I think he should nonetheless finish college. That will allow time for Luann’s crush to grow (or not)….

If Luann doesn’t move fast, I have a friend who would love to meet him….