Go on and get back to your inner peace already!
Had to do some last minute tweaking to this one because originally Todd had dialogue talking to Amanda from off-screen, but I realized after re-reading it that her dialogue "felt" better if she didn't realize she was thinking out loud. Not that big of an apartment, though.
Sweetie. We get that you have inferiority issues but this isn’t the time for them. DX Selkie’s getting help with her glowing eyes.
Amanda’s in the me-me-me’s stage isn’t she?
I don’t think that’s how issues work! 😀 As far as they’re concerned, there’s always time for them! Especially if it’s an inconvenient time for everyone concerned.
As for the me-me-me stage, unless you want people to PRETEND they’ve grown out of it, they need a lot of support in order to gain enough self-confidence to be able to leave it behind in a healthy way. And Amanda is getting support, but it’s often not always the best way to support her, so she’ll probably need a lot of time to outgrow her insecurities and past traumas.
Dude this is the worst time for them and I wasn’t exactly serious. I know it’ll take a while for her to get over them.
I’ve grown out of the ‘only thinking of me and no one else’s situation’ phase. I think a lot of people have too. Right now isn’t the time for it.
“I’ve grown out of the ‘only thinking of me and no one else’s situation’ phase. I think a lot of people have too”
Most of those people aren’t small children with deeply ingrained (and well warranted) abandonment issues.
Who could literally turn on the TV or ask Todd questions if he’s in the room. Like is he in the room? Then she isn’t alone.
Or she could do anything. I thought she had a gamekid. So why isn’t she playing that? Seems weird she’s not doing anything when she can.
She’s sitting with her thoughts for a minute. That’s not a terrible thing to do.
Considering how Amanda overthinks things? That might not be good.
In addition to my previous comment, Amanda does have a point, IMO. She might not have been told what to expect when they got there so that she could take a book or music to listen to. And it looks like no-one took the time to offer her any alternative to sitting quietly doing nothing. Which is not optimal and she’s certainly correct to want to remedy it. Even though she’s a child and so the way she’s expressing it is also not the best, because she hasn’t learned politer ways yet.
There’s a TV in the room she’s in, I believe. Why hasn’t she turned that on? :/
If they can hear her, in the other room, talking to herself, then they would also be able to hear the TV, or the radio, or the BEEP BEEP WHEEOOPEEB of her Gamekid.
Maybe Todd told her to be quiet, so as not to disturb them, as what they were doing was important.
She could turn the volume down on her Gamekid. Maybe even watch TV at a low volume. Heck she can read a book or something.
I kinda doubt Todd just brought her over to be a lump on the couch.
“I’m a princess too, damn it.”
That is just…heart-breaking. Dave, you are doing SUCH a good job of humanizing Amanda and letting your readers know why she is the way she is. As someone with two sisters, I know about jealousy and how tough it can be to feel like someone in your family is more “special” than you are. It’s not a good feeling. And Amanda just gained a family with Andi and Todd – but, like she says, it’s “all about” Selkie again.
I hope Todd and Andi (and Selkie too) are aware of how Amanda feels and can support her.
ugh, this sums it up perfectly. I just want to give her a big hug. And some counseling to help work through past trauma <3
Thank you for your reply. And yes, I want to give Amanda a hug too!
I also think the fact that she stopped herself from cursing, even when she was basically talking to herself, is a big step for her. She’s TRYING.
Ugh, I thought she was done being a pain but guess not.
She won’t be done “being a pain” until she stops being in pain herself.
Also, she’s nine. She looks a lot older in this strip for some reason, but she’s nine. Even nine year olds who aren’t hurting are a pain sometimes. But when they are hurting? It’s so much harder for them.
Why can’t she just go do something else?
I feel like this would be a great time for Todd and Amanda to actually have their own bonding time, independent of Selkie. I agree that when one looks past the petulance it is quite heart-breaking to see what Amanda’s going through, and she’s entitled to feeling that way and to wanting some time where her father pays as much attention to her as he seems to pay his other daughter. So, if I were Todd, I’d take this opportunity, both to give Selkie more space to focus on her training, but also to take Amanda and bond, one-on-one.
As a single mom of two, one of whom has special needs that can THOROUGHLY monopolize me, I agree wholeheartedly. When the autistic brother is getting something, but it actually leaves ME available, that’s “Mommy Daughter Time”! Even ten minutes reading together can be HUGE. And, I cherish those moments as much as she does.
🙂
One of the biggest challenges I have, aside from “everything autistic”, is finding resources for HER. Somehow, the fact of just how much the sibling(s) of an autistic child are affected by everything seems a foreign concept. Guess what, folks? I have TWO “special needs” children – one just happens to be neurotypical! *end rant* 😉
Thank you for sharing this. One of my brothers-in-law has a younger brother who is very much on the spectrum. Of course my brother-in-law adores his brother, but I have seen how much the “special care” his brother needs has affected him and the rest of his family.
I admire you for being so perceptive and being such a good mom. ?
Plus, if part of the aim is to hide what’s going on with Selkie from Amanda, then having it be father-daughter time has the double benefit of distracting her and keeping her away from the lessons (and whatever secrets they may reveal).
What about Andi? This would be a perfect time for Mother-Daughter art therapy in the art-studio time. Meh, what do I know about kids?
I don’t think she needs mother-daughter time right now. She knows she has Andi all to herself. What she doesn’t have is Todd all to herself, or even as much time spent with him. That’s the bond that still needs to be built, and it’s the one that’s putting her, once again, in competition with Selkie for attention.
Selkie isn’t doing this with Todd now though so it’s not that, Amanda just apatently can’t stomach Selkie having nice things. So yea no sympathy from me at all.
The future of this child is some form of ambassador; she has lived with a member of the opposite species for most of her life, is tangentially related to high ranking Sarnothi, and is somewhat greedy. Really, it’s either that or news reporter- she’s just as willing to see what she wants to see as J. Jonah Jameson.