Comic Transcripts

[[a man shows off his new mandolin]]
– Check it out, I got this for my birthday.
– Hey, I didn’t know it was your birthday! Happy Birthday!

– Thanks. Yeah. I don’t really like to make a big deal out of it. / I mean, you know, if someone else wanted to, like, throw a huge party or something… / …I wouldn’t be against it. (I might even like it.) I just feel weird asking for it. / Like, “Oh, hey, everybody look at me, everyone treat me special because I was born.” / It would be self-centered of me to ask that of everybody, so instead I ignore what I, personally, may in fact want.

– Essentially you’re describing how a civilized society functions despite the presence of individual ego.
– Essentially I am making a veiled plea for belated presents.

{{header: stay calm at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: preferably gift cards please because seriously a mandolin? seriously?}}

#232; In which is marked an Anniversary of Birth transcribed by in

[[a man shows off his new mandolin]]
– Check it out, I got this for my birthday.
– Hey, I didn’t know it was your birthday! Happy Birthday!

– Thanks. Yeah. I don’t really like to make a big deal out of it. / I mean, you know, if someone else wanted to, like, throw a huge party or something… / …I wouldn’t be against it. (I might even like it.) I just feel weird asking for it. / Like, “Oh, hey, everybody look at me, everyone treat me special because I was born.” / It would be self-centered of me to ask that of everybody, so instead I ignore what I, personally, may in fact want.

– Essentially you’re describing how a civilized society functions despite the presence of individual ego.
– Essentially I am making a veiled plea for belated presents.

{{header: stay calm at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: preferably gift cards please because seriously a mandolin? seriously?}}

#232; In which is marked an Anniversary of Birth transcribed by in

[[a man shows off his new mandolin]]
- Check it out, I got this for my birthday.
- Hey, I didn't know it was your birthday! Happy Birthday!

- Thanks. Yeah. I don't really like to make a big deal out of it. / I mean, you know, if someone else wanted to, like, throw a huge party or something... / ...I wouldn't be against it. (I might even like it.) I just feel weird asking for it. / Like, "Oh, hey, everybody look at me, everyone treat me special because I was born." / It would be self-centered of me to ask that of everybody, so instead I ignore what I, personally, may in fact want.

- Essentially you're describing how a civilized society functions despite the presence of individual ego.
- Essentially I am making a veiled plea for belated presents.

{{header: stay calm at WONDERMARK.COM}}
{{alt-text: preferably gift cards please because seriously a mandolin? seriously?}}

preferably gift cards please because seriously a mandolin? seriously?

#232; In which is marked an Anniversary of Birth

  — September 22nd, 2006

[ Tags: , ]       Permalink: https://wondermark.com/c/232/

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Applications open for Genius Northwest – an IRL gaming competition

May 8, 2026 by David Malki !

Last year, I participated in Genius Northwest, a gaming competition inspired by the Korean gameshow The Genius and its ilk.

It’s a reality show without the cameras — a 3-day, all-inclusive weekend retreat structured around a series of challenges and puzzles, in which personalities and dealmaking matter as much as playing games.

It’s truly a remarkable thing. I came in dead last in the competition, but I still had a great time participating.

The event is held annually in the Pacific Northwest (hence the name) and applications are now open to participate in the 2026 competition!

Learn more — and apply — at GeniusNW.com.


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