As Long As I'm Living...

"Don't hassle me with your sighs, Chuck"
and
"Duck! Here comes another day!"
and
"Kiss her, you blockhead."
...Charles Schulz taught people how to live
-Joey Comeau

I LOVE CHARLIE BROWN!
Every holiday I look forward to him and his morose personality to warm up my spirits. I've always thought the creator, Charles Shulz was wonderful.

Today would have been his 88th birthday.

I read an article about him comparing himself to his character. Not only did they have the same name, but many other similarities as well.

Charles Shulz also had a little red-haired girl in his life, who he dated for three years. When he asked her to marry him, she refused and ended up marrying another man a few months later.

waaaa waaaaaaaa

Lucy, the nagging female character Charlie Brown is bossed around by, was inspired by both his mother and his first wife.

And the sweetest, and also saddest thing of all:
Charlie Brown and Charles Shulz died within two hours of each other. Charles Shulz was sick and retired in 1999, and decided to request that no more of the comics were published after his death. He produced enough Sunday strips to last a few more months, and on February 12, 2000, he passed away-- two hours before the final Peanuts strip was printed.

I also learned about another writer that I love, Robert Munsch. Did you know, he almost flunked elementary school? He also studied for 7 years to become a priest... and then he changed his mind.

Do you know the book, Love You Forever?
I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be.
It's one of the all-time best selling books, and it definitely has a special place in my heart and in my family. What I learned to day which touched me deeply was that he wrote it after he and his wife had delivered two stillborn babies within a few years of each other. Eventually they adopted children, but after this tragedy, he was inspired to write this book.

I was also surprised to learn that he admitted earlier this year to being a recovering cocaine addict and an alcoholic, as well as obsessive-compulsive and manic-depressive.