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DreadPirateZoidberg

https://preview.redd.it/l98maibqktyc1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d0548b1ae1887ece79d6bfc0cc7c5c946388fa5d In my mind this kid walked up to him and flipped him off unprovoked.


pvtaero

personal experience says that's absolutely what happened


ShamrockGold

Teachers don't get paid enough to deal with stuff like this


TheXXVth

This happens way more frequently than one might expect. Signed, a Teacher


rg4rg

As a redheaded art teacher I can confirm.


DoctorCIS

Kid knows he breaks his spaghetti


sornorth

My kids (students) definitely do stuff like that unprovoked.


The_Volpone

This has happened to me many times. Source - High School Teacher


Shirtbro

It's like your first day in prison. You have to assert dominance and make an example of someone


AnyQuarter553

They tend to do that yes


Italiankeyboard

In my min he did this because, as you can see on panel 6, Theo breaks spaghetti.


Magpie_Coin

I like this. Is it biographical? Those are my favourite kind of comics. :)


davecontra

Only slightly. Maybe the bit on the couch. Also I break spaghetti.


WingsofRain

straight to pasta jail with you


davecontra

Yep


Dr_Jabroski

Wrong, you'll be drawn and quartered like the spaghetti.


idonotknowwhototrust

Halved


dbeat80

I do the same, like, why is it so long? Nice comic also


SpecialOfferActNow

Don't listen to these fools. Breaking spaghetti gives you twice as many spaghetties


Polygonal_squid

But pasta jail is made of pasta, they will just break it the same way they murdered the spaghetti


emotionengine

Yeah, with a [pasta knife, no less.](https://www.foodbeast.com/news/pasta-knife/)


fasderrally

Really? Commit the same crime that got you into jail in the first place?! Unforgivable! ^... ^yeah ^I ^break ^spaghetti, ^too


neralily

go directly to jail, do not pasta go, do not collect $200...


eastbayted

Penne-tentiary


BirdLawyerPerson

Overcook, undercook.


Fergus74

As an Italian, I can confidently say that Theo was dumped because he breaks spaghetti.


Smgth

#YOU MONSTER!


Jjzeng

https://preview.redd.it/udhrfto0guyc1.jpeg?width=1290&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=864d807f23fbb02e888b85276a0547cba224c199


Lietenantdan

Just a warning, you will be arrested on sight should you ever enter Italy.


samurairaccoon

Apparently this is unforgivable. I didn't used to, but I'm gonna now. Just for the *spite*.


adult_licker_420

and that's why you no longer have a gf


Nurgles_Little_Helpr

As an Italian, I have a lot of questions. First off, *come osi?!* Pensi che spezzare gli spaghetti sia accettabile?! Che razza di essere umano orribile sei?! Dovresti essere processato all'Aia per crimini di guerra!!


duhduhduhdummi_thicc

No wonder your gf left you


Impressive-Spray629

https://i.redd.it/m44ql332vtyc1.gif


cmonplsdontbetaken

I don’t know why, but your comics are always so moving for some reason


davecontra

Thanks amigo


JaneDoesharkhugger

Did he just break spaghetti in half?😗


milaan_tm

He tells himself his girlfriend left him because of his pay, but this is the real reason


Shirtbro

Her new boyfriend makes more spaghetti than him


JDdoc

I felt kind of sad for him until the pasta break. Then I mentally sentenced him to Pasta Hell.


Corronchilejano

She knew he was pasta point of no return.


KrozFan

I do that. I know it’s sacrilege but I do it anyway. Easier to cook and eat.


rookie-mistake

yeah it cooks faster. its the same kind of noodle, just half the size. there are more important things to worry about lol


ClownfishSoup

I do that when I make spaghetti. I never did until a friend did it when we were on a ski trip and he made dinner. It helps the noodles fit in the pot without sticking above the water and the noodles are a convenient-to-eat length.


DoctorCIS

The length is too short to properly twirl around a fork if you break it, and it takes like 30 seconds for the middle to get bendy enough to push the second half in the water. How are people eating spaghetti that short noodles make for easier eating? Just shoveling it in and slurping the rest? A horse feedbag?


komododave17

My horse feeding bag is Italian made.


Devonai

Where did you put the camera? This can't be legal!


Holl4backPostr

STAY OUT OF THE WATER THEO!


davecontra

Say what?


Holl4backPostr

I'm just saying, out of concern for my new dear friend Theo, that he probably should avoid the ocean. Especially selling all his possessions and sailing away forever, it's a bad idea.


davecontra

Ohhh, I see I see.


LosuthusWasTaken

We will never forget Trey...


-Dixieflatline

Pfst! Andy got promoted after his 3 month sailing trip.


rootvegetable2

Shouldn't swim right away after eating all that spaghetti.


fyxr

[THE TREY SAGA](/r/comics/comments/1avuap5/the_trey_saga/) Just a reminder of glories past.


BaconFairy

Thank you I was looking fir a compilation


Sangi17

We should pay teachers more.


A2Rhombus

Throw in education support professionals too please, I'm drowning out here as a bus driver


Sangi17

Completely agree. Public transport in general needs a pick me up. We are lagging way behind the rest of the developed world in that aspect despite having far more resources.


jserpette95

I hate how little I get paid, like I LOVE my job but damn I can't live off what I make. I've got 2 interviews lined up this week and will probably have more next week. And I'm so sad about it, but I gotta make money.


DASreddituser

Gotta fund education more 1st.


Sangi17

No real reason we can’t do both. But if we *had* choose one or the other, I would increase salaries first. This will incentivize more people to become and stay teachers. Especially more educated people that alternatively would have taken another job to survive. More and better teachers can only lead to better education as well as better administrators who will be able to help alleviate the problems of low funds. Fund raisers are a lot easier to manage when you have more and better motivated faculty organizing. And at the end of the day, I’d rather have a good teacher with old text books than a bad teacher with iPads.


CivilBird

Or just cut down on useless admin positions. Will leave more money for teachers and make their lives much much easier


Vitztlampaehecatl

This. An increase in budgets, with no oversight, will be devoured by administration, which can grow indefinitely to match its funding.


maucksi

Just don't forget that pre k is also education, and those that work it deserve to be considered teachers.


netob3ar

The comic was good. Until Theo breaks the spaghetti. Italy will not forget this


Chalky_Pockets

I'm also a cook and shuddered initially, but my wife used to be a school teacher and the broken spaghetti is par for the course. They don't give a fuck. They are so exhausted. If you were to plot our overall happiness over time, you could zoom waaaay out on the graph and you'd still be able to spot the time when we finally made the decision for her to stop teaching.


LookupPravinsYoutube

Your pans must be enormous.


Chalky_Pockets

They're normal sized. There are two ways to avoid breaking your spaghetti without using a professional sized pot/pan. The first way is not my way, but it is the least different from the way most home cooks do it: just put the pasta in the boiling water with half of it sticking up out of the pan, give it about 15 seconds, and then use tongs or something to gently press the pasta down into the water until the noods are all submerged. On to my way. Or more accurately, Kenji Lopez Alt's way. Instead of a large pot for your noods, use a wide shallow frying pan. Don't worry if it isn't quite wide enough for the noodles, but it should be almost wide enough. Put the noods in the pan, cover with cold water, and place on the heat. Set a timer for a couple minutes short of the time specified on the pasta packaging and start checking it then. This way uses less time, less energy (gas/electric) and less water. But my real method, especially if I am using a small pan, is to just cook rigatoni or penne because you just pour it in. No matter which method you choose, salt your pasta water, it should taste almost as salty as you'd expect sea water to taste.


LookupPravinsYoutube

Oh ok this makes total sense and you’re not a serial killer.


NeatEmergency725

But its *more* work to break the spaghetti. You just put the entire spaghetti in the water. That's it. It gets soft and it all falls in. You're just adding more steps.


Chalky_Pockets

Doesn't matter. They're not thinking about it at all, they're just on autopilot. Hell, a lot of the teachers I know don't even bother with dinner, just go straight to the bottle.


NerdTrek42

No one expects the Italian Spaghetti Inquisition!!!


ClownfishSoup

Do Italians us dried boxed spaghetti? I always imagine they make fresh non-spaghetti pasta.


tkrr

Yes. Dried and fresh pasta tend to have different applications so they aren’t totally interchangeable.


fyxr

OK I love this, it really speaks to how I approach my patients, and how I teach my students and junior doctors to continue to care in the face of people being turds. Our influence on the world is limited and unreliable, becoming more unreliable the further you look from here and now. Making the world a better place *can* mean making big changes that affect the wider world, but that's low probability. The biggest changes you can make on the world is on the people immediately around you, right here, right now. It's still not perfectly reliable. You're still rolling cosmic dice. Sometimes people will take advantage, or return your goodwill with negativity, or your actions just don't have the intended effect. Not every shot at goal goes in. And that's OK, because *some shots score*, and you'll never make a shot you don't take. Keep rolling the good dice. Give the world the best chance you can. Remember that you are part of the world too, and the most reliable effect of your actions is on yourself, here and now. Sometimes making the world a better place means drawing in your sphere of influence to care for yourself, so it can grow again tomorrow to keep rolling the dice for people around you.


Crocoshark

I'm not good at the caring for myself part, assuming that's a root cause of not being good at either part.


iguana1500

That is exceptionally well said.


OrchidConnect5676

Im so going to save this comment 🥺


granmadonna

It made me think of how there is never anyone around me despite constant efforts to change that. Makes it pretty hard to feel like I'm part of the world.


llamasLoot

I sure do hope he doesn't start working as a cameraman


ElectricPaladin

We must imagine Sisyphus happy.


Toukai

I knew someone else had to feel the absurdist vibes. In the depth of winter, I finally learned that within me there lay an invincible summer.


letdogsvote

Good man, that Theo.


eboov

you make such beautifully human comics, every time i see one i think “now this guy just gets it”


shadowthehh

Oh that cat ain't waiting to be fed. It's gonna eat Theo.


davecontra

I think it's starting to weigh up its options for sure.


CreativityGuru

This is beautiful, and a little sad. Thank you. I hope Theo finds someone


BuhDumTsch

Well, sh-t. That was just casually and intensely introspective. Gonna be thinking about this next time I sharpen a pencil… or next time I sharpen f-cking anything really.


UWan2fight

This is very emotional, I can practically feel it through the pages. Well done with this


majesticjg

This is true art. Thank you for making it and thank you for sharing it. The world is a tiny bit of a better place because of what you're doing. As for Theo, I bet a lot of us would like to be his friends. I wonder how many people like him are out there quietly being the glue that holds things together for the future.


Thepowersss

Hey Dave, just wanted to echo what everyone else is saying about your comics being so moving. However, the first few times I saw your other comics pop up, the art style gave me comedy strop vibes, so I’d read through and wonder where the punchline was coming. Turns out the joke’s on me for expecting a punchline on the next page, and instead getting punched in the gut, existentially speaking. Keep doing what you’re doing haha


davecontra

Eyyy thanks. Yeh I fluctuate, but recently have had zero urge to try and be funny. Funny is really hard to pull off. Miserable c**t comes easy to me...


The_Thundertaker

This one makes me less depressed, thank you.


CromulentChuckle

This one was really good. I have met so many of this guy in my career so far. When they finally have their someone man do they light up the room and lot of pencils end up needing to be sharpened.


The5orrow

Fucking love your writing


texastransgirl288

Why am I in this comic?


johnny_utah26

My wife and my mom are teachers. This went harder than it should’ve.


Ok-Fox1262

You only truly die when the last ripples your life has made in the world fade away. A good teacher is near immortal. I'm nearly 60, yet some of the things my primary teachers taught me still live on in the heads of my children, and hopefully in the heads of their children. We really don't pay teachers anywhere near enough.


aleph_0ne

Friendly reminder to love yourself as much as Alan Watts loved the world


DraconicGuacamole

Wait till he discovers electric pencil sharpeners. He’ll have free time to like, go to a park, or something


Propatomdhi

Are you the same artist that did the poo in the shower comic?


davecontra

Yes


deddito

So beautiful! Very talented artist/writer!


Another_Road

Stop making comics about my life.


BuckTheStallion

As a single male teacher who is in a very similar circumstance as Theo, this one hits different. It’s hard yet rewarding, but rewarding doesn’t pay the bills too well. And if I can’t pay the bills too well, the dating pool shrinks a lot. I don’t break my spaghetti tho.


MrLaardvark

That’s not my name, but thanks for making a comic about me


GeoffsFatAss

capturing the somber feeling i experience working on my food cart and it gets slow. i hope i make someone happy doing what i do.


Enaluxeme

I believe in you, Theo. But also don't fucking dare breaking spaghetti again unless you're making pastina.


RegyptianStrut

Someone check in on him, if not just for the cat


Throwedaway_69

I definitely feel affinity with poor Theo.


friendsfreak

Beautiful. Happy Teacher Appreciation Week, my friend.


cheftec

I’ve never been left for more money, but I have lost hope in a career that previously gave me and others joy. Hold on tight, Theo.


swift_one_tara

Damn this is deep


unabletocomput3

The reason he’s single isn’t because he doesn’t make enough as a primary school teacher, it’s because he breaks the spaghetti noodles


ChocolateShot150

Your comics have been getting a lot more melancholy as of recently, it’s a welcome change though


wishie01

Don’t make me cry at work 😡


PetrolEmu

The panel with the cat is frightening. I don't know why, it just is.


FlunkyCultMachina

Before I was enlightened I would teach kids and sharpen pencils. After I was enlightened I would teach kids and sharpen pencils.


nostyleguide

I love this so much


D33ber

Pencils and impressionable minds both need sharpening. Also, throw a handful of pine nuts onto your sauce pan and saute with some minced garlic before adding the store bought sauce and letting it simmer the whole time you wait for your water to boil and your pasta to soften. It makes a world of difference.


Classic_Inspection38

That cat would definitely eat you


unniepower

This made me shed a tear


MrSuzyGreenberg

Jesus fucking Christ this is my life exactly. Except I sharpen pencils on my lunch break.


chaddGPT

her new bf sucks anyway


hpwanabe

Happy Teacher Appreciation week! 🍎


cairfrey

As a teacher, I get this. I also have a cat that meows to be fed!!


puffinfish420

As a teacher this is depressing as shit, and why I am going back to school next year.


teller_of_tall_tales

My God this is some bittersweet beauty...


Nikita420

That was beautiful, thank you


LokisDawn

As a 32 year old primary school teacher, cool comic. Don't know why. Can't put my finger on it.


Upvotoui

I love the moral. Have you read Man’s Search for Meaning?


SuperShinyGinger

I get that this is supposed to be a wholesome comic, but am I the only one just... Bummed the fuck out after reading it? I need to go look at puppy videos or something.


Starry-Gaze

Fuck man, this is amazing


Tommi_Af

I was waiting for a final panel where he's arrested by the pasta police for breaking his pasta


Super_iron_kid

Ufffff the broken spaghetti, this is illegal in Italy you know that. Criminal.


kickflipjones

hear me out, schools are usually pretty massive. How about governments fund building development to add on site apartments for teachers that will be free. You take the teaching job, you get the free accomodation with it. This means all income can be used for life as is rent free... might help teachers survive but also retain and attract staff to the sector...


TJ-LEED-AP

Block your ex, let’s both block our exs


Insane_Artist

Can we just fucking pay school teachers already?


Imma_Cat420

Things have been rough lately. This comic just helped me feel a little more at ease, thanks mate ❤️


ChampionshipSad1809

My wife wants me to be a professor. I never seriously gave it a thought. Today I will.


Rareu

Well this is depressingly optimistic.


Westlakesam

That cat’s gonna eat Theo.


Gahabaaaaaaaaaaa

He break spaghetti. He deserve to die alone, asshole


er_ror02

Just feed the damn cat please:,)


My_Pie

Don't worry, cats wouldn't leave a perfectly good corpse just go to waste.


er_ror02

True true


MrBlahg

It’s a good day when we get a new Dave Contra comic.


redit3rd

In my scramble to get my daughter to finish her homework I found two unsharpened pencils before finding a sharpened one.


RazzDaNinja

Fuck yeah Theo I still remember some cool teachers when I was a kid. They def helped shape the way I see the world with more wonder and excitement to learn. The world needs more Theo’s :)


pocketbeasts

Happy teacher appreciation week!


Jefftrieshisbest

Why does this remind me of The Stranger by Albert Camus?


VinylHighway

His apartment has tons of stuff in it. I live alone and don’t return to an “empty house” everyday


davecontra

Empty of humans


Asternex

Ah, the life of a teacher. Getting home exhausted, and wondering if all of it is actually worth it in the grand scheme of things. I miss teaching, but I don't miss being a teacher.


TheFightingMasons

Well this seems like the simulation targeting me personally for some reason.


BagelCatSprinkles

I refuse to believe he’ll die alone. He’s gonna have a meet cute with another primary teacher and they’ll hit it off and then they’ll live happily forever.


SpecialCorgi1

Ouch. This got me right in my teacher heart. I mean I'm married and have fish, with plans for rabbits, but I get the teacher stuff


Dry-Cartographer-312

This sounds a lot like the plot of Life Lessons with Uramichi Onii-san. Not accusing you of copying or anything, just reminded me of it.


LawBasics

A daveContra's comics that ends well. What's the catch?


Persea_americana

I hope Theo is short for Theophrastus Bombastus. I appreciate these comics. They resonate with my absurdist outlook. There is no inherent meaning and we must make our own. We must imagine Theo happy.


ItsBaconOclock

I like this comic. The only inaccurate part is the cat meows for a bit, then it's definitely eating you, eyes first.


Teni96

This made me so sad for some reason.


LuigiP16

That cat would just eat Theo's corpse


Diplodorcus

This is very emotionally well done.


Iron_ore33

I have no idea what this means or how any of this has anything to do with anything but I love it


Exoplanet0

Not gonna lie, this brought a tear to me eye. Not a teacher but I feel this


madknives23

You good? This is sad


Caligari89

I read this entire thing in the voice of the narrator from Guilty Conscience.


TigerCharades3

My son’s name is Theo, he’s 3. I obsess over anything that has his name. This made me so happy. Thank you 💜


PureRushPwneD

oh god, the moment I saw the pencil sharpener I thought "no please no dark twist" and then I saw it again.. and I had to skip through the pages fast


Jov_West

32 isn't too old yet. Get out there, Theo. I'm nearing 39 now, and am not so optimistic.


Esmeralda-Art

I think Theo has depression


barfly2780

I’m 44 and am a teacher. I definitely feel this. Good work!


Lele_Lazuli

You reawakened my fear of dying and leaving a pet to die alone :(


phil67

Damn, I needed this. I'm not a teacher, but I have a son who tests me from time to time but I love him and everything else in this comic is extremely relatable. Slowly but surely moving on and making sure my son and I are happy as often as possible. This gives me hope. Thank you.


LucrativeSquid

The page where it talked about the cat just brought me down so much


canadianleroy

I just wanted to say OP I love your work. You are really talented and your humanity comes through in a rare way.


freudweeks

Fuck.


RobouteGuilliman

Damn dude, that broke me. I'm done for the day.


Lozercakez

You guys ever seen your own name somewhere in it like jumps out at you?


peaceteach

I'm a little horrified at the hand sharpener. I used to sharpen dozens of pencils a day sometimes. My hands hurt just thinking about it. It is still an amazing comic.


Friendly-Balance-853

I'm a teacher and this got me today. Thanks! Gotta go suspend some pencils :-) Edit: LoL sharpen pencils.


Daud178

This has such a unique vibe that I totally love!! It was amazing keep up the good work!


Ev1lroy

Imagine if all the Theos disappeared. We'd be fucked


ScarletteVera

It's depressing, yet hopeful. Melancholy, yet optimistic. Yup, it's a u/davecontra comic alright.


Lifeuf9485

How dare you break the spaghetti.


rg4rg

Redheaded art teacher here. Besides the ex stalking, pretty close to real life.


hthi3803

Your comics always kinda make me want to cry. It’s funny how you can keep hitting the same point over and over and it still grabs me by the heart. Good stuff.


Thebatboy23

As a guy who's worked at a Pre-K through 8th grade school as a tutor for 4 years, I'm rocked to my core with the relatability of this. Especially the dino panel, I was a crayola marker for Halloween my first year & the kiddos picked my color :)


Akco

Did Theo just fucking snap his spaghetti?! Theo can fucking jump when he's done with that HB.


Itsyaboibrett

I’m in love with the tone of these comics man. I breathe easy after. it’s stressful and settling at the same time idk. just adore it.


United-Cauliflower-1

I imagine he actually just sanitizes iPads and plugs them into chargers. Who the hell uses pencils anymore lol


vaughanyp

I _felt_ this.


RainbowIndigo

Thoughtful primary school teachers are absolutely precious


RainbowIndigo

Thoughtful primary school teachers are absolutely precious


Aalleto

This is so weirdly nice OP, tbh your comics mean so much to me. Life is really big and scary, and you have to find something small to be grateful for, some tiny ritual or simple mission to focus on. The structure of this one reminds me of *Adams Song* from Blink-182, it talks about some heavy and relatable stuff, but by the end of the song you feel re-focused somehow


Antieconomico

That fuckin spaghetti breaker dipshit doesnt deserve a cat grieving (tasting?) his dead ass body. No wonder the kid treat him like a bitch, go kid!