The Dumbing of Age Book 2 Kickstarter passed $42K, so be sure to come back here both Saturday AND Sunday for new comics! And then keep on doing that for a year.
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The Dumbing of Age Book 2 Kickstarter passed $42K, so be sure to come back here both Saturday AND Sunday for new comics! And then keep on doing that for a year.
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Because screaming someone’s name in concern = breaking in? \=| THANKS MARY
Did you miss the part yesterday where she was trying to pull the door open?
Listen, it’s been TWO DAYS since she locked herself in, SOMEONE was bound to show concern!
Yeah but why would she be calling her name unless she wanted to help her…or was about to beat her like a bongo drum. Not that the latter is UNLIKELY for Billie…
I will pay for this to be drawn.
BAD IDEA Billie!!!
Fire alarms are for fires. Pulling one when there is no fire can get you in legal trouble (fines, jail). If a firefighter or anyone else gets injured while responding to your false alarm, you will be charged with assault, or, god forbid someone dies, manslaughter. Seriously.
Not to mention the rough justice that other dorm residents may decide to inflict after you inconvenience them.
— a firefighter
I’ve always been of the opinion that people that pull the fire alarm when there is no emergency should be punched on sight.
To be fair, Billie strongly suspects that there is an emergency.
She could light that alcohol on fire ,then pull it.
Ruth would explode! D:
Even Billie might explode, her blood has probably been replaced with ethanol at this point.
As someone who lives in a dorm… it’s no inconvenience at all. We all just ignore the fire alarms at this point.
As someone who also lives in a dorm, I can tell you that not all fire alarms are created equal. Ours can’t be ignored. There’s the klaxon and the blinding flashing lights to contend with. And if you don’t get out in time and it’s a drill they do it again. -__-
To be clear, they were setting off the automated fire alarm by filling the kitchen with smoke from their burnt food and triggering the smoke detectors, not pulling a manual alarm.
I completely replied to the wrong post with my follow up post. I am shamed.
And that’s why the university I went to is crazy about fire safety. Because a few years prior to that a dorm burned down and not everybody bothered to leave. There was a scholarship named after an RA who died when she went back into the building to pound on doors to inform people that it was a legitimate emergency.
Fall quarter last year my roommates set off the fire alarm while cooking *four times* in one quarter. Remember that one quarter is eleven weeks. They also managed to do it *after midnight* all four times, always because one of them was trying to play a videogame while cooking.
By the fourth time (during finals week naturally) all I did was open the door to give them an evil glare, then curled up in bed and waited out the mandatory 30-minute period before the 140-decibel alarm can be turned off with a pillow over my ears.
Naturally I ratted them to the housing administration, cuz, yeah… four times in eleven weeks….
I think in this case, she’d get away with a warning and stern talking to that, next time, she should call the local police department or 911 if she suspects someone is in danger instead of pulling the fire alarm
Fairly certain there are clauses for when somebody panics and does something stupid (ie pulls the fire alarm) in a potentially emergency situation
Well, she is worried about someone dying and college dorms have a ridiculous number of fire drills anyway.
Why would you get injured responding to a non-fire? Not that I am condoning prank fire-alarm pulls…
When responding to a fire alarm, firefighters will treat it as a real emergency, going lights and sirens. Lights and sirens make other drivers do stupid things that can cause accidents. Also a significant number of firefighters get involved in accidents.
In the US, roughly 100 firefighters die each year in line of duty deaths, that is to say they die doing their job. IIRC, about 20% of those deaths are vehicle accident related. Off the top of my head I don’t have any statistics on non-fatal injuries.
Do you want to be the cause of someone else being injured or killed?
— a firefighter
Do you want
I should add that my department responds to a college. This is a real sensitive issue with me, given the real-world cluelessness of college students.
So, what’s worse? Being called in for a prank fire alarm, or because some idiot burned their dinner in the dorm kitchen?
Both suck, but obviously the prank is worse. One is an accident, and even if the person involved should have known better, that person is obviously less of a pile of ignorant selfishness than the jerk who pulled the fire alarm for funsies.
What if they burn their dinner four times in one quarter?
…I am bitter.
yea….. people are stupid.
it’s just asking to be pulled
Do it… Do it! DO IT!
Pulling the fire alarm for love.
Someone needs to douse the burning hot passion Billie feels for Ruth.
and the best way for Billie to douse that is with some powerful booze.
Do not ever use booze to douse a burning hot anything.
It’s a waste of good booze. Pour something expendable, like blood or tears.
I prefer to pour out small children to douse fires.
Also, booze is flammable… 😛
Yes because people wanted to break into Ruthless’s room. Damn it, Mary.
Well I mean…they might. She’s probably got cool RA swag. Plus Billie totally DID sneak into Ruth’s room once.
and hijinx ensues…
Mary is like, female mike only she doesn’t realize that she always shows up when she’s least wanted.
Which must be almost all the time.
The exception being when Billie snuck in and she wasn’t dressed yet. As perverted as that sounds, that honestly is the one scene I’ve seen with Mary where she doesn’t get on my nerves.
I think she should wait for Mary to go into the bathroom, then pull it.
At what point has she ever been wanted?
Somebody pulling the Read dorm’s fire alarm when there’s not actually a fire???? Well, gosh oh golly, is it Thursday again already?
It’s so much more special when it happens during finals week at 2am.
See at least at my school it was just a victim-less finals crime, like streaking with a bag on your head.
Willis, are you me from the future? Or an alternate universe? Or is there some sort of hive mind that college idiots tap into?
Because I swear, something almost exactly like that happened in my dorm, last quarter.
As in winter.
It happens in military training dorms too. for every dumb excuse. luckily for me, most of the time it was done when the bar on base was still open and I was legal to drink. So, I would just walk the half block from the dorm to the bar and wait out the alarm.
When I was at university it was more often than not an automated activation. In my first year we had heat sensors in the kitchens rather than smoke, and during freshers week some company gave out popcorn makers as a promotion. Naturally, the operating temperature of the popcorn maker was enough to set the heat sensor off, given that the only free space in the kitchen was the table under the sensor. It didn’t help that people got drunk, forgot this fact, and did it over and over again.
When I returned to halls in a later year I had a ground floor dorm, so I kept 2-4 beers and a bottle opener by my window. Standard practice during an alarm was my friend across the hall would come over, we’d climb out my window, into the field on the opposite side of the building from the designated point, then drink in the sun until the alarm passed.
Do people at other colleges actually leave when the fire alarm goes off? We usually just assume some idiot hot-boxed their room and go back to studying.
That sounds illegal.
As well as life-threatening, but that probably goes without saying.
What sounds illegal? Not leaving? Pretty sure you’re legally allowed to burn to death if you so choose…
Or did you mean the hot-boxing? ‘Cause yeah, but when has that ever stopped college students from getting their high on?
Yeah, why wouldn’t you legally be allowed to stay inside a burning dorm, thus requiring firefighters to risk THEIR lives to run into a blazing inferno to carry your dumb ass out of it? Makes perfect sense to me!
Wait a second…
Hmm, you make a good point; hadn’t thought about that. Still, is it actually illegal to not leave a building when the fire alarm’s been pulled, or is it just a Really Bad Idea?
at my school you could get fined in the traditional dorms. Note there were people who wouldn’t leave but I was always sure that if it wasn’t a fire they would check my dorm so I would get up. I even considered hiding in a closet once but that was at 3 in the morning so my mind was on why I wasn’t sleeping right now. I lived on the top floor too which was hell to walk at the wee hours of most alarms. In the suite style dorms it was more fluid since most fire alarms were from people making bacon (no really every alarm that went off at least in our room was from bacon not burning just cooking) they would just call up to your room to check what is going on
In a public building… not sure. I think so, but now you’ve made me doubt myself.
In a dorm, it’s almost certainly very against the rules. Technically “illegal” but not what most people use the term to mean. I know they checked the rooms after the alarm went of in the dorms at my university.
Dammit Mary, you are the worst. All of this, I will now blame you.
And now you’re her.
No Luzahn, you are the zombie.
I’m sure Mary hates herself deep down, too.
…Ah dammit, now I’m made myself sad.
I think we can all see where this is going… Billie is obviously going to climb through the air ducts.
She will need to lose the Freshman 15 first.
In addition to the Freshman 30 she gained prior.
She should NEVER lose that weight!
In a few years Billie will merely be represented by a ball with human features. Everyone will act like it’s completely normal.
Nah, Billie’s nowhere near ovoid in shape, just pleasantly plump! VERY pleasantly!
Not right now she’s not, but in time.
If she learns them well it could save her life when the dorm is over run by parasitic aliens and she needs to survive until the space marines get there.
Well that would wake her up if she was passed out, and she would also probably have to take some sort of role call outside so if she doesn’t show, Billie might screw her over.
Why do I choose to phrase it like that in this chat?
Tempting fate?
I smell foreshadowing.
It smells a lot like Petrichor.
Wait, what happened at Phoenix Comic-con?
What happened at Phoenix Comic-con, STAYS at the Comic-con.
(Apparently there were nazis involved)
Actually, the Nazi costume thing was separate. What Willis is presumably talking about here was someone pulling the fire alarm on Sunday and forcing everyone out of the building.
I’m wondering that, too. Did it involve fire alarms?
Yes. Someone pulled a fire alarm, forcing everyone out of the building. Randall Milholland (of Something*Positive), Danielle Corsetto (of Girls with Slingshots), and John Troutman (of Sporkman, MESS, Lit Brick, etc.) even took a silly photo during it.
Does no one check her Twitter?
Maybe she’s like me, have a Twitter account but not really active.
It’s not actually connected to anything.
This isn’t Greendale!
…are you sure? I mean you _did_ draw Magnitude (“Pop pop!”) attending that party Joyce almost got raped at…
How can we be sure?! Have we seen this schools flag yet?!
Billie’s going to end up with everyone thinking she’s actually stalking Ruth, isn’t she?
Isn’t she? She DID totally hide in her closet.
Only to retrieve her own property which was stolen from her.
Still.
Oh no.
Don’t you FUCKING dare Billie.
I fucking hate it when people do this.
Maybe she could not stand not meeting Ruth?
I did it once as a child. It was an accident.
…except in this case, it’s out of concern for Ruth’s well-being. Still obnoxious to everyone else, and still illegal, but understandable.
If it’s an emergency she could probably avoid legal issues, though she would have to come clean about Ruth kissing her
It’s not really concern that makes any sense. Does she hope firefighters will enter Ruth’s room? That’s a very convoluted way of getting somebody to check on her, and what’s the benefit over just reporting her concerns?
Is Kernanator gonna have to choke a bongo?
Man, one time at my high school, some one pulled the fire alarm during a blizzard. Everyone had to file out, in the snow, most not even able to grab jackets, and I was in a T-shirt, freezing and chattering like a pair of wind-up teeth. It was only after like 30 minutes of getting snowed on that they told us to go to a near by building, and then as soon as we got there, we were told to we could go back into the building. It was horrible
Oh wait, that was for an actual fire… Well we also got idiots calling in fake bomb threats.
At my high school, we got bomb threats fairly regularly, and they also filed us all into the stadium. Me and my friends were positive that’s where someone smart would put a bomb if they were familiar with the school and actually wanted to hurt people. I was freaked.
The fire alarm went off during a blizzard at my college dorm. Probably activated by a smoke detector in one of the rooms.
Some people were taking showers, couldn’t get to their rooms, and had to go outside in only towels… We shared our clothes with them, of course, but still.
I know what you mean. I had raffle tickets and might’ve won something, but then we had to flee the building and I wasn’t about to wait for hours in the 100 degree heat until they let us back in. Must’ve really sucked for those in the exhibition hall.
DON’T YOU DARE PULL THAT FIRE ALARM WHEN THERE’S NO FIRE
Ask Mike to set a fire first. He’s helpful in situations like this.
Exactly.
read yesterday’s DoA, today’s BBR, then today’s DoA. Willis is being pretty ruthless this week. pun intended, this time
When an RA doesn’t emerge from her cave every day to do what RA’s do (in Ruth’s case, terrorize), notice is taken. Especially for Billy,after finding the booze leak. So now, how about going to the head office? If she pulls that fire alarm they could both get expelled, if she doesn’t, Ruth may die (if she isn’t in the trash chute). Either way it looks like Ruth’s ass is grass, and admin. is the lawnmower.
If Billie was going to go to admin it probably would have been when Ruth was stealing from her, assaulting her and emotionally abusing her,
I probably wouldn’t have noticed if any of my RAs didn’t come out of their rooms for a few days.
I’d’ve noticed if they didn’t show up for an event they held, but if I just didn’t happen to see them in the hallway for while? Naw.
Did Sierra get a haircut?
So according to the archive, the next chapter is called “Just Hangin’ Out With My Family”. I’m wondering if this might have anything to do with Ruth.
Only slightly related note. Fire alarms make me realize how hopeless most college students are. Last semester my dorm had two, both complete accidents (the one was triggered by a very steamy shower but that was because the wiring had gotten damaged over winter break). That one was also on the first day of classes at 7 in the morning, so it was our wake-up alarm.
But what makes me sad is that both times, I was the first person to the fire exit and the rest of the girls in my hall, AND my RA were busy putting away their electronics, grabbing their phones and locking the doors. As I said both times they were accidents, but if one had been real?
Only two?
And you have to lock your doors?
We don’t have to, when I asked people they said, “People will use the opportunity to break into our rooms.” and then rolled their eyes at my trusting ways. I stayed in the all girls dorm and it was the quiet one. The party dorm (for freshies) and the huge upperclassmen dorm (other side of campus) both got fire alarms at least once every two weeks. Many in the middle of the night.
That’s not what I meant. Every dorm building on my campus had automatic doorknob locks, plus a deadbolt you could set. If people wanted to not lock their doors, they had to open it and use the deadbolt to keep it from shutting. Kinda like most hotel doors, I guess.
I thought that was pretty standard.
Hey, Mr Willis, I think you misspelled “drama tag” in the last panel.
Nice accusatory stare.
I can see both sides of the argument and, honestly, I have no idea what I’d do in her place. I just hope whatever she does doesn’t blow up in her face.
Also, my icon is just about the most ironic thing in existence. I’m a non-religious, bigender, homosexual, cross-dresser. I’m not even joking.
I don’t know what I’d do, either, but how does “Pull the fire alarm” even come up as a possible solution?
She’s panicking, but what is it meant to accomplish?
Force Ruth to get out of her room, if that’s where she is — or, if she doesn’t come out, force someone to notice her disappearance when they’re doing the headcount outside and one member of staff is missing.
Wait, people do headcount? My school doesn’t, since it is assumed that if you are not in the dorm you are just somewhere else. Makes sense too, I knew one girl in my dorm who literally spent 4 nights in the dorm, the rest were at her boyfriends apartment.
Ruth does have classes, y’know! She’s a student, like everyone else. She’s allowed to be at her classes (or eating or exercising or shopping or whatever folks do elsewhere) during the day while fire alarms go off without getting in trouble.
If she’s unable to respond (seems like it might be what Billie’s thinking), she won’t respond to the fire alarm, either.
And if somebody finds her in her room, what was the benefit over actually reporting her suspicions?
But really, a head count outside a residence in the middle of the day? You wouldn’t expect most people to be there anyway, and most of the evacuees probably will go somewhere else rather than wait around to get back in.
Well, presumably the benefit is a fireman getting the door open
and getting Ruth out of there. Which, if it’s a police officer or someone
from the university and she’s got booze all over and is drunk as hell like Billie suspects Ruth is in deep trouble. That’s if they even listen to Billie, the police or university may take their good sweet time checking into it if at all. A fireman will definitely get the door open ASAP though. I could see why she would be tempted to pull the alarm. Besides, it’s the day time.
I hate fake alarms as much as anyone, we had a “serial puller” at my freshman dorm. He pulled it for at least a month, many times twice a night. I remember at least one time he pulled it three times in one night. He always pulled at night, the three timer I remember was at 11 pm, 1 am and 3 am. As far as I know he was never caught either, although people said they caught a glimpse of him running a couple times. By the end of it I was royally pissed off at the police and university, they said if anyone of us stopped responding to the alarms we’d be in more trouble than the guy pulling. Yet they never setup cameras or did anything about it beyond asking around if anyone saw the guy who did it.
But the fire fighter would still be catching her. She’s still caught. If Billie’s trying to avoid that, this doesn’t help. So there’s no benefit.
Goddamnit Mary, why are you so awful? It’s like you were bred for it in a lab.
No Billie! Stay good!
By which I mean go back there and kick Mary in the head!
Please tell me Amber got back from the comic book store by now and just started her weekly raid.
DM: “Bluff check fails.”
Billie: “Ready action pull fire alarm.”
is it possible for Mary to appear and not be a bongo? because I have to disagree with her previous words, evil in this case is not nice…
I don’t even know what’s going to happen here. Either she pulls it and drags Ruth out from her room, and the ‘going back for her’ proves she cares about her which may cement her place as a friend/friendly type in their relationship and may make Ruth more open to talking to her.
Or — and I don’t know why this popped into my head, probably the ‘gasoline’ line from before — she decides not to pull it, but it goes off anyway. Ruth has doused her room in alcohol and set fire to it.
Also, I kind of don’t see why Mary’s getting so much hate here (except for, duh, being Mary)? Sierra’s the one who first brought attention to the entering attempt. Mary may have launched the accusation of breaking in, but this is a surly alcoholic who’s shown nothing but hostility towards someone whose door she’s forcefully prying up. Sure, we know of all the stuff that’s happened, but that’s because we’ve gotten Billie’s perspective.
I can’t remember, what floor are they on? Can’t she go outside and look in the window? Or break the window, for that matter. Where is Sal, she could help.
I think the legal headaches she might get from pulling the fire alarm are far smaller than the legal headaches Ruth would get for drinking underage. Plus she could be dying in there. Really REALLY bad timing for those two to show up. If I were in Billies shoes I’d pull the Alarm.
David,
I think you’re doing a great job with Billie’s character. She’s becoming one of the more complex characters of the strip. Much deeper than her strip bio. I think she really tries to be a good person in spite of her drinking and shallow past. Keep up the good work and keep making Billie a more multifaceted being; she’s becoming very compelling. (Also she *is* adorable.)
I hear that some fire alarms have ink or something that sprays out if pulled, to discourage those who’ll do it for non-emergency related issues. Shield your face if you must pull, Billie!
I was drilling a hole into a concrete ceiling at work once, and noticed that the drill was shooting out a perfect stream of concrete dust right into the smoke detector. “Huh, I wonder if that’s gonna… BRRRRINNNGGGG”. “Aw man…”
I hope you were wearing a respirator of some kind! Concrete dust is nasty.
Go to the male wing RA, tell him you are worried somthing has happened, and make him to come with you to check. Most dorms use the same master key for all wings so RA’s can cover for each other so his key will work.
If Billie is in her right mind she may be trying to avoid getting Ruth in trouble since she believes it is spilled alcohol. Of course when fire and rescue show up and break into her room and find her the results will be similar so it may be she is just panicking and not thinking of any of the consequences.
Rule 1 of being an RA: you never report another RA for anything that isn’t putting a student in immediate danger. Blackmail, yes; actually report, no.