Susan Senator

I was having a long, funny I.M. conversation with Robert Parrish last night. Robert is a talented filmmaker and writer, and dad to two kids, one of whom has ASD. He is also a great guy, about to write a book that will probably be a big hit in the ASD community (full disclosure: he has asked me to write a piece of it; despite that, it will be a good book!)

So, I don’t know how it came up, but I told him that of all the cartoon characters in the world, I most closely identify with Lucy Van Pelt. Mostly because I love her unrestrained crabbiness and passion. To see her leaning wistfully on Schroeder’s piano reminds me of me, waiting around for Ned to finish with his computer. Of the Peanuts characters, here is how I see the rest of my family:
Ned– Schroeder
Max — Linus (compassionate, calm in the face of storms and utter stupidity surrounding him, even has a blue blankie and could probably pat birds on the head)
Nat — Woodstock (can’t really understand what he’s saying but you get the gist of it, he’s yellow-haired, and he flits in and flits out)

Benj — Calvin. That would make Max Hobbes.
Ben is also Nelson from the Simpsons (ha-ha!)

I am also Veronica Lodge + Betty Cooper. Betty because I’m warm-hearted, Veronica because I’m spoiled, demanding, and flirtatious.

I asked Ned who does he most closely identify with as a cartoon character; he agreed with being Schroeder, because of his focus on his keyboard, he’s blond, unflappable, and “there’s the whole Lucy-Schroeder dynamic. Can’t you just see Lucy saying, ‘when I bellydance, you should stop playing the piano!'” (Ned’s quote, not mine.) Blockhead.

So, readers, tell me which cartoon character are you, in the whole panoply of characters, the whole Hysteric Spectrum (not to be confused with Autistic Spectrum, which is not nearly as funny)?

Tell me who and tell me why.