An easy craft project to make a smile

This is something I first started doing when I was a teenager. Everyone likes the comics in the newspaper, and that's something that the Internet news has not really erased. Even a person who has not read a paper newspaper for a long time will often pick one up and read the comics if they see one in a waiting room or somewhere. While some comics have turned into lengthy serials, or are all cynical and "earnest," there are those that remain nice and sweet, or wry, maybe with a dig, that one can appreciate at first sight.

What I used to do is cut out and save those that really give me a smile. When I was a teenager I took one of the picture gallery sleeves out of a wallet and filled it with my absolute favorite cartoons that I had snipped and saved. Every once in a while, then, I would come across that comic wallet and have a smile looking through them again. I still have the first one I made in storage somewhere. So I do the same thing today. If you want to copy the idea there are also those small photo albums that you can use. That size is also easier for the strip length size of cartoon. One of my favorite cartoon strips, "The Family Circus," is still in print and still wonderful. I've also been a long time fan of "Blondie." The ones I am collecting these days are mostly "Kit 'n Carlyle" and "Pluggers."

Anyway, I thought I'd pass this along as an easy and gently fun craft activity. It's also a good Christmas gift idea. If you know that someone in your family or one of your friends loves a particular comic strip, you can collect some of the best ones, or the most recent ones, and put them in a little *smile* album for your friend.