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THE ARCHIVE
Every strip so far, oldest first, so you can start at the beginning and read down.
All nine are on this one page, so give it a minute on a modem.

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Jump to: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 | #7 | #8 | #9

THE BUG #1  Wednesday, September 8, 1999
THE BUG #1. On the motherboard, the Bug waves. BUG: Hi! I'm the Bug. Maybe you've heard of me. He points at Clock, whose display says 1999. BUG: At midnight on New Year's Eve, I make this clock say 1900. Arms up: And then... chaos!! CLOCK: This computer is for solitaire. The Bug blinks. BUG: ...Solitaire chaos.
Cory says: The very first one. I redrew the Bug's antennae four times before I liked them, and Clock's face exactly once.
THE BUG #2  Thursday, September 9, 1999  BONUS STRIP!
THE BUG #2, the bonus strip. Nines, the Bug's purple cousin, arrives with a suitcase. NINES: Cousin! It's 9/9/99! My big day! Old programs use 9999 to mean 'the end.' So at midnight... Caption: Midnight. Everybody stares at Clock, who says 12:00. Nothing happens. NINES: Well. See you at New Year's, cousin. No pressure. The Bug sweats.
Cory says: A Thursday strip, because 9/9/99 only comes around once. Nines had his shot. He's taking it well.
THE BUG #3  Friday, September 10, 1999
THE BUG #3. The Bug practices in front of a shiny chip like a mirror. BUG: Nineteen hundred. Then in a spotlight, arms flung wide: Nineteen... hundred!! Clock walks past. CLOCK: It's two zeros. The Bug, hands on hips: It's all in the delivery.
Cory says: Panel two is one click of the fill bucket with black, and then a spotlight. Best click I've made all year.
THE BUG #4  Monday, September 13, 1999
THE BUG #4. Floppy, an old navy blue disk, stands on a crate. FLOPPY: Back in '92 we had real trouble, kid. Viruses. On floppies. Passed hand to hand in the school lab. He points at the bandage on his corner: I still got a bad sector from it. BUG: Wow. Floppy walks off: Kids today. Everything comes in the e-mail.
Cory says: Floppy's first strip. He's drawn from the bargain bin at work, where every disk looks exactly like that, bandage included.
THE BUG #5  Wednesday, September 15, 1999
THE BUG #5. A huge noise fills the sky: EEEEE-KSSHHH-BONG-BONG-SHHHH. The Bug leaps: What is that?! CLOCK: Cory's modem. He's going online. FLOPPY: He's downloading a Y2K patch. The Bug hides behind a chip, shaking. Later, the Bug lies back in a hammock. CLOCK: It's been 40 minutes. It's at 3%. BUG: I love dial-up.
Cory says: All true. That's my 14.4 and that's really what it sounds like. I typed the noise out by listening to it six times.
THE BUG #6  Friday, September 17, 1999
THE BUG #6. Through the monitor glass the Bug looks out at Cory's closet: canned beans, water jugs, a flashlight, batteries. BUG: Look! Cory's stocking up! Beans! Water! Batteries! He's afraid of me! CLOCK: He also bought a party hat. Cory's big face grins through the glass in a pink party hat. BUG: He's afraid of me and having a party? CLOCK: That's everybody this year.
Cory says: That's me in the hat, my first time in the strip. Yes, that is my actual closet. Yes, I own the hat.
THE BUG #7  Monday, September 20, 1999
THE BUG #7. Night. The Bug lies awake in bed; Clock's red display glows. BUG: Clock? You awake? CLOCK: I'm a clock. BUG: What if I get to midnight and... nothing happens? CLOCK: Then on January 1st, Cory plays solitaire. Floppy snores in the background. BUG: That's worse. CLOCK: Go to sleep.
Cory says: The first night strip. Clock never sleeps, because the battery keeps him going even with the power off. I looked it up to be sure.
THE BUG #8  Wednesday, September 22, 1999
THE BUG #8. At Clock's battery. BUG: Doesn't it bother you? I'm going to change your numbers. CLOCK: I've changed my numbers every second since 1994. One more isn't going to kill me. BUG: What if it does? CLOCK: Then I'll be late.
Cory says: Clock's been counting since 1994, the year the computer was built. He's the oldest thing in there except Floppy, and Floppy will tell you so.
THE BUG #9  Friday, September 24, 1999
THE BUG #9. At dusk the Bug stands beside Clock. BUG: 99 days left. Clock... will you be there? At midnight? CLOCK: I'm a clock. I'm always there. The Bug hugs Clock, little hearts floating up. Clock's face doesn't change. CLOCK: This is not in my job description.
Cory says: Ninety-nine days to go. I did the sunset in three stripes, maroon, orange and yellow, and I'm prouder of it than I should be.
That's all of them so far. The next one goes up Monday, September 27.

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Last updated Friday, September 24, 1999
THE BUG © 1999 Cory Rourke