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Upper West Sider Asks: ‘Is It Just Me?’

January 26, 2025 | 5:09 AM
in ABSURDITY, ART, COLUMNS
33

By Gary Martin

I don’t think my chair yoga classes are working.

* * *

Gary B. Martin is an illustrator and animator who has lived on the Upper West Side for more than 30 years. His illustrations appear in the Rag on Sundays, chronicling life in the neighborhood, New York City, and the Universe. See them all here. For a broader range of Gary’s work, including animations and other motion graphics, please visit www.martoons.com

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Please limit comments to 150 words and keep them civil and relevant to the article at hand. Comments are closed after six days. Our primary goal is to create a safe and respectful space where a broad spectrum of voices can be heard. We welcome diverse viewpoints and encourage readers to engage critically with one another’s ideas, but never at the expense of civility. Disagreement is expected—even encouraged—but it must be expressed with care and consideration. Comments that take cheap shots, escalate conflict, or veer into ideological warfare detract from the constructive spirit we aim to cultivate. A detailed statement on comments and WSR policy can be read here.

Comments 33

  1. birdie says:
    12 months ago

    Nope. Not just you.

    Reply
  2. Laurie K says:
    12 months ago

    Yep!!! My soul is hurting Gary!

    Reply
  3. Meg Roberts says:
    12 months ago

    I related before I even saw the caption!

    Reply
  4. Neal Leibowitz says:
    12 months ago

    You’re not supposed to make the chair do the exercises.

    Reply
  5. Sharon says:
    12 months ago

    I thought it was just me.

    Reply
  6. Joe says:
    12 months ago

    We have possibly 4 more years of ineptitude, depravity & moronic behaviour. It’s like a Twilight Zone episode where a demonic child has supernatural power. We need to find a way to cut this timeframe short.

    Reply
    • Ped Astel says:
      12 months ago

      If only this were fiction

      Reply
    • ecm says:
      12 months ago

      I wonder whether total economic and social collapse would help.

      Reply
    • Ben Keppell says:
      12 months ago

      What do you think that kid in Pennsylvania was trying to do with his rifle? Support the man in the White House. Anything else is hoping the pilot of the plane your on fails at his job.

      Reply
    • Joshua K says:
      12 months ago

      What does this have anything to do with this cartoon and Gary’s yoga classes? Can you spend 5mins a day without bothering everyone with your political virtue signaling?

      Reply
  7. Don says:
    12 months ago

    OY!!!
    Do I relate, or what!!!

    Reply
  8. Ped Astel says:
    12 months ago

    Getting older is just your body’s way of saying, “Ha Ha, You Think that’s bad? Watch this”

    Reply
    • Sue says:
      12 months ago

      I sent your comment to several aching friends. It was universally loved.

      Reply
  9. Maria says:
    12 months ago

    Totally relate to this! At least the cartoon made me laugh — good to have a sense of humor. BTW, tried chair yoga but it only made me wish I could get back to “regular” yoga.

    Reply
  10. Peter Birkenhead says:
    12 months ago

    Ain’t that the painful truth

    Reply
  11. Ellen White says:
    12 months ago

    Yup. With you on that!

    Reply
  12. Joanna says:
    12 months ago

    Yep. Ouch. Ouch OUCH..

    Reply
  13. brave in nyc says:
    12 months ago

    “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. ”
    Alvin Toffler

    Reply
    • ecm says:
      12 months ago

      Which is not to say that conventional, 20th-Century illiteracy isn’t still a problem in this country: 54% of American adults have a literacy proficiency below the 6th-grade level and 20% are below 5th-grade level. I’ve also read, albeit ~20 years ago, that only about 10% of Americans read more than one book a year unrelated to work or school.

      I remain convinced this explains a great deal about our current plight — but also suggests a potential solution.

      Reply
  14. Nancy says:
    12 months ago

    mentally, emotionally, logistically, subjectively, spiritually, and yeah, physically. Everything hurts.

    Reply
    • Kristin L says:
      12 months ago

      Why mentally or emotionally? What happened that is so tragic in your neighborhood?

      Reply
  15. David says:
    12 months ago

    Aging is beastly difficult, but it beats the alternative. Carpe diem, and one day at a time, as the old people and alcoholics say.

    Reply
  16. Steve says:
    12 months ago

    I love the Cartoon and agree with the sentiment, but the bigger question is why do we feel this way and what can we do about it.

    Reply
  17. Anne Watkins says:
    12 months ago

    Might be time to adopt a an old dog.

    Reply
    • Kristin L says:
      12 months ago

      With the never ending whining and depression around here, even an old dog would run away from the UWS

      Reply
  18. UWSJMG says:
    12 months ago

    My mother – who passed a few years ago – aged 95 – used to say: Getting old isn’t great; but the alternative is worse –

    Reply
  19. Edith Tyson says:
    12 months ago

    Omg. No I am So achy! And so is everyone I know. What’s up??!

    Reply
  20. Joe Chiplock says:
    12 months ago

    I just completed a series of six visits to various medical providers…and have a few more appointments in the coming weeks. There may be aches and pains…but they are getting better!

    Reply
  21. Cindy says:
    12 months ago

    Indeed! But the body I feel I can repair….it’s my mind and soul I’m worried about!

    Reply
    • Kristin L says:
      12 months ago

      Maybe stop defining yourself exclusively through your political identity, you will feel better.

      Reply
  22. Bill Crystal says:
    12 months ago

    This is the Raggiest Rag post of all time. Neurotic hypochondriacs unite!

    Reply
  23. Joe Chiplock says:
    12 months ago

    Sorry about the chair yoga classes…might the “Think Method,” help? Take care, Gary. We need you to keep supplying cartoons that rile us up !

    Reply
  24. monica says:
    12 months ago

    tell me about it!

    Reply

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