The Commuter

Read a Moving Comic about Art, Doubt, and Dreams by Sophia Foster-Dimino

COMIC: MY GIRL, BY SOPHIA FOSTER-DIMINO

Read a Moving Comic about Art, Doubt, and Dreams by Sophia Foster-Dimino

Panel 1: (Woman, in large, luxurious bathroom, putting on makeup.) I recently got a new job in addition to the five jobs I already have. Panel 2: (Woman, sleeping with head hooked up to a small recording device.) I'm a dream director, which just means I tape my dreams every night and upload them to social media in the morning. Panel 3: (Series of dreams)

Panel 1: (Woman, sitting at computer.) I started two weeks ago and I'm already doing pretty well. One of my dreams about satanic possession went viral and got featured on a popular content aggregator. Panel 2: (Woman, walking through apartment.) People tip a few cents if they like the dream. As supplemental income, it's not bad. My other five jobs are...Panel 3: (Woman, rolling out dough in kitchen.) One: I run a very small bed and breakfast out of my home. My special edge is in my gluten-free baked goods...

Panel 1: (Woman, making bed in eccentrically decorated room.) ...And my impeccably decorated guest bedrooms, which are themed "Hobbit Hole" and "Triadic Ballet." Panel 2: (Woman, walking by fountain.) Two: I designed and built a decorative fountain that faces the sidewalk running alongside my house. Every month, my girl and I harvest the change and go out for a nice meal. Panel 3: (Woman, at the cashier's desk of a gift shop.) Three: I own and operate a shop that sells zines, socks, sex toys, and artisanal chocolates, as well as miscellaneous gifts and supplies.

Panel 1: (Woman, drawing at a cafe. Barista approaching with a beverage and snack.) Four: I draw a daily strip for a respected publication, usually from a local coffeeshop where all the kind-hearted, cool-haired baristas know my usual. Panel 3: (Woman, making ceramics by a large craft table.) Five: I have a small studio on the outskirts of town where I do printmaking and ceramics in my free time.

Panel 1: (Woman, biking in the middle of the night) My girl's a celebrity. But she's modest about it. Panel 2: She has to travel a lot for her lectures and book tours.Woman, biking, on phone: Hi sugar muffin. How was your day? Panel 3: (Woman hanging bike on wall of her house.)

Panel 1: (Woman, washing dishes) Which is fine by me I love her but I also love being alone. Panel 2: (Woman soaping and rinsing dishes.) And if she were here all the time then maybe things wouldn't be going so well. Panel 3: (Woman, walking through her small, studio apartment) This is where I actually live.

Panel 1: (Woman, scrolling through the internet.) I moved here with my soon-to-be husband in early 2012. He moved out a few months ago. Panel 2: (Woman, washing her face in a small bathroom) I recently started going to therapy because my life stopped making sense to me. Panel 3: (Woman, sleeping in a small bedroom) I experience spells of intense psychological pain that in the past have driven me to injure myself. Panel 4: (Woman, doing a series of strange things.) Lately, I've been confused.

Panel 1: (Woman, pulling on sweatshirt.) Unable to make decisions. Panel 2: (Woman, sitting on the train.) Unable to understand the decisions I do make. Panel 4: (Woman, walking out the door.) Panel 5: (Woman, sitting in darkness.) My overactive imagination and needlessly intense sensitivity have shaped who I am as an artist.

Panel 1: (Woman, sitting in darkness, blowing noes and tossing out the tissue.) But they developed as a defense mechanism when I was in the weeds of a dark childhood. And now they prevent me from living my life in a healthy way. Panel 2: (Woman, biking down a hill.) My girlPanel 3: (Woman, stopped at the bottom of the hill.) Is a celebrity. Panel 4: (Woman, chaining her bike to a bike rest.) But she's modest about it.

Panel 1: (Woman, sketching.) When I think about the future I get scared. Panel 2:When I get scared I think about my fantasies. Panel 3: (Woman, reading.) She comes home. I've made her a decaf latte and a ginger carrot cupcake. Panel 4: (Woman, reading, back against her chair.) What's the version of this dream that could theoretically exist in the real world? Panel 5: (Woman begins to draw.) And can I see myself there? Panel 6: (Woman bending over book, beginning to draw. Flower bloom behind her.) And will i?

Sophia Foster-Dimino is an illustrator & cartoonist living and working in San Francisco. She graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2010 with a BFA in illustration. Likes comics, videogames, biking, food, zines. See more of her work at www.hellophia.com.

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