165: The Timid Son, or, Crawford Milquetoast

Explanation
In the original, Crawford asks when he can stop watching it. Here, he quotes Caspar Milquetoast, main character of The Timid Soul. Both were told to watch something -- Caspar, a section of town where something was going to happen, and Crawford, the vase -- but neither meant continuously. The sign Caspar read merely meant, "Something's going to happen here in the near future, and you may want to know about it," whereas Crawford's mother only intended for him to be careful around it, especially as he has on a baseball glove and is holding a baseball.

The author writes:
Inspired by SRoMG #2017.

Original Trudy strip: 1986-12-23.

Transcript
Trudy: Watch that vase, Crawford! Crawford: Well, really, if something doesn't occur pretty soon I shall have to leave!