996: Making Things Difficult

2013-07-20T19:23:00Z

67.253.239.15: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 996
| date = December 28, 2011
| title = Making Things Difficult
| image = making_things_difficult.png
| titletext = Favorite mastectomy breast prosthesis idea: a fake boob containing a spare rechargable battery, accessed via a nipple USB port. Complete with a ring of LED charge indicators in the areola!
}}

==Explanation==
This comic is a reference to the breast cancer surgery that someone in [[Randall]]'s family recently underwent. This comic is the follow up appointment after the surgery. When the doctor asks [[Megan]] to take her shirt off, she refuses until the doctor gives her a necklace of beads that, in the {{w|New Orleans}} {{w|Mardi Gras}} culture, is used to exchange for the exposure of a female's breasts.

So, by Megan saying "You know the rules", that indicates that Megan has stipulated that every time she takes off her shirt for the doctor, a necklace of beads much be exchanged.

At the top of the comic page there is a link to [http://blog.xkcd.com/2011/06/30/family-illness/ a blog posting] that talked about the real world events leading up to this comic.

==Transcript==
:Breast Cancer Surgery Follow-Up
:Oncologist: You're looking great! Remove your top so I can check how the incision is healing.
:Megan: Nuh-uh.

:Oncologist: *sigh*. Do we have to do this *every* time?
:Megan: You know the rules.

:Oncologist: This is so ridiculous.
:[Oncologist annoyedly searches for something in pockets]

:Oncologist: Here.
:[Oncologist waves around a Mardi Gras bead necklace]
:Megan: Woooo!
:[Megan disrobes]

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Ponytail]]
[[Category:Comics with color]]
[[Category:Cancer]]

Talk:996: Making Things Difficult

2013-07-20T19:21:38Z

67.253.239.15:

Commenter VaguelyCreepy had a few notes on Mardi Gras beads that are probably good to keep close to this page:

:A few notes on the Mardi Gras beads:
# They come in all colors, so pink isn’t particularly unusualy, though it could still fit if the doctor specifically chose that color for that reason.
# New Orleans natives really frown on that kind of behavior, and you usually only see it from tourists who think Mardi Gras is some kind of excuse to do whatever you like. The entire thing is a celebration, but if you act like an ass, people are going to hate you for it, and you may very well get arrested. Also, the beads, as well as a variety of other memorabilia, are thrown to everyone, including the women who keep their tops on.

That's all. [[User:Lcarsos|lcarsos]] ([[User talk:Lcarsos|talk]]) 07:58, 24 August 2012 (UTC)

I'm removing the line, "In this case, the beads are pink, likely a reference to the Pink ribbon campaign related to Breast cancer awareness." The beads aren't pink, they're clearly purple. [[Special:Contributions/67.253.239.15|67.253.239.15]] 19:21, 20 July 2013 (UTC)

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

996: Making Things Difficult

Talk:996: Making Things Difficult