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Like the rest of us, Adrienne Hedger is quarantining with her family at home. Living in Southern California with her husband, two daughters and their dog, she is creating art out of the familiar scenarios happening in many families across the country.
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The main source of inspiration for Adrienne's cartoons comes from her daughters — Claire, 14 and Kate, 16 — who provide her with the typical 'entertainment' you might expect from two teenagers stuck at home. Between complaining about what's for dinner, arguing over their homework and making excuses not to watch documentaries with their mom, it seems like Adrienne has her hands full.
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Like the rest of us, her daughters initially found the break from regular life quite refreshing. "At first they didn't mind being at home", Adrienne told us. "It was a nice break from the stress of school. But now they've moved into the stage of missing the random people they sit next to in math. They're starting to feel like they want it to be done. That's where the cartoons come from - we can't change this, so how do we find commonality?"
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And that's what all her cartoons are about; the things that everyone can relate to during quarantine. Adrienne doesn't just find inspiration from her daughters. "I take notes all day long. When I talk to friends or family, I take notes so when I go to make my cartoons, I have loads of material to work from. Of course, not everything works, but it's about trying to think about what's relatable and amusing."
"But that's the point – it's all relatable. We're all going through variations of the same thing", I say. She agrees.
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So, what does a typical day look like for Adrienne's family during quarantine? "My husband and I are awake at around 6 am. I get some work done in the morning, but the kids are another story - they surface around 10 or 11 am, so when they're wondering what's for breakfast, I'm wondering what's for lunch." It sounds like the easy life for some!
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Adrienne emphasized the importance of finding some sort of schedule or routine in all of this mess. "We try and watch something as a family every night and on Saturdays, we watch a movie. On Friday night, we get a takeout night, which gives us something to look forward to."
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Her daughters have made their kitchen table their school headquarters, but sitting so close together doesn't always make for a peaceful environment. "The kids will do their school work at the same time and they're driving each other crazy. It's almost like they're doing things to annoy each other on purpose because it's human interaction. One will listen to their music loudly, or one will start reading their notes aloud while the other is trying to concentrate. It's stuff like that which really gets to the other one. But they're still coping."
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Adrienne notes that one of the interesting things that have come out of quarantine life for her daughters is the unanticipated education in time management. "My daughter's school assigns work on a Monday and it's all due in at the end of the week. So, they decide which day they want to do it, although of course, they leave it all until the last minute. My daughters have never had so much control over their schedules and they're learning things they wouldn't necessarily have learned.
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Although Adrienne is used to working from home, she's not used to the rest of her family being there all day and sharing her workspace. "I've had to give my office to my husband because he makes a lot of calls. So now, I wander from room to room and everywhere I go, there's someone there. If I go into the kitchen to work, someone is in there getting a yogurt. I feel like a displaced person."
But she does have an ally in all this - her dog. "He follows me everywhere. He's my one staff member", Adrienne told us. He must be truly baffled as to why everyone is home all day long!
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When asked if her daughter's mind that they are the primary source of content for her cartoons, Adrienne replied, "That's a great question! No, they like it. I'll often show them a cartoon they're in before I publish it, to check that they're ok with it, and also to ask them if it's funny. The only gripe they have is they don't like the clothes I've drawn for them in the cartoon! Typical teenagers."
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Are her daughters her biggest fans? It's hard to tell. "Sometimes they'll be scrolling through Instagram and they'll come across one of my cartoons and double-tap without even reading it. I mean I'm glad for the likes, but they can at least read them". "Especially since it's probably about them", I add.
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So how often does Adrienne produce a new cartoon? "Some days I'll do one, some days I'll do two. It just depends on how much content I get. I've found drawing to be a good way to cope with all of this. It's a familiar thing to do and there's something quite mindless about coloring which takes my mind off the other things. Honestly, I've stepped up my production during this time." And we're so glad she has!
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For more of Adrienne's hilarious cartoons, check them out on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram.
Like what you see? Find more hilarious women's memes and crazy stories on our Instagram @Cheezcake_Humor and more videos on our TikTok @cheezcaked