Life — January 31, 1924 — page 13: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

This is a humorous domestic comic strip about a mischievous child named Skiffy. The narrative follows him one night when the home's furnace malfunctions. The sequence shows Skiffy in bed, then apparently building an enormous pile of materials (possibly blankets, wood, or other combustibles) as an improvised heat source. His mother repeatedly calls out reminders—"brush your teeth," "tomorrow morning I am, mamma," "now," and "aw, gee!"—suggesting she's trying to maintain bedtime routine despite the heating crisis. The joke appears to be about Skiffy's chaotic and excessive solution to staying warm, contrasted with his mother's persistent attempts at parental discipline and hygiene, even during household emergencies. It's gentle, domestic humor typical of early Life magazine content.