Mess
Mess
[Cueball and his Cueball-like friend walk into the friend's bedroom. The friend walks ahead while Cueball stand behind at the door. There's a made bed, a picture on the wall with a river and a sun at the horizon, some curtains around the window, a rug, and one unidentifiable item lying on the floor.] Friend: Sorry it's such a disaster in here. Cueball thinking: Whoa— what's wrong with me?
[Caption below the panel:] My room never looks as nice as the rooms other people apologize for.
The painting in Cueball's friend's room strongly resembles the painting in 1159: Countdown .

There is a common psychological phenomenon which causes people to mentally magnify their own flaws, while failing to notice the flaws of others, so common it apparently doesn't have a specific scientific categorization. Many self-conscious people apologize for "the mess" in their home whenever they have guests over, no matter how clean it may actually be. If the house is neater than the guest's own home, the guest is likely to say to themself: "If she thinks this is messy, what would she think of my place?!"
This phenomenon is shown in the comic when Cueball's friend apologizes for the mess, despite the only thing appearing out of order is what seems to be a crumpled article of clothing on the floor. This "mess" only amplifies Cueball's fears about his own lifestyle, as he is surely wondering what his friend might think of his messy lifestyle based on their much higher standards.
In the title text, Cueball's anxiety in further amplified when the host left out a glass of water from the night before and apologies for it. Cueball is nervous because when this seemingly small oversight, when applied to his friend's very high standards, might seem like a huge problem, and in his mind, making his home akin to something he thinks is no better than a garbage pit.
In 1565: Back Seat the exact opposite reaction to having to show other people a real messy place is used for the joke.
[Cueball and his Cueball-like friend walk into the friend's bedroom. The friend walks ahead while Cueball stand behind at the door. There's a made bed, a picture on the wall with a river and a sun at the horizon, some curtains around the window, a rug, and one unidentifiable item lying on the floor.] Friend: Sorry it's such a disaster in here. Cueball thinking: Whoa— what's wrong with me?
[Caption below the panel:] My room never looks as nice as the rooms other people apologize for.
The painting in Cueball's friend's room strongly resembles the painting in 1159: Countdown .
