Building Character
From The Calvin and Hobbes Wiki
Usually Calvin's dad is trying to make Calvin build more character. He does this by making Calvin do things he hates, such as camping. He says them when Calvin questions him, like when he shovled the walk by hand:
Calvin:I'm freezing! Whey don't we have a snow blower?! We must be the only family who still shovels the walk by hand! Dad:It builds character! Keep it up! Calvin:It's odd how every time I build character, he saves a couple hundred dollars.
Calvin's dad has told him many things build character, such as:
* Diarrhea
* Bug bites
* Camping
* Numb toes
* shoveling the walk
* Playing sports (baseball)
Other things have been mentioned that "build character". Even though Calvin hates building character, he is still forced to.
In one strip Calvin puts on his fathers glasses and says to his dad "Calvin, go do something misirible! Work hard! Builds character!" Calvins Mom bursts into laughter but Calvins dad says he's "sarcastic"