(Strip Number 4061, Original Publication Date, 7 September 1981)
Panel 1: We start off with Elly telling a slightly-filthy Mike that Ted and Connie are coming over for supper and she wants him to wash his hands. It should be noted that Elly isn't looking at him nor has she opened her eyes; she does, however, look as if she's either smelled something revolting or have something shoved up her ass.
Panel 2: We next see him in the bathroom all freaked-out because of an off-camera yell about her wanting him to put on a clean shirt.
Panel 3: He stands there looking at the vanity as if it's a torture device; given that Elly has made bathtime into an exercise in humiliation and pain, this doesn't surprise me.
Panel 4: Given that she thinks children are evil little monsters who don't want to be clean because it delights them to see their poor, put-upon mothers in agony, his asking if he should wash for long or short sleeves doesn't either.
Summary: Why does Mike like to be a bit dirty anyway? A lot of children his age tend to resist their mother's need to clean them up and I've never quite been able to figure out why; it's not as clear why this trend exists in real life as it is in the Pattermanse. I can see Mike fearing bathtime because he gets yelled at, being told that he's an evil, selfish burden, scrubbed too damned hard and being condemned because he doesn't want his ying-yang half pulled off so his mother can drink her rum and coke in peace.