Because of my love of words and word play, I can't help but play with the intended meanings of signs. Whenever I see this particular sign displayed (usually right at the edge of a street), I think to myself, "people really shouldn't let their slow children play so close to the street." Perhaps a better word for the sign would be CAUTION.
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There is a sign on the side of a road near a strip mall that states -
10 BARBERS
WALK IN
Every time I pass this sign I hope that the rest of the joke and the punch line will have been added to it. It never is, so I make up my own. Ten barbers walk in to a bar and offer toupe a head for their drinks. (Not great, I know)
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I know I am not the only one who has fun with sign semantics as someone has taken it upon themselves to alter a sign on a nearby street. The sign reads STEEL PLATE AHEAD to notify drivers that there is a steel plate across the road ahead. However, this sign happens to be on the side of the street in the front yard of an extremely modern house that appears to be constructed of steel and has all sharp edges. A sign semantician crossed out the word AHEAD and turned it into an arrow pointing to the house. I love it.
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On a final note about signs, the close attention I pay to sign semantics and the words on signs may date back to my youth. I grew up near a neighborhood called Lone Pine Estates, I will never forget when a fan of word play changed the sign to read Lone Penis Estate.
1 comment:
Hi! Thanks for your comment on Zimbio. I really like your blog, this one post in particular. I do the same exact thing with signs probably because my mom always did. When I was younger and riding in the car with her, she'd make a joke every time we drove over one of those painted signs in the street that said "Slow School". Keep up the great work!
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