Sarah Morgan
T-shirt seen this week in line at the post office: “Waterboarding saves lives“.
Bumper sticker seen last week on a pickup on the highway: “It’s not how you pick your nose, it’s where you put the booger.”
Why do people buy things with sayings on them?
It’s not the sayings themselves that I’m curious about, or whether you (or I) agree or disagree with them. What fascinates me is that the person buying the item didn’t just agree or disagree with the words – they felt so strongly about it that they wanted to wear it. To be “the guy with ___”. The person with that item wants that  sentiment to be the first way that strangers know them.
That’s a pretty strong way to feel about something, isn’t it?
What things with sayings do you have? What do you want them to say about you?
I certainly don’t get it — But I can’t bring myself to buy a Eat Local bumper sticker — and you know how much I believe in that!
I think it’s about defining oneself as an individual, to have a sticker/shirt/whatever that not many people have, with sayings that not many people have heard, in order to stand out, to shock, and maybe even stick the middle finger to convention. Maybe. Or they just like to waste money on “stuff.”
As for me, I try to avoid anything with sayings. I have just a handful of caps and shirts with the name of places I’ve visited, and even that is a little tacky.
I think, for me anyway, it’s like tattoos. There’s no message or picture that I want the world to read enough to graffiti up my car or my skin with it.
Or, maybe it’s closer to say that I think that just the act of doing so sends its own message… one that I don’t want to communicate.
You know well that I wear snarky hipster t-shirts that say things, but I try to steer clear of plastering political or otherwise controversial opinions across my chest. For instance, today’s selection reads “Good grammar costs nothing!” It’s something I believe, something that’s true, something that’s kind of funny, and something that is a good identifier of like-minded grammarians with a good sense of humor: if they chuckle at it, they’re probably cool.
Of course, the only reason I actually wore this today is that I woke up late and didn’t have time to think about whether I should still be leaving the house looking like a student. So there’s that.
Is there any difference between these shirts / bumperstickers, and a sports team hat / or a reebok logo shirt…? It all says something about you. Do you have a bunch of “C”s on your purse or wallet?
I have a “Yankees Suck” t-shirt. I wear that with pride… :-)
No, now that I think about it, I don’t think there’s a difference between slogans and logos – they’re just another kind of message. Probably why I don’t like to wear or carry logos either. Although I think I still have the unfortunate picture of me being forced to wear that shirt….