Billboards

It had been 25 years since I’d been to Las Vegas.  I was looking forward to a relaxing few days courtesy of the ‘free trip’ I won by simply putting my name in a drawing.  Hoover Dam was on the agenda along with people watching. I thought I was prepared for the changes in the city since one friend goes frequently and, after all, I’ve seen Ocean’s Eleven.  Instead of what I was anticipating, here are three things I found and today’s musing that emerged from one of them.

Contrasts.  The silence of the desert and the cacophony of the boulevard.  The snow-capped mountains and the marvel of human engineering holding back a river.  The hawker wearing an orange t-shirt standing next to a woman from the Salvation Army in a white button-down shirt and tie.  One was giving away discount cards to “Girls! Girls! Girls” and the other was asking people to drop their change in the bucket – change for change for the homeless.  A tulip garden in the courtyard of Bellagio and the majestic saguaros at the airport.

Surprises. 3 Navajo women selling gorgeous jewelry atop a mountain. Art deco statues and star coordinates in brass and marble at a national Bureau of Reclamation site.  Deer crossing signs in the middle of an established subdivision. Shopkeepers that refer you to another store.  Wax figures that make you think a celebrity is ready to talk with you.   The Eiffel Tower, the Chrysler Building and a chance to have a bagel at the corner of Broadway and Greenwich St.

Boldness. The ads – whether the screens projecting who is in town or who’s coming to town or the larger-than-life bottle of coke – were all in-your-face and hard to ignore.   The billboards that really caught my attention followed the rule of three - three words or phrases to get their point across.  One had a brown background with tan lettering.  The word ‘divorce’ was in capital letters at the top and underneath it said: Affordable. Aggressive.  ASAP.   Another more colorful one proclaimed: No scalpels.  No needles. No pain.  That one was for ez-snip.com – yes, vasectomies. 

And it’s this – the idea of being bold – that gets me to today’s musing.  What if we wanted to boldly advertise who we are on a billboard, or Facebook, or Match.com following the rule of three?  What three words would you use to describe you right now?  Too bad ‘Eat. Pray. Love.’ is already taken. 

I’ve given my billboard some thought and, at least for today, I'll stick with verbs.  Here is what my billboard would say: Participate. Reflect. Hope.

What three words would be on your billboard?

Punchline

Are you like me?  I can remember the punchline but not what leads up to it or vice versa.  While I like to think I’m a good storyteller, I’m not good with jokes.

Although I do remember one from my youth, back when TV was black and white.   There was Dick Clark on American Bandstand asking a boy to say the phrase, “What am I doing?” four different ways, like emphasizing one word each time.

Jokes aren’t the only things with punchlines.   Ads often have them.  I like those that are clever, but of course clever runs the gamut from the Three Stooges to Lily Tomlin to Doonesbury or the Far Side.  One current ad campaign that I think is clever is the new “fair and square” slogan and logo for JCPenney.  It hasn’t gotten me into their store yet, but who knows?

Sometimes waiting for the other shoe to drop is like waiting for the punchline.  Maybe that’s where the phrase, “Life is one big joke” came from.

Do you remember learning about laughter or jokes and what was supposed to be funny?  Sure, we probably all went thru the ‘knock knock’ stage.  My conundrum was with the elephant jokes – How do you know there was an elephant in your refrigerator?  By the footprints in the butter.  Some of them had us in stitches and others were a ‘huh?’  Or coming of age and not quite understanding the dirty jokes.

My cat Millie and friend

A friend has told me one reason we are good friends is that we laugh at the same things.  It’s true.  Laughter builds a great bridge.  But what we laugh at can also divide and get people into trouble.   The Chicago Tribune runs a poll to determine which comic strips to keep.  How can one compare Peanuts to Zits or Dick Tracey?  

It’s actually good that what tickles my funny bone may not do a thing to yours.  Variety provides that spice.  But what I really celebrate today is when we can share a laugh, or even a smile. 

Other than one friend who is studying humor, I think we all need more intentional laughter in our lives.  Is there anything surefire in your life that makes you laugh?

Oh, back to Dick Clark.  The answer is “Making a fool of yourself!”  Now, did you hear the one about….?

Spring

If someone asked ‘what color represents spring?’ my initial response would be red, what with the robin bobbin’ along and red tulips being my favorite flowers.  Plus there’s the blood of Good Friday and Passover.  But upon reflection, it turns out my color for spring is blue. 

Why? ‘Cuz if I’m honest, I get a bout of the blues in spring.  I feel out of sync with all that is coming to life around me.  Blue is considered a conservative and sincere color.  Folk lore tells us that if a captain of a ship died while at sea, the crew would fly a blue flag for grief and sadness, thus the phrase ‘feeling blue.’

While blue is the color of the sky and the sea, representing confidence, calm and serenity, we know that the heavens can open dramatically and the ocean can be dangerous.  I can smile at the bluebells and the grape hyacinths, bask under a bright blue spring sky but still feel down, more in the shade than awash in sunlight.

Artists use blue to provide perspective and distance.  When I’m blue in spring my perspective is out of focus.  I can miss the joy and hope that accompanies the scent of that first spring rain. I feel distant, separated from life and love.  But I hide this very well and know that my blues won’t last long.

This year’s early spring has upset the usual cycle.  The blues and yellows of lupines, daffodils and forsythia are gone already and so, luckily, is my blue funk.  I have moved on from blue.  While I will enjoy the blue columbines, morning glories and forget-me-nots, I’m anxious for the full color palette of the gardens to come.

Perhaps you, too, have a trigger for the occasional blues.  Or, maybe you are someone who struggles daily with deep blues of despair and depression, feeling out of step not just with the season but with the whole world.  This musing has made me wonder if spring’s time of freshness and open windows is an added burden for you. 

So, what is your color story for spring? 

My first book of reflections, Bringing Hope to Life: 26 Ways to Change the World You Live In was launched on November 19, 2011.  From the dark side of the moon to a junk drawer to doing things in reverse  you can explore with me very routine things of everyday life and ways to make a small difference for yourself, others or the world.  The book is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the publisher, ACTA.