A Pointless Competition

 

A Pointless Competition

I was recently in a doctor’s waiting room where there was a sign on a door that read, “Do not block door.” Yet there was a clear and ample pathway leading to and from the door; I would have had to go out of my way to move furniture or seek other objects to block the entry. It would have been different if this were a fire exit and near clutter that would have been a hazard in an emergency.

By contrast, a reasonable sign would be “Do not smoke/No smoking.” That’s a behavior that one might realistically need to address.

The likelihood of someone blocking the door was remote. “Do not block door” was a waste of words. They might as well have had signs that read:

·         Do not set fire to the furniture

·         Do not stab yourself in the foot

·         Do not bite other patients

·         Do-it-yourself surgery not permitted

The likelihood of needing to forestall any such actions is close to zero, one would hope.

Which brings us to this blog’s first competition. I’m offering a prize: one of my recent books (see below*). It will go to the reader who emails me what I think is the funniest or most absurdly pointless sign (or signs) that you can imagine appearing in a doctor’s waiting room. Deadline: July 25.

The books are:

·         I’ll be Your Server: The Heart of Christian Discipleship

·         Meet the Dog that Didn’t Sh*t:101 Reflections on Words and Their Magic

·         Sit, Stand, Walk, Run: A Vocabulary for the Christian’s Journey

·         The God Who Blesses

·         Your Photo on God’s Fridge Door: 101 Parables and Analogies for Today

See Amazon for more information about these titles.

* I can send the prize only to someone in the USA or Canada; sorry.

May the most imaginative reader win.

[300 words]