Full disclosure: This post used to be a “page” under the heading “Signs of the City.” I’ve decided to change pages into posts, as I include signs in nearly every post and my original notion of two separate categories didn’t work. So if the content of this post Iooks familiar, you’re not hallucinating.
I found myself staring at the sign (from the sidewalk) for several minutes, trying to decipher its meaning. See what you think:
And after 46th Street they turn into pumpkins?
A number of questions arise. First, why “passenger”? If more than one rider is present, is the taxis allowed in the bus lane? Second, what happens after 46th Street? Are any taxis allowed, with or without a passenger, or are no taxis allowed at all? No doubt you are thinking that the people who really need to know what this sign means – taxi drivers – already do, so clarity is unimportant. Not likely. I salute the hardworking, often immigrant drivers who brave NYC traffic daily, but I also know that many are hanging onto the English language with one toenail. I recall the driver who responded, when I asked him to take me to the Port Authority Bus Terminal (a place he had never heard of), “first day this America my.” That’s a direct quote, which brings me to my third question. How likely is it that a taxi driver will cause an accident while puzzling out the rules laid down by this sign?
This sign, on the other hand, is quite clear:
Avoiding double trouble
Handwritten, over-taped, and obviously heartfelt. This store wants NO PETS. The owner may discriminate against Fido, but at least the message is unambiguous. The head-scratching aspect comes from the repetition. Did the owner try a simple “NO PETS” line that failed to keep animals away? Or is the owner a proponent of the “more is more” philosophy of life?
Don’t ask me. I haven’t a clue. I haven’t a clue.
Re your three taxing questions about taxis: Respectively, yes, yes, and yes.
Re No Pets: My question is, would the sign be a head scratcher if it contained three lines instead of two? As the weird sisters knew, three’s a charm. Plus their language shows a sense of symmetry and economy that would not have allowed all that white space on the bottom go to waste.
Or perhaps the store prohibits pairs of pets?
Or perhaps NO PETS is the caption for this week’s (Aug. 24) New Yorker Cartoon Caption Contest?
I entered this in the contest. We’ll see what happens. i’ve had some good entries in the past that were never selected. “Do I have to spell it out for you? The rules are NO PETS.”
Let’s hope for good luck!