365 Inspirations—276: Seeing the Signs

I live a few streets from a very busy thoroughfare. This major avenue has everything you could possibly need or not need. There are cars new and used, restaurants, hardware stores, banks, tiny little pop-up medical marijuana shops (it's legal now in Washington State), casinos, pharmacies, lumber yards, discount stores—there's even a huge graveyard near the hospital, just in case.

There are signs EVERYWHERE. Big and small, fat and tall, neon and non-neon, standard and over the top. Close to my house is a neon sign—probably from the 50s—that is in the shape of a giant toilet plunger.

I used to find this street overbearing and would take side streets, but I've started seeing other signs. Signs that have meaning and are thought provoking. Signs that make you stop and say, "Hmmmmm."

On the way to Greenlake, I saw a sign that read,

"Weird is a side effect of awesome." 

It was at a paint shop. A car dealer had a sign that read,

"Your attitude, not your aptitude, determines your altitude." 

Well, that was certainly food for thought as I made my way home from work along this busy street. Instead of tuning out my surroundings, I'm seeing the signs and they actually bring a whole different experience to my drive to and from work.

Do you pay attention to signs along your commute or are you only concerned with getting to and from a place?