Graffiti gems

A few years ago, all kinds of graffiti can be found everywhere on the walls of big cities. Vancouver was no exception. I personally enjoyed reading the quotable quotes though anonymous scribbling no matter how amusing, funny, thoughtful, witty are still a form of vandalism. Useless graffiti are those that merely deface walls and don’t achieve any artistic or intellectual purpose.

Local authorities passed a legislation to prevent graffiti painters from being prolific and organized squads armed with chemical solvents. There’s also a huge fine to think about. well, our walls are cleaner now but there are still some brave public writers with ideas to share with others. At one stage, I started collecting the memorable writings on the wall for a book that never materialized. But here are some gems I’d like to share with you:

• If Batman is so smart, why does he wear his underpants outside his trousers?

• Death is nature’s way of telling you to slow down.

• Join the Hernia Society. It needs your support.

• Spero Nos Familiares Mansuros (Latin to English – I hope we can still be friends.)

• Dandruff is tasteless.

• Support Women’s Lib — Use his razor.

• Life is a sexually transmitted disease.

• (In contraceptive vending machine) Insert baby for refund.

• King Kong died for our sins.

• The way to a man’s heart is through his penis.

• Hey, don’t knock masturbation. It’s sex with someone you love.

• Jesus is the answer. What’s the question?

The two most memorable urinal writings that made me stay longer than usual in order to copy the graffiti text are:

• What would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail?

• Five simple Rules For Happiness – I. Free your heart from hatred. 2. Free your mind from worries. 3. Live simply. 4. Give more. 5. Expect less.

Still on the subject of washrooms, today’s contemporary Canadian urban lifestyle has brought new meaning and respectability to washroom advertising as a novel marketing tool. Urinal advertising now provides a man something to read while staying in front of the porcelain or to find a pen to copy something intellectually stimulating. The target consumer is indeed in a captive environment.

Positive survey results made urinal ads grow due to broader understanding of what it truly provides, rather than a narrow focus on water or plumbing or deodorizer, whether human or mechanical.

The limits to washroom ads are those of taste and the target consumer. Food ads are definitely out and family-oriented products. Canadian marketers are further exploring the venue’s full potential. This type of marketing will become more sophisticated.

Moving on to other subjects, the latest numbers on births showed a growing number of women are waiting until later in life to have children. In British Columbia, 53 percent of mothers were 30 years or older when they gave birth in 2003, while 48 percent of mothers Canada-wide were 30 years or older. Mothers aged 40 and above have the highest proportion of low-birth-weight babies, at 8.4 percent in 2003.

A new Filipino-Canadian newspaper in English was launched last week in Scarborough, Ontario. The paper is Peryodiko Radical, described as the latest multi-cultural newspaper in Metro-Toronto, Published by Bare Canada International Inc., the content include headline lines, business, sports, lifestyle-entertainment, community news and classified ads. The editor-in-chief is Rodel Garcia, assistant-editor-in-chief is Anne Pineda while Ed Borja is media adviser. Radikal is published every 4th day of the month but is online with everyday news.

British Columbia was predicted to get better each year, in economic terms. The province’s rate of economic growth per capita was listed second in the country for 2004, compared to its fifth in 2003. It also took the top spot in the country for environmental quality index, and has been number one since 1999. An unemployment rate shot up to fifth from sixth place in 2003.