Sign of Disrepair

[Lillie82]

The thread about signs seemed like it had been dormant too long now to add to.

In books, on TV, etc, sometimes signs become funny because they're in disrepair and therefore conveying a completely different message. (And yes, maybe some of the real life funny signs got funny in the same way.)

In Sarah Shankland's short story called (ironically enough) Real Life, people who have been called for jury duty observe that the words "In God We Trust," are on the courtroom wall...except that there is no G.

So the message now depends on whether you believe "od" without the "G" is pronounced as if it had 2 d's, as if it had an "e" on the end, or by just saying the letters.  Given that it was a New York criminal court, the last one is sadly, probably a propos.

[Piratelvr1121]

Around Christmas we went up to Lowe's to get some tape since my camera at the time had a bum latch on it so I was having to duct tape the thing closed.  Needless to say I was very glad to find DH got me a new Canon camera for Christmas so I could pitch the other one.  (Nikon Coolpix cameras are notorious I learned for having a week latch on the battery compartment)

But on this day the "L" in Lowe's was burnt out so it just said "OWE'S" which made me chuckle, considering how much some people can end up spending in there.

[Thipu1]

This is probably very common but it still makes me smile.

A local home improvement place was slightly damaged some years ago in a hurricane.  The 'T' in the sign 'Hardware and Paint'.  The loss gave a very different impression of the business.

This next one wasn't an impaired sign.  It was just truth in advertising.  There was a business in Greenwich Village with a big sign that said, 'Piercings performed with or without pain'. 

[Jones]

Our Kmart has been a Kart for sometime now. Not the funniest in the world, but considering how many carts are in the lot at any given time due to staff cutbacks...

[RubyCat]

A social club I pass on my way to work had a sign that read "Free pool on Fridays," meaning there was no charge to shoot pool.  However, some joker must've stolen the "L" in "pool" because it was missing.   

[OSUJillyBean]

The local DSW Shoes had the first four letters burned out on their sign.  I didn't know we had a local place to shop for that!   

[baglady]

I saw a Citizens Bank whose sign had the C, I, T, I and S burned out, so it said "Zen Bank." All I could think of was the second punchline in the joke about the Zen master and the hot dog vendor: "Change comes from within."*

There was an Armed Forces Recruiting Center near me whose sign had the "ruiting" burned out. I pictured all these young guys thinking it was a "Rec Center," coming in for a game of pool or pingpong and winding up enlisted.

*The first punchline is "Make me one with everything."

[Julia Mercer]

At the Tim Hortons just down the road from DH and I, at night, the letters I, M, H, O, R, T are all burnt out, so everytime we drive by there, I mention that it is now TONS instead of Tim Hortons

[Lady Snowdon]

I grew up in a subdivision known as Golden Meadows.  My sophomore year of college, first trip back home, I noticed that the "G" had peeled off, leaving the place to be known as "Olden Meadows".  I asked my parents (who have now lived there for 20+ years) how they felt about living in Olden Meadows.  They were not amused.  I sure was, though!

I should note, as well, that when I was growing up there, it was mostly younger couples raising kids in the subdivision.  We had hundreds of kids for Halloween, and there were always kids out playing in the street or biking somewhere.  Now, my mom tells me she maybe gets 15 kids at Halloween, and I almost never see kids out playing when I visit.  So it has aged...

[KaosP]

There's an old restaurant in the Beaches area of Toronto that has a neon sign that says GOOD FOOD, but the first D and the OOD in FOOD burnt out back in the 50s (or 60s - a while ago, anyway!). It's been known affectionately as the "GOOF" for decades - in fact, when they recently replaced the sign they intentionally made it read GOOF.

[Elisabunny]

I went to mall with some college buddies many years ago.  While waiting for a ride home (because we missed the last bus  ) we noticed a store called The Goods Shop.  But one of the Os was missing, making it The Gods Shop.  We had entirely too much fun speculating what a shop would sell.

[*new*mommyagain36]

There was a Food Lion near us and the d burned out.  My DS was little at the time and thought a store called Foo Lion was hysterical!  Even now when we see the commercials on TV we'll say, in unison "FOO LION!"  Good times.

[cwm]

Way back in the day, before they got bought out, we had an Osco Drug near my house. Except the D was burnt out. So we'd go into the Osco rug store.

There was another one, and I can't remember the actual name of the store because I only passed it in the dark and the only sign I could see was mostly burned out. It was one where each letter wasn't lit individually, but it was a block sign and part of the sign was out. It was apparently "Man Liquors".

[OSUJillyBean]

How about this one?  Doesn't that just make you hungry??

[menley]

There was a Texas Roadhouse near my in-laws' place where the USE was burnt out for years. Yep, good old Texas Roadho…