Funny Signs

One of the signs mentioned at one of the bars in The Grapes of Wrath struck me as quite funny. Actually, two of them did. One of them said, "Ladies May Smoke But Be Careful Where You Lay Your Butts." That one is funny for the obvious reasons. Plus, one time in the Ozarks I saw a little bowl thing kind of like that and my brother and I got a picture sitting on it. The sign that struck me as the most funny and creative read, "IITYWYBAD?" When I read that, I was confused. To be honest, I figured it was probably something sexual. Do not get me wrong, I do not have a dirty mind of anything, it is just that Steinbeck seems to talk about that kind of stuff a lot. Reread the story; it is true. Anyway, I wanted to know what all of those letters meant, and luckily it had a little number next to it which meant its definition was in the back of the book. I flipped to the back of the book, and lo and behold, there was the definition. It means, "If I tell you will you buy a drink?" I do not know why I find this so funny, but I do. It is really quite creative, as a bartender, to put this up, because people with a good sense of humor would probably go right on ahead and buy a drink just because of that. I know that if I grew up and owned a bar like Mr. Scropos used to, I would make a sign that said that. Some people would probably get annoyed by it and not find it funny whatsoever, but I mean hey I would not want those downers in my bar anyway. I would want the fun, easygoing people who would understand it and laugh their heads off like I did, and then they would buy a drink from me so I could earn a good living. That way if I was ever forced off my land like the Joads, I would have enough money to go to California in my trusty little purple Honda, which by that time would probably be about forty years old. It would be a grand life.