I was out running errands on the ol’ bike and saw this sign.  It’s a relatively new addition to a little corner property which seems to change hands on a pretty regular basis, but is mainly occupied by automotive businesses.  I once bought an old Volvo 850 wagon from a previous tenant.  The last tenant, an auto detailer,  moved their business across the street to the site of a long-defunct pawn shop where I bought my first snare drum and first electric guitar in the mid ’80s.

Note the totally ballsy appropriation of Mad Magazine’s mascot, Alfred E. Neuman.  Mr. Neuman historically represents incompetence, obliviousness, and fundamental denseness, albeit in a humorous context.  A number of explanations for this scenario occurred to me:

• The proprietors have no idea who Alfred E. Neuman is.
• The sign designers have no idea who Alfred E. Neuman is (or how to create transparent layers — note the bite taken out of the left side of the wrench by the capital “P”).
• The sign designer either doesn’t understand or doesn’t care about trademarks.
• This shop is actually owned and operated by Mad Magazine.

I sincerely hope the last one is true, because it means these guys are my new mechanics of choice.  I’m looking forward to getting my oil changed, then chuckling over the Sergio Aragones cartoons printed in the margins of my bill.