Judging Books by Their Covers

There is an old saying, "Don't judge a book by it's cover." Two Hundred years ago that actually meant something, but I would like to argue that doesn't matter anymore.

Before you start crying about prejudice and stereotyping let me clarify. I literally mean we should judge books by their covers. The saying is typically reserved as metaphor about not judging the value of something by its external appearance (which includes books), but books are marketed objects and I think we should judge them my their main form of marketing...the cover. Take a look at this book from before 1800

.

There is a title and some fancy scroll work, but not a lot do judge the internal value of the information. You might judge this book by its title but that isn't the cover and conventional wisdom doesn't seem to say how to judge a books cover. Look at this book cover from 1895.

Now this cover hasn't changed much in 100 years but the decorative print is more flower-ey and less rigid. That seems like a step in the right direction, but still not a lot to judge a book by except the title or the contents. Lastly we have something much more modern.

Source: EatMeDaily.com

These covers including the title tells you a lot about the books. One lets you know the relative age and looks of the two female leads. One cover plays to the cooking aspect and the choice of playful decorative whisk with a mess evokes some feelings for most people. I think you would be right to judge this book by those covers. There are some genres of books that haven't yet utilized contemporary cover art...I am looking at you Sci-Fi and Fantasy novels.

Maybe I am wrong and we shouldn't be judging books by their covers, but I say publishers need to up the ante and give me some eye candy.

Is Anyone Listening

I am overly cynical about certain subjects. One such subject is homelessness. I understand God has called me to love my neighbors and help those in need alongside sharing the gospel, but sometimes I can’t help but think some homeless people don’t need my help.  I have been introduced lately to some wonderful programs helping out homeless families. I have even been disillusioned to some preconceived notions.  Sometimes those notions rear up and bite me on the brain.

For instance, when I see a homeless person with certain objects my immediate reaction is, “They don’t need my help since they have a _____.” This is terrible. They may need my help desperately and I am judging them for carrying some stupid little item. One particular item is a cell phone and/or Bluetooth headset.

When I see Joe Homeless walking down the street in last-year’s rags talking to someone on their Cell or Bluetooth it sets off my homeless-people-are-homeless-because-they-want-to-be alarm. Homeless people talking on cell phones also ignites my curiosity. I cannot help but wonder who is this mysterious person could be. Is it an uncaring friend? Do they know they are speaking to a homeless person? Is it a debt Collector? Which participant in this conversation made the call?

At this point, I start concocting scenarios in which Joe Homeless has friends and a support system that he either spurns or does not need because his rags used to be an Armani suit he bought from pandering. Normally by the time, I get to this stage in my thought train I have driven past or left the vicinity of Joe Homeless so I start over-thinking some other random, meaningless topic.

Life Lesson: Don’t be a jerk and judge a book by its cover.

Insert Title Here!

I was reading some blogs today (video game blogs) and they all had something in common, titles. Take a second for that to sink in. Okay I realize all blog posts have a title, but these titles were witty, eye catching, and relevant to the blog. This is something I wish I could do. I went scavaging through the multiple (sighs) posts I have made and feel as though the titles leave something to be desired. Maybe I am self-deprecating and they are awesome; regardless, I have been inspired to be a better titler...namer...bestower of blog titles...maybe I should work on my vocab first.

Radio Ads

So I listen to secular radio (gasp), and my favorite station is 96.5 The Mountain, Chattanooga's No. 1 Hit Music Station. Besides playing Chattanooga's hit music they also play...wait for it...advertisements. I don't think it's a surprise to anyone who knows me, but I love commercials. I think they are a great look into our culture, but sometimes they are so absurd it is funny. Netflix's has recently (>1yr) released a series of commercials that spoof game shows. It is a question and answer style show where they ask absurd questions and receive absurd answers. All this lead up to the final question that reveals you can stream netflix to your Wii. Some are funny and some are just absurd.

Q. If a tree is cut down in Brooklyn,...
And before he finishes, the guy answers....
A. A sprout pops up in New Jersey?

Q: A dog goes ahead in time and bites his tail. When does he feel it?
A: Yesterday.

Q. If Jack and Jill went up the hill, then where is Fred?
A. Milwaukee?

Q:If a triangle is happy and a square is sad, what is a rectangle?
A: Diassapointed.

Q: What is the inverse of January 12?
A: September 22nd 9pm eastern!

Q. If pie is in the sky, where's cake?
A. A distant meadow

Q. If a rhombus has four sides, what is the inverse of blue?
A. Purple

Q. Three guys walk into a bar. Who has the monkey?
A. Guy number 3!

Q. If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, what does a pear do?
A. Prevents hard feelings.

Q. What is the square root of Orange?
A. Uhhh...Turquoise?

And now for the bonus round.
Q. If Mary had 10 sheep.... what did Jimmy have?
A. A silly salamander.

Salamander...wipes tears away...