Some Bernal neighbors have been entertained, some have been bemused, and others have been annoyed, but the preachy home-made signs that have appeared on utility poles around Cortlandia have definitely gotten people talking.
Neighbor Matt shared the photo up top, while Neighbor Rebecca photographed a more elaborate installation on the corner of Cortland and Moultrie. “Fascinating neighborhood discourse,” she says.
Others, however, find the signs insufferable:
Look closely at the photo of that sign and you’ll see a respone written in pencil at the bottom. It says, “Don’t tell me whut to do.”
Bernalwood 
I miss the prize pocket
Amen: https://bernalwood.com/2012/01/09/cortland-prize-pocket-yields-priceless-treasures/
yes, that was a cool thing.
Be Present For Your Kids
Stop Telling Other People What To Do.
upvote
If whomever had written the response on the bottom of the flyer had attention from their parents, they might have learned how to use grammar & spell. It is disconcerting to see a lot of parents distracted by their devices and giving zero attention to their progeny who see the world through a blur. Flashing by them in a jogging stroller while their super-toned, Fitbit wearing, sport drink chugging, spandex wearing parents…… {takes breath} firm up the next meeting to discuss the next app that educate children on d-o-g-g-i-e!, tree!, flower! So they can shave off another 13 seconds from their run.
Not judging, just observing.
These notes, the respective responses, and the responses to those responses are bringing me *so* much joy today. It’s like Russian dolls of insufferable attitudes. Thanks neighborhood!
“Russian dolls”—Ha! Love it!!
My 12 year old posted this sign to his instagram account and tagged me on it. Funny heh? Anyway, somehow the irony and kid awareness made me smile and put my stupid phone down at dinner that night and focus on hanging out with him. I thought is was a nice reminder. Why the heck do people have to always resort to a tit for tat childish mentality down to selling and grammar nit picking just to knock someone down a notch. It’s bully-ish behavior and a reminder of why I stopped looking at Bernalwood. There seems to be a lot of folks trolling like a nosey neighbor bully with too many opinions.
Carry on.
Actually, that sounds like judgment. You can’t make judgment something else just by saying it’s not. So weird!
(Also, I think the misspelling is intentional.)
Can we actually back up the assertion that parents now are paying less attention to their kids than ever before? It’s entirely possible that they’re paying more attention and it has even been hypothesized that the extra attention is harmful (see Helicopter Parenting).
Wow, I’d hate to see you judging
“If whomever… they might have learned how to use grammar & spell.” Don’t you mean “whoever” wrote the response? Irony.
Thank you for hitting me with the sarcasm two-by-four. Like the nosy know-it-all, the sarcastic twit never gets old.
Small nit-pick here and then you can all have the Internet back:
When you write a note and you make a lowercase “a” do you always close the top of the letter? I know I don’t.
You may now return to your regularly scheduled outrage.
Also spotted as commentary at the bottom of some of the signs: “Shut Up. I’m on the phone.” and “UGH.” I would agree with the latter
My neighbor and I saw that sign the other day. At the time, we were leaving our children and husbands at home so we could have a cocktail and take pictures with our phones of a dog wearing a green hat.
And I know how to spell, but I might use the “whut” spelling if I was trying (trying!) to be funny. Doesn’t mean the person writing the response received no attention.
Haha!, point taken.
I know you!!! and why wasn’t I invited to leave my children at home w/ my husband. (I’m just commenting so I get notified when people leave comments).
Such a trouble maker, Kristen.
I am endlessly amused that it didn’t seem to occur to BernalJournal that “Don’t tell me whut to do” was written in jest: Bad spelling as part of the joke. Stupid sign deserves a stupid response. Get it!? That guy’s mom & dad taut him reel gud about life and laffter. 😝
Doh!
So gordon young, he just hates san francisco as a profession? Must be nice. Seems to pay well too, I love it here but can barely afford it.
I actually love San Francisco. And I’ve made a lot of sacrifices to live here over the past 20 years. Just dislike parts of it. Like the preachy nature of this poster. But it was just a harmless tweet. It’s not like I’m enraged or anything. In fact, I agree with a lot of the recommendations on the poster.
Also a big fan of putting my name on my opinions when I care to share them.
Ironically, my wife and I saw these posters as we were coming back from spending outdoor time with our child. We thought, “Obviously we’re outside if we’re reading this poster. To reach the intended audience, this should have been emailed rather than posted” ;P
Yep… they sure was dumb to put up those silly signs. If they’d had any sense in their insufferable minds, they woulda set up iBeacons to push targeted text messages and Spirit Rock advertisements. Ain’t gonna see no silly, insufferable signs. Text me, baby. Text me.
Is it cool to read books, or do children require 18 years of unbroken eye contact?
It’s arrogant to assume everyone glancing at that sign even has kids. How about “Be present for your dog and get off your phone and pick up it’s poop.”
“Its.” Just kidding. Kind of. And I’m not sure that arrogance is what you were going for there.
Whether or not you like the posters or are insulted by them, they did start a good conversation.
I like the signs. I have kids and like all parents, I struggle with some of these issues. But I didn’t take it personally. The sign is funny and playful and someone actually printed them up and took the time to post them. That’s so awesome! I am always impressed when someone wants to spend time to try to make their world better. And ….I ran into the guy who put them up and we had a good laugh about it. He is someone who has been in the community for well over a decade and he does multiple things for the community without any recognition. He is like a secret public servant ninja! Most of you would have some familiarity with his work. Thanks, dude! I appreciate you!
I like your perspective, K-Fad.
And I like Bernal neighbors who have a sense of service. +1 to the sign poster.
+1
What the hell is Cortlandia?! You transplants need to stop with all the renaming! Yuck!
“Cortlandia” is fantastic! “La Lengua,” on the other hand . . . .
THE IDLE RICH: If people are getting worked up at little signs on telephone poles they have WAY too much time on their hands.
I hate judgemental signs. Like this one: http://baydogparks.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/precita-dog-park-rules.jpg . Especially the fourth one down!
Ahh, yes, hating on regulatory signs. Bet you hate stop signs, too.
heh. Naaah. I like that sign. I was being sarcastic. Actually, I kind of am starting to hate how many people ignore point four in it that sign. It’s become a drag to see how people keep messing up the grass in Precita Park with their off leash dogs chasing balls from those plastic thrower things.
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