Stickers

There are two types of stickers in this world: the bright, colorful cutouts with adhesive on the back, and the thorny weed seeds that stick to your clothes or pet's fur. (Interesting side note: burs inspired the creation of velcro, the material we use to fasten our laceless shoes and play catch.) I can't remember a time I didn't have a stash of shiny, glittery stickers in my possession.

Stickers are one of the best non-food items for occupying children of nearly all ages. Usually it's best to wait until your kid is at least two years old before you let him start playing with stickers, or most of them will end up in his mouth. Even at this young age I advise close supervision. Yet they are one of the few things to keep my toddler quiet during church, and many parents use stickers as a means of reward for children. If the child goes potty in the toilet, they get a sticker. If the child practices their piano lesson, they get a sticker.

In a sense, this sticker reward system continues into adulthood. If you have a clean driving record and pay a small fee, you get a sticker for your license plate that means your car is registered and legal. And stickers are a convenient way for many colleges to sell their campus parking permits. Okay, those two are a stretch--not really a reward when you have to pay for it. But there are plenty of adult stickers out there.

Many products for adults like phones and computers include a sticker with their logo on it in the packaging. These stickers often end up on snowboards, car windows or laptops. Bumper stickers are a means of expressing one's ideals in short quips, and car window stickers can show off one's favorite restaurants or one's taste in music. Sure, they're [usually] not as glittery as a young child's sticker collection, but they're still fun. A lot of those "adult" stickers are free, and since very few adults say "no" to anything free, their cars just turned into mobile advertisements.

Other types of adult stickers include all those seen at craft and scrapbooking stores. In this sense, we never really grow out of enjoying stickers. Stickers have even advanced to the point of encompassing three dimensions, with the latest technology being used to cut them. I've toured the Mrs. Grossman's sticker factory a few times, and it's where I learned they were among the first sticker manufacturers to use lasers to cut stickers. This has allowed for some fairly elaborate sticker designs to surface. 

(Mrs. Grossman's is also one of the few sticker companies that does not sell their stickers with that extra, unusable sticker paper. You know, the excess "negative space" left over when you're done peeling out the actual sticker? Sure, it's environmentally friendly to save on paper, but it's economically friendly, too. They recycle that excess right in their factory, using it for additional stickers. Very smart.)


I remember when we had to lick a stamp to get it to stick to an envelope. Anyone stuffing envelopes would have to get a damp sponge going before too long. I don't know why someone didn't think of turning stamps into stickers sooner! It makes a lot of sense! Certainly less germ exposure for postal workers, and now fewer tongue paper cuts since envelope manufacturers have followed suit.

Anyway, sorry if today's post is a bit boring. Guess I'm just not feeling it tonight!