I can’t imagine anyone beliving the topic of sticker retention being a sensitive one. However, that of someone’s inclination to label those who feel diferently from him as "morons’, well…
Well, speaking as someone who absolutely hates brandnames being present in the home, I understand the tendency to not want that around. Hell, I even got to the trouble of de-badging my car (it’s a four door late model of Korean descent; nothing special or exotic…). I wear clothes that don’t have patterns or words. I guess I just really hate that stuff.
But I also think it’s weird and compulsive as all hell to judge people based on that.
It can be done. The PC stickers are easy; peel them off, and wipe down with alcohol or mild soap & water. The car? Harder, but not impossible. I took mine to my brother-in-law’s shop, and had them do the body work on it. Some things, like the indent where the auto manufacturer’s logo went had to be filled, primered, and painted. Apparently the type of charcoal gray or anthracite color my car is was an irroyal bitch to synthesize, but it did work out. Dealer logos are pretty easy; usually just stickers that peel off, and simply duplicate the process I mentioned for your PC. Maybe that helps?
Would have added all that to my post, but 5 minute limit for edit. Ooops…
I had this same argument with my mother when I was 10, about the plastic covers she covered the sofa with. If she took them off when guests came, then it would make some sense, but she didn’t!
Are you prejudiced against compulsive people?
Me too. It’s weird to see people who compulsively keep corporate advertising in the form of marketing stickers brandished on goods they have already purchased. While it is their choice I wonder about their values and their sense of esthetics. I never suggested these people are dangerous in any way.
Come now, you certainly can see the tone of the question. It was over the top on purpose, just for flavor.
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The car? Harder, but not impossible. I took mine to my brother-in-law’s shop, and had them do the body work on it. Some things, like the indent where the auto manufacturer’s logo went had to be filled, primered, and painted.
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So you like the shaved look. Nothing wrong with that, but I wouldn’t go to extent of doing body work for a daily driver. I can appreciate it on a “show” car, but on a regular car, it can look like someone had a wreck, and either used aftermarket body parts or was just lazy not to put the maker’s logo back on.
I did recently clean off the dealer sticker because weather had started the process and it was looking a bit shabby on the edges.
Once upon a time I had an answering machine made of plastic meant to resemble wood. It had a light brown, quarter-sized sticker on it that said IMITATION WOOD GRAIN. I left that sticker on because it was hilarious. It could only have been improved with a tiny sticker that said REAL PAPER STICKER.
That aside, I am moronic redneck with no taste.
Sarah Cannon did that with her stuff.
These things are all over my house (the inlaw’s house) and I think it looks awful:
TV
Microwave
Water Heater
Rice Cooker
Fridge
The TV is the worst offender because the stickers block a small part of the screen and they’re quite distracting. What’s worse, the protective clear film has been left in place and started to peel away. One of these days I’m going to break down and rip it all off.
I tried to peel away the huge sticker on the microwave door, but the sticky adhesive remained. That’s why it looks like a blank sticker. I’ll get around to cleaning that off some day.
Why ?
My mother leaves the sticker on the laptop. The one that lists the processes, memory, video card, etc. And I’m ok with that. If she ever needs tech help, all that info will be right on the front of her computer. Why should someone elses choice to leave the stickers on bother me?
A hairdryer will heat up a sticker for much easier removal. Works even on old dried stickers. Great tip for books, etc.
YES! That’s it, this is what I am talking about. I am so glad you replied. Thank you.
Thank you for making me laugh so hard that I split my lip. I also enjoyed your sense of humility.
In what universe does not bothering to peel stickers off things (especially when doing so can sometimes be quite difficult and fiddly, and can occasionally do irreparable damage to the surface underneath) count as compulsive behavior?
I do not like marketing stuff either, and if removing stickers were reliably easy and safe, I would do it. As it is not, I generally do not.
You’re right, compulsive is not the right word.
I usually peel off the marketing stickers if it’s something I’m going to use frequently, which will cause it to fall off anyway. But on some items that I won’t see often or that are out of the way, I just leave them on. Like on my stereo receiver/amp- it sits behind a tinted glass door, and although it’s visible, only if you’re sitting on the couch and looking at it. But if you are, then it’s your problem because you should be looking at the TV instead, which is above it. And I have a PC tower that still has the marketing stickers after about 8 years, because it lives in the cabinet of my computer desk and I might open the door to it maybe twice a year.
Plus, if you’re in my home and choose to judge me on those things rather than the blinding awesomeness of my winning personality, then you don’t get any dessert.
Those things drive me crazy, too. I always peel them off. If they have information I think I might need, I stick the sticker on the inside cover of the owner’s manual. I know that might be redundant, but then I know where it is.
Another one that bothers me are cardboard wrappers or holders…I’m not sure what they’re called. A friend of mine has an over-the-door rack in her bathroom, that white vinyl over wire stuff. It has four hooks for towels or bathrobes. Wrapped around the back part of it is a thin cardboard piece that says “Martha Stewart at Home” or something like that, with a picture of the hook on a door with fluffy bathrobes. I assume on the back of it (the part against the door) is a price tag and bar code. It bugs me when I use the bathroom at her house and see that. Why would you not take that thing off before you hung it up?
What about those translucent plastic stickers that go over digital readouts and other things- such as on a new alarm clock. You can see through them if you leave them on, but they make the numbers blurry. I pulled one of them off of my '83 Nissan idiot light sometime around 1994.
I usually leave stickers because I don’t want them leaving residue, and having them there doesn’t bother me. My laptop has 3 that say Energy Star, Core i7, and Windows 7. I like all of those things.