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Paul Daugherty
Enquirer columnist files news and observations

Paul Daugherty
Paul Daugherty has been an Enquirer sports columnist since 1994 and has been chronicling Cincinnati sports since 1988. He has covered almost every major sporting event in America, as well as five Summer Olympics. Along the way, he has been named one of the country's top-5 sports columnists four times, and Ohio columnist of the year on seven different occasions. Last year, he was voted 2nd-best sports columnist in the country, by the Associated Press Sports Editors.

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Wednesday, May 10, 2006

greeting cards

Went to buy my mother a Mother's Day card today. Same as it ever was. There are no cards for any occasion that remotely say what you want them to say. Greeting cards break down into 2 categories: Stupid or really stupid. When buying them (talk about your necessary evils) I have a few rules:
1 -- no dog cards
2 -- no cards that mention orifices
3 -- no lame cards about sex that appear to have been written by Peewee Herman
4 -- no cards containing the words "fart'' or "boobs''
5 -- especially not for mom
6 -- no cards with little bows and ribbons
7 -- no cards with really fat people on the front
7A -- no black and white cards with hilljacks on the front
7B -- no hilljacks, anywhere
8 -- no ironic cards
9 -- no Peanuts cards
10 -- no Garfield cards. Definitely
I'm sorry, but the people who write cards are either failed poets or didnt graduate the 3rd grade. I go to Walgreen's or CVS or whatever, and I start muttering like a street person. I say "God help me'' a lot. I end up buying the least offensive card I can find, which usually amounts to a picture of a sunset or something. "My appreciation for you is as eternal as the sun'' or some crap. Because if I don't, mom will think I forgot about her. She'd rather I insult her intelligence.

Are you with me on this? Shouldn't we take out card companies' headquarters with a full-frontal assault of hilljacks, little lace doilies and dogs sitting on the toilet wearing party hats? I believe we should. Live big. Without cards.


10 Comments:

at 6:34 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

lookit..maybe you're just card challenged..it's NOT that hard to find a nice card..I do it all the time. :}

 
at 8:18 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

write one yourself :)

Roses are red, viloets are blue, Today is mother's day. I Love You!

Even a W&L grad can do that!

 
at 8:00 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Paul, I couldn't agree with you more. The other thing that kills me with the cards is the pricing. Even for a simple card it is $2-$3, and for what... something that ends up in the trash ten minutes after being opened. Greeting cards as such a waste. I'd rather have the person put the few extra bucks into my gift.

 
at 10:02 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

buy a mac and a printer. make your own.

 
at 1:01 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

This doesn't have anything to do with the greeting cards, but when can we expect something more about the CJ book?

 
at 1:28 PM Blogger Paul Daugherty said...

Re the Chad Johnson book: Publisher is putting it together now, for a training camp publication date. I think you'll be surprised. Thanks for asking.

 
at 8:52 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks for the book update. My first real memory of the Bengals is the 1988 season and the jungle and the heartbreaking loss to the Niners and I thought I was in for an adolescence filled with a dominant NFL team. Obviously as I was wrong, I am just happy now as a young adult a can enjoy a Bengals renaissance (even if it is from the east coast). I think Chad is the face of the turn around for this franchise. His is the only sports jersey I have ever owned (and he isn't even my favorite player ever), but I think he along with Marvin are the two greatest symbols for the turnaround. I hope I can get it in bookstores out here in Connecticut, although I guess there is the internet for purchase. Look forward to the book and enjoy your columns.

 
at 2:49 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tee hee. I do know what you mean about cards. you see them everywhere and at first glance there seems to be a sea of choice but when you really start to look for a good card for someone special...You find a great picture but with the wrong words; only rude, crude and way old jokes or a tiny tiny card that costs more than the present that you bought. I don't have any ultimate solutions for you but if you want good quality cards with designs that are actually sendable (even to your Mom you could check out www.Zazzle.com/littleElizzabeth*

 
at 9:57 AM Anonymous Anonymous said...

8.45 for two mothers day cards...neither of which played music or let me record a message. And we thought the oil industry was over-charging!!

 
at 12:21 PM Anonymous Anonymous said...

Maybe this is a bit self serving...but have you ever considered a blank card and actually spent a few minutes saying something personal? As Americans accumulate more and more stuff and in turn need less and less, it's really the card and it's implied/written message that differentiates one gift from another. I believe that the future of cards are not occasion specific but occasion versatile. This allows people to really present the perfect card with the perfect message at the perfect time, without spending 3 hours in the ailse trying to win the greeting card verse lottery. I own a greeting card company (www.seldomsaid.com) and all of our cards are blank on purpose...it's really hard to write good verse for people you have never met. If you'd like Paul, I'd be happy to send you one of your choosing if you send me an email through the site. Jeff Ullrich

 
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