Vanity Plates: Cool Carcessory or JST TMI?
So, I was driving along the other day and I pull up behind a mini-van with a vanity plate. That’s not such a big deal in itself, because where I live they’re all over the place. Vanity plates, I mean. Mini-vans too, but that’s not what this post is about. Anyway, this driver struck me right away as someone who is very comfortable in their own skin, someone who knows who they are and aren’t afraid to advertise it:
HATEFUL
That’s what the tag said! Of course, maybe it was a gift or something.
I don’t give much thought to vanity plates, but this one made me start paying attention. Maybe I’ve been missing something good out there. At least good for a laugh. Naturally, I had to share, so following are some of the plates I saw in the last two weeks. I categorized for you because I’m just awesome like that:
People who need a license plate to remember their names:
NICK W
JT SMITH – not that J. T. Smith?
MS CEE
SPEC SR – to avoid confusion
Or their nicknames:
SHAMOO – not that Shamoo?
MRBONZ – set them or break them?
THE DEAL – really? you’re the deal? the real deal? are you sure?
SIRFLEX – I feel dirty
Or who they belong to:
4JORDNS
WALTON 9
INTS FAM
But what’s with the numbers?:
LAURA64
BAIL 80 – graduated in ’80?, born in ’80?, how many times you’ve been bailed out of jail?
I only saw two pickup trucks with vanity plates. Wayne, do Real Southern Men get vanity plates for their Rams and F-150’s? I’m guessing not.
On the pickups:
WANDEE
CARTS 41
People who want to make sure you know this is not YOUR car:
HARLYS – are awesome, I know!
DENEKAS
RBERTS
MAGS KIA – now, which one of these KIA’s is mine?
FOR KYLA
BRADS 88 – Happy Birthday!
NADINES
Then there’s this guy:
95 DODGE
VANITY PLATE TIP – if you’re gonna go through all the trouble of thinking up something remarkably clever to brand your vehicle with, please make it something simple enough that we can read it as we pass you by at 50 miles per hour.
People who want to share something about themselves:
NEW GRAM
UD FLIER – sports fan (I had to google it)
LSTS GRL – Lsts must be so proud
H8 2ORK – drive this to work, do you?
DRM DSNY
BOSS GT
KNJ&TMS – we’re so happy for you both
GOLF SUX – wrestling fan
CLOUD5 – cloud 9 too crowded? or maybe you’re happy, but not that happy
4NGOLF – world traveler
NY HPD
WV ANGEL – but aren’t they all?
OKEGIRL
TWILIT – I kid you not! you must have been lit when you ordered this plate
4MYGRLS – but I bet you don’t let them drive it
CR1MSN
Such as what they love:
HSKILVR
LUVUFC
LUVLIFE
HATEFUL’s nearest and dearest:
CHOKE U – congrats! I never finished college
EVIL SUV – no, no…you can go first
The problem with this is that, in Virginia anyway, you only have 7 digits to sum up your life. Sometimes this works out fine and sometimes it leaves too much room for interpretation.
Um, Okay:
DAD SPLD – did he spill something? in your car? was it milk?
HAIR 4ME – I assume you are a hair dresser and not someone featured on My Strange Addiction
SOOTHER – soother! I barely know her
SOLD I – I can only hope that I stands for the number 1
CDCAPE – no, I don’t see it! your disguise is still safe, Super…Clark
I did see a school bus with a tag that read HELP ME, which was a big surprised. Not so much the ‘help me’, but I just didn’t know they did vanity tags for school buses.
And then there are the others. I’ll let you sort these out:
KENSTH
SYDJAK – no, her name was Nancy
20VX 12S
NAMJAS – are those the pajamas with the feet?
FERITZE
VOLEMS
KETULPA
SECAMND – California Dreamin’?
VETGAZM
SCRBTEC
GEUX LST
Okay, I made that school bus one up.
It was scrawled on the window in crayon.
That was fun! Now I just need to condition myself back to looking at the road instead of every plate that comes my way.
.
steadily skipping stones 
LSTS MUST be soo proud indeed! These would all make good tattoos too- especially for those that have trouble remembering their names!
Oh, I’m so jealous that I didn’t think of that! Actually, I’m guilty of sporting vanity plates once upon a time, haha!
Thanks for dropping by. I hope to see you around again!
Some plates totally baffle me. I have no clue what they’re supposed to say/mean.
I know. I tried to get some of those really complicated ones, but they’re too hard to read when you’re driving by. I even meant to go to the Walmart or something and cruise the parking lot for a really good example. But I never did get around to it.
I like to try and decipher those complicated ones, but mostly I just fail.
That was fun! I recently saw: O CRUD, which I thought was kind of funny. A long time ago I spotted QQQQ2. Pardon the vulgarity, but I was so pleased with myself when I figured it out!
O CRUD – that’s a good one! I would have a vanity plate if I could think of something really simple like that, and really clever. Unfortunately, I’m not clever enough, haha. Speaking of which, it took me all day to figure out that plate :). I saw it early, but didn’t get back to the computer until tonight, and I was thinking about it on and off in between. It’s so simple, but I’m slow. (and I felt pleased with myself, too) They won’t let those kind through in Virginia, at least if they catch it :). I ran out of time before, but I’ll have to go back and link the articles I looked up on it. The one has a LOT of the dirty plates that weren’t allowed through.
someone will have to explain the dirty one to me….I’m not that smart!!! Steve has RDSOX 0I, funny, until this week I thought it was a 1 rather than i. I used to have Bekaboo.
I almost included Steve’s, but I couldn’t remember exactly what it was. I just remember being thankful for it when he was in the emergency room. After going to the wrong one, I was glad to be able to recognize his car right away. I forgot that you had a vanity plate. What I don’t like about names on a plate is for safety reasons. It was drilled into our little heads when we were young about names on your clothing and how it can get you kidnapped. I know as an adult it’s not likely we’re going to get into someone else’s car just because they know our names, but it’s stuck in my brain that it’s unsafe.
You’ll have to give that other one a little bit of thought. 🙂
I don’t like vanity plates at all. They’re called “vanity” for a reason. I hope I don’t offend any readers when I say unless they’re a gift, using a license plate to call attention to oneself is not only vain; it’s also not the safest thing to do. (Supporting a cause or team is less bothersome to me, though then I just don’t understand the need to spend the extra money!)
I was thinking the same thing (after the fact) about offending anyone. I was just having fun, but I do have it stuck in my head that it’s unsafe somehow. One thing I forgot to do, and keep forgetting, is to link the sites I visited, one of which validated your point about vanity. One of them mentioned a study that indicated people with vanity plates are more likely to be aggressive drivers, too. Pretty interesting.
I think my favorite vanity plate was seen on Long Island.
It simply said “THROWDWN”
What makes it funnier is that it was on a Toyota Corolla. Because we all know the toughest men in the world start fights after getting out of their 4 door semi-compact import sedan.
Hey stranger!
That’s hilarious. Some plates just make you wonder about those people and what they’re really like. Or what on earth they’re thinking.