Written by Yep, I’m back online and about to crank out some content for 2017. To start with, I’m talking about why I “went dark” for the last bit of 2016, why I’m back now, and what The Golden Girls have to do with it.
I love “The Golden Girls” tv show. Yes, the one with Blanche, Dorothy, Rose, and Sophia. I don’t really like the “morality play” episodes (stay in school kids), but the pure sitcom episodes are hysterical!
Luckily for me, it runs on the Hallmark Channel for most of the year, usually right when I’m crawling into bed. Nothing better than a good, predictable laugh before passing out for the day.
This method works for the vast majority of the year. Work all day, feed my dogs, take them outside before bedtime, wrangle them back inside, flip on channel 68, set the sleep timer on the TV, and settle in for 30 minutes of hilarity.
But someplace between Halloween and Thanksgiving, the Hallmark Channel drops The Golden Girls in favor of incessant and syrupy Christmas programming, and I switch over to Forensic Files, because in my twisted mind, death and destruction is a close second to lighthearted humor.
Shortly after the 1st of the year, Sophia is back, using her stroke as an excuse to viciously insult all her stand in her path. I swear she’s a veteran and they just never talked about it. I digress…
So what does this have to do with “going dark” for at least a month?
It’s called “signal-to-noise”.
In my first career in the military, I worked Antenna Construction & Maintenance, so this was a mandatory concept for me. If you’re not familiar, I’ll explain.
If you have an old-school (non-digital) radio tuner, there is a sweet spot on the dial where the desired signal is strongest and the noise (static or fade from a neighboring station) is lowest. Wander a little from that spot on the dial, the noise gets louder and the signal fades. Go too far, and there’s nothing but static.
That’s signal-to-noise.
What the hell does this have to do with Sophia and dropping out for a month or more?
Hallmark Channel goes full Christmas and drops the Golden Girls because that’s the hot ticket for the season – everything must be Christmas!!! Santa! Love stories too, but Santa and Christmas!!!
Guess what? Unless you’re hocking kids toys, all other marketing and customer communication comes to a grinding halt.
Seriously.
Did you see any tax preparation services advertising from H&R Block over the last two months? Hell no. Wrong season. Bad signal to noise ratio.
Likewise, anything real estate rather drops off the radar, save for neighborhoods that overdo on Christmas lights.
But now, my dear ol’ Sophia is back making wise cracks.
So I’m back.
Brace yourselves.
[signoff]
