Give Me Liberty? Give Me Death.

I am annoyed with Liberty Mutual, and I’m not even a customer.

It’s their jingle. I hate it. Seriously, some guys got paid big bucks to sit around a table in a fancy conference room and come up with this?!

I assume there was a table and a conference room, but maybe they were down at the corner pub, three sheets to the wind, throwing darts at a board instead. As far as jingles go, this sucks. All they’re doing is repeating their company name a bunch of times. Three Libertys is bad enough, but then they have the gall to add a fourth. You know, to really ram it down our throats. Every time this commercial comes on I am tempted to throw my remote at the TV. The only reason I don’t is because I’m using it to fast-forward through the inanity.

All I know is, if these guys want to compete with Geico and Progressive, they need to step up their game. Those companies know a thing or two about clever ads. And I’m not the only one with a disdain for the jingle. There’s an entire Reddit thread devoted to the topic. My favorite comment? Like a sadist mashing their thumb onto an open sore they’ve created from weeks of abuse, wear, and mindless repetition.

Yep.

You know whose ads I don’t despise? My new company’s. I immersed myself in our brand guidelines last week, and for a corporation that’s 100+ years old and serving a rural populace in a very conservative state, our campaigns are surprisingly cutting edge. I especially like our new truck wraps; two that stand out in particular are:

  • Driver Instructed Not to Exceed 186,000 Miles Per Second
  • Californians Surf the Internet. We Wrangle It.

Pretty cool, huh? I’m glad I’ll be able to write creative, witty copy for CenturyCo. That’s my jam, man!

I got through my first week without a hitch. There’s lots to learn, but also, plenty of writing and editing, so I was able to contribute immediately. Because my company takes COVID very seriously, we all pretty much lock ourselves in our offices all day long. It’s funny; most of our meetings and conversations take place over Microsoft Teams, so we’ll be wearing headsets and video chatting with one another even though our offices are just a few feet apart. Our Marketing Director, whom I have nicknamed Hank Schrader—because he’s the spitting image of Hank Schrader—doesn’t even have a window next to his door, so there was one day last week where I literally saw him in person for five seconds. It’s a little jarring, but I always say I’m my own best company, so I’m happy to report I get along with me just fine.

Not the Director of Marketing…but damn close.

Halloween was surprisingly normal. We got quite a few trick-or-treaters; maybe a couple dozen? Not as many as last year, but more than expected given the pandemic. Tara had the bright idea to hand out candy with kitchen tongs, which most of the parents appreciated.

We also couldn’t pass up the opportunity to make our own not-so-subtle political statement.

Normally we’d be down in the basement listening to records and playing cards, but with so many people coming to the door, we improvised with cribbage at the kitchen table and Spotify playing over our Echo. Alexa made a fine DJ, I might add.

Remember how we started the week with close to a foot of snow on the ground and below zero temps? Yeah…it’s all completely melted now. Our topsy-turvy weather did a 180 and it’s going to be well into the 70s most of the week. Pushing 80º on Tuesday. But then next Sunday, cold and possibly snowy. It’s impossible to get used to any sort of climate regularity around here, I swear!

Since I’m not prepared for NaNoWriMo this year, I was tossing around the idea of doing a blog post every day in November instead. Really not sure I want to subject you guys to that (or put pressure on myself, for that matter). The jury’s still out. If you see me tomorrow, you’ll know it’s a go.

23 thoughts on “Give Me Liberty? Give Me Death.”

  1. Candy via tongs is a great idea! I saw one family putting little treat bags along their fence. It’s nice to see safe ways to celebrate the holiday.

    The “Let’s Joe” pumpkin is cute. I’m assuming nobody stole or smashed it? (Given all the headlines I’ve been seeing…)

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  3. Good to hear first week went well, Mark. Fun Halloween decorations. Tongs a great idea. We listened/saw non-stop fireworks for a few hours last night, where I am surprised no one set the houses on fire. Sparks landing very close to everything. All’s well that ends well.

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  4. “It’s their jingle. I hate it. Every time this commercial comes on I am tempted to throw my remote at the TV.”

    Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee too!

    OMG Mark, I can’t even tell you HOW MUCH I HATE THEIR JINGL!!! In fact, whenever it comes on, I RUN over to my computer and immediately switch to something else. I thought it was just me, but I can’t stand it. I also can’t stand the guy IN the commercials.

    Happy to read that your first week on the new job went well. I had a feeling it would.

    LOVE Tara’s idea about handing out Halloween candy with tongs, VERY clever! I also love how festive your decorations are. Love all the candles!

    We’re getting some really great cold weather currently and I am soooooooooo enjoying it. No snow yet, though.

    Have a super week, my friend!

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    1. Admittedly, we may have gone slightly overboard with the candles. But they put us in the holiday spirit!

      Glad to hear you’re enjoying cold weather. I hope it sticks around this time! I’ll be envious of you for a change this week. Might even have to switch the A/C back on myself here for a couple of days.

      Have a great week, Ron!

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  5. Well, the purpose of the jingle is to stick in your head until it’s buried in your subconscious. Then it explodes later when you either hear the word or need car insurance. Kind of like the creature in ALIEN.

    So it’s working, right?

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  7. Alas, you are not Liberty’s target audience. People who are down to “The General” and Liberty, and have to pay way too much for insurance. Three words and a kindergartners piano clink appear to be enough to irritate 99% of the TV watching community, but it is the other 1% they are trying to ensnare.

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  8. Ok, I beg to differ with you. Everyone knows the Liberty jingle, so I’d say they’ve done their job. I even sing it in my head when I pass a street named Liberty and such. And who doesn’t like Limu the Emu . . . and DOUG? Lol! I think it’s clever.

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  9. Long ago there used to be an organized group of bloggers who wrote daily in November. It was called NaBloPoMo and it was the most fun I’ve had as a blogger. I met so many people that way, but the idea has waned in these last years. I hadn’t thought of that until I read this.

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