Raygun

Topics/tags: Miscellaneous, short

Those of you not from the midwest may not know about Raygun, the self-billed greatest store in the universe. I believe Raygun started as a t-shirt shop somewhere in Iowa, making somewhat snarky shirts. Over the years, they’ve grown to make snarky stickers, magnets, posters, and more. They have stores across Iowa and beyond, including one in Kansas City [1]. While I don’t wear t-shirts much anymore, I appreciate Raygun’s shirts for a variety of reasons, not least that I find many of them quite funny. This week, I particularly appreciate that their shirts for this year’s Camping World Bowl [2] between Iowa State and Notre Dame read Science vs. Religion. I like that they’re cheesy enough to make shirts that refer to Cedar Rapids the same way that I do, See the Rabbits.

I learn things from Raygun, too. Raygun taught me that South Dakota has adopted the slogan Meth, We’re On It [3,4]. Raygun taught me that Cedar Rapids is where Cap’n Crunch is made. On some days, you can even smell the crunchberries being made. I probably should have known that already.

I’m not quite sure why my muse requested [5] this musing. Perhaps she, like I, particularly appreciated the new Science vs. Religion shirt [6].

Postscript: I recall three shirts that Raygun made for Grinnell. The first read Grinnell, Jewel of the Prairie and had a hip-hop Prairie Dog with a big G on its chest [8]. The next read, Grinnell, your 1-stop shop for liberal education and firearms. A third read, Grinnell conveniently located midway between New York City and Los Angeles.

Postscript: One of my favorite Grinnell t-shirts, which the used to sell in the bookstore and which President Kington is rumored to have nuked, is the one that reads Where in hell is Grinnell? on the front and Who the hell cares? on the back.

Another great Grinnell t-shirt read something like Grinnell College, 150 years of anarchy and mayhem [9].

Then there’s the one I made during the [Plans] debacle: The views of the wearer are not necessarily those of Grinnell College. I still have nametags with that phrase.

And, while I own none of them, I must admit that many of the 10-10 T-shirts, particularly those that take off on alcohol brands, are pretty amusing.

[1] The city so great it needs two states to hold it.

[2] I love the growth of strangely named shirts.

[3] Seriously. They have pictures of, say, a rancher or a group of high school football players, with captions that read Meth, I’m [we’re] on it. I keep wondering whether their advertising agency was participating in a How much can we get away with? competition. If so, they almost certainly won.

[4] Perhaps South Dakota should have used the Raygun phrase instead, Don’t Meth With Iowa.

[5] Insisted upon.

[6] Don’t worry, Micki. I’m not going to buy one [7].

[7] At least not until they’re on clearance.

[8] I had recalled it as being the Merchants’ National Bank symbol, which we do tend to use as our town symbol.

[9] I know that’s not quite right, but it’s as close as I can recall.

Version 1.0 of 2019-12-10.