Thursday, August 15, 2013

2049 CPAP



There's this new thing that's been advertised a lot lately. I actually don't know if the thing is new or old but their new wave of advertising has been impinging on my consciousness. 

The thing is called CPAP. I first thought it stood for Cardio Pulmonary Assistance Program but it actually means Continuous Positive Airway Pressure. For sleep apnea and such. 

The TV and Print advertisements advertise machines and supplies for this treatment. Unfortunately, in the font the advertisements use, CPAP looks a lot like CRAP. So the ads look like they're saying go here for all your CRAP supplies. 

If I were an advertising agency, I'd try to talk these people into a positive change. Maybe stick a hyphen between the C and the first P. Making it C-PAP. Like C-Span. Or better yet, drop the first P. In the public's mind there's not a huge difference between Continuous Positive Airway Pressure and Continuous Airway Pressure. Isn’t all pressure positive anyway? 

CAP is easy to brand and remember too. Best of all, when you try to buy CPAP supplies online, a typo won't end up getting you a load of toilet paper. 

Speaking of breathing, I saw one of those electronic cigarettes advertised recently. And I had a flash. A memory of this guy who once told me he tried an electronic cigarette and passed out. He thought the electronics in the cigarette interfered with his pacemaker. 

A wild hallucination I'm sure. Probably just vaporized more nicotine fluid then he could handle. A cantankerous guy though. Obvious had airway issues. And in denial about it. Wheezing between his rants about how the world was out to get him. 

I recommended a salesperson who sold that Continuous Positive Airway stuff but the guy said he wasn't taking any CPAP off anyone.

America, ya gotta love it.

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