The Mysterious BLT

This piece first appeared in March 19th, 2009 edition of the Pioneer Tribune, a weekly newspaper from Manistique, Michigan. Please visit their website: http://www.pioneertribune.com/

Initials can at times become more widely recognized than what they actually stand for. The initials become a synonym instead of just letters: AT&T, ABC, NBC and CBS, to name a few. I’d bet that there is a good percentage of the populace that has no idea what those initials stand for.

There are two sets of initials that have given me trouble in my lifetime.

The first set was presented to me when I was an early teen. My dad was a truck driver, and I would go on trips with him in the summer. We were in Eastern Pennsylvania to help move the equipment of the exploratory drilling company that my dad’s boss owned. The drill crew was done in the area and it was time to bring everything back to the offices in Duluth.

We were traveling alone on the way out and we made good time. The return trip was a little different. Along with my dad’s truck, there were a number of drill rigs and support vehicles that would be making the trip. We all stuck together, and since the drill rigs had a few break-downs, the trip back was slow going.

Up to that point in my life, I hadn’t spent a lot of time in restaurants. The break-downs meant that we waited in restaurants while the drill rigs were being repaired. It was a real treat for me.

John was one of the crew members. He and his girlfriend would always order something called a BLT. I had no clue what BLT stood for. John was a really cool guy, his girlfriend was really cool, too, and it sounded really cool to hear the two of them order using initials. The waitress always knew what they stood for, and no one else batted an eye when a BLT was ordered.

I wanted to be really cool like that.

It was driving me crazy. Being a teen, I didn’t want to look stupid by asking what a BLT was; that wouldn’t be cool. I didn’t want to order one, because it would sound like I was copying them, and that really wouldn’t be cool, especially since I didn’t even know what it was. What if it was something that I hated and couldn’t eat?

Since the menus offered no clues as to the true identity of a BLT and I couldn’t tell what was on the sandwiches when they arrived, I decided that I would be cooler just keeping my mouth shut about the whole thing.

A year or so later I was at a restaurant near my home. I don’t recall what the occasion was, but I do remember looking over the menu when it struck me: bacon, lettuce, tomato. Secretly, I was ecstatic, I finally solved the great BLT mystery!

I couldn’t let anyone know about my discovery, but I could finally order one without fear of getting a broccoli, liverwurst and turnip sandwich.

I coolly ordered my first BLT. I had arrived.

The other set of initials that gave me trouble came to me in the late ’90s. This set didn’t quite captivate me in the way that BLT had, but it was equally perplexing.

The initials CBC had me stumped. I was a new resident of Schoolcraft County and had no idea what CBC stood for. Ads for CBC were everywhere. One in particular stands out in my mind. It said something to the effect of “give to CBC and support all three.”

All three what?

I wasn’t too proud to ask what CBC meant, and when I did, the answer was usually “cancer and Bay Cliff.” I’d ask what the third thing was. My question was always met with the question: “what third thing?”

I’m sure that I could have found out quickly if I really cared what CBC stood for, but the truth is I didn’t care what it stood for. I was familiar with Bay Cliff Health Camp, having grown up in that area, and I thought it was a good idea that people were raising money for it and other charities, regardless of what the initials stood for.

I’m sure that it was a full five years before I knew what the initials really represented. During one of the annual fundraisers, I noticed an ad that actually named all three charities.

Knowing what all three charities were only added to my confusion about the meaning of CBC.

CBC, for those of you who don’t know, raises funds for the American Cancer Society (the first C), Bay Cliff Health Camp (the B), and Easter Seals.

Yeah, that’s where I got caught, too. Shouldn’t it be CBE?

I didn’t lose any sleep over this seemingly obvious oversight. I figured that there must be a logical explanation. It would be a few more years until I knew what that explanation was.

Easter Seals was once known as the National Society for Crippled Children (the other C), and since CBC had been going on before that change, the initials had already firmly taken hold as a synonym for the fundraiser, regardless of the current names of the charities it supports.

The CBC radio-telethon is held on Palm Sunday. That’s April 5 this year, just a little over two weeks away. It is really an event worth taking a look at. There are games to play, with a wide variety of prizes, entertainment all day long, and a lot of great items up for bids.

It really is a great time, and it really helps three great causes, even if the initials don’t make sense.