Sunday, March 21, 2010

My Latest Brilliant Idea: Louisville Merit Badges


So, as of tonight, I am one play (the 10 Minute Plays) away from seeing the entire Humana Festival line-up. And yeah, I think that's an accomplishment worth bragging about. I've been wicked lucky. Between being a subscriber, being "media" for Actors Theater, and having friends with an extra ticket or two, I've been able to run through the festival for almost free (save my subscription price).

But I want a prize. I want some kind of prize for having seen all of the Humana plays (and unless something wiggy happens, I'll definitely see the 10 Minute Plays next weekend).

Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all walked around wearing Girl/Boy Scout-style sashes with "accomplishment" badges? Really, wouldn't it? Talk about instant conversation-starters, right? You see someone at a bar or restaurant, you notice he or she has a "Louisville Film Fest" badge-- well, there you go. Instant conversation starter: "So, you saw X number of films for the film fest? Tell me about it."

"Four Square" has sort of caught on here in Louisville. (In case you don't know, "Four Square" is an application for smart phones that allows you to "check in" at certain locations-- pretty much any address on a GPS-- and if you're the person who checks in at that spot most often, you become the "Mayor" of that location. Somehow, you can link this to Twitter, so Four Square will tweet your locale and tweet when you become the Mayor of someplace.) I'm kind of thankful it isn't MORE popular. When it first hit town it seemed like most of my local Tweeties were using it and becoming Mayors of all kinds of strange places-- Kroger? Lowes? Speedway??? I downloaded the app, but I've never used it. Mostly because-- and Mama loves you ALL very much-- I don't want folks to know where I am 90% of the time!

So... point is: I think I have a brilliant ideas for all the Louisville booster organizations out there. And I don't know who would be best suited for this idea, so if you, gentle reader, know-- pass it on.

I think that some Louisville booster organization should take a page from the Urban Bourbon Trail and create a program that allows super-cheerleaders for Louisville to earn points for achieving certain goals.
  • Hit X number of local museums in X number of months= X points
  • Go to X number of Humana Fest plays= X points
  • Attend X number of Derby Festival events = X points
  • Dine at X number of Louisville Originals Restaurants in X months = X points

And so on... UNTIL at some point you hit the magic point number and become a super Louisville booster. Or, to borrow from our Lebowski fan friends, maybe an ACHIEVER?

At that point, you'd be invited to all kinds of special events, openings, etc just for these super Louisville boosters. What an awesome networking opportunity! What a great way to know who you can count on to spread the Good Word of Louisville! (And sure, Mama's single, so she's thinking "what a great way to meet like-minded dudes!").

I LOVE the idea of Louisville Merit Badges. And because life can hand you all kinds of lemons, I think your status should be permanent in some way. Like, once you hit the the platinum status, you should only have to do a few things to maintain it. This is way less annoying and more meaningful than Four Square. It encourages people to dash out and embrace all the wonderful things this city has to offer. And it fosters a community of True Believers. And we need more of those, right?

You like this idea? Pass it on!

No comments: