Writing-Related Things That Confuse or Piss Me Off: A Multi-Part Series!! #1: Trail Lite B-Plus Motor Homes

Technically I’m still on maternity leave. However, I’ve been guilted back into writing blog posts after learning — via my blog — that my business partner is equating me to the kid who begs for a dog then promptly heads off to college and leaves said dog for said parent to care for.

That’s okay. I’ve missed my dog, I mean blog. It gives me a regular opportunity to vent about things that confuse or irritate me. Well, writing-related things. (Lucky for you, lady on the elevator who felt compelled to say she could tell I was a new mother because of the “big bags” under my eyes.)

Here’s my latest: Trail Lite B-Plus Motor Homes. I parked next to one of their lovely vehicles in the parking lot at The Friendly Toast. I’m not joking; it really was a nice motor home (if you’re into this sort of thing, which I think I might be in about 30-40 more years).

But the “B-Plus” threw me off. Was I wrong? Was this really just a slightly-above-average motor home? A motor home that didn’t care about excellence?

In school, I was a B-plus student, or “very good” (i.e. not excellent) according to the grading key on my report card. For me, B-plusses always came with a vague sense of disappointment and mild regret: If only I’d studied harder, cared more, worn a shorter skirt. Sure, a B-plus is respectable, but it’s not the kind of grade that says, “Hey world, look at me!” Instead, it says, “I probably could have done a little better.”

Is that really the message Trail Lite wants to send?

That night I was still thinking about it. And, having nothing better to do — it’s not like I just had a baby or something — I decided to delve a little deeper into the strange world of motor homes.  I learned that the B-plus is actually a class of motor home — more compact and easy to drive, in case you’re wondering.

So okay, Trail Lite, that’s all well and good, but I suggest you not emblazon that class specification on the side of your vehicles. Here’s why: Most people don’t know that B-Plus means “fun-sized,” so we assume it just means not good enough to get an A.

Worse, as I have learned from my professor-husband, these days a B+ is really more like a D+. Lucky for you, Trail Lite, the average 19-year-old is not in the motor home market, so you’re probably good for a while, but not great. And it would be an excellent idea to rethink your labeling system before they are.