The item I have chosen to describe is a sticker that I acquired this past June at the Del Close Marathon in New York City.  The sticker is specifically from The Magnet Theater, where I spent the majority of my time during the 10 hours in which I attended the improv marathon.

The sticker measures 4” long by 3” tall and is less than a 32nd of an inch thick.  The front of the sticker has a very plasticky feel and, while it looks flat, if you run your finger over it you can feel that the plastic is raised in several places.  The item appears bent in several places and no longer lays completely flat. The back of the sticker is covered by a material that feels similar to cardstock. Two pieces of this material cover the back of the sticker and can be peeled away to reveal an adhesive substance that will allow for the sticker to stick.  However, the white cardstock material remains intact.

Upon further analysis of the two back pieces, it can be seen that one of them is quite worn and a layer has peeled off, though it still protects the adhesive.  This wear comes from tape that had been placed on the back to hang the sticker on the wall without having to remove the cardstock. Tape was used so that the function of the sticker would remain and it would be usable on a future surface, as I move locations approximately twice a year in New Paltz and want to use this sticker as a decoration repeatedly.  If the cardstock is removed, the adhesive will likely work effectively only once and will be difficult to remove cleanly. If I peel back the cardstock I can feel the adhesive. It is quite strong and feels glue like. It could likely remove paint from something if stuck there and later pulled off.

The front of the sticker reads “UCB COMEDY”.  This print covers a little over half of the surface.  The letters “UCB” are tan and rest on a black background.  The word “COMEDY” is also written in a tan color, but lays on a red background.  In smaller font on the bottom of the sticker, it says “UCBCOMEDY.COM” in tan and on a black background.  The purpose of this print is to direct the public to a website explaining what UCB Comedy is. The letters “UCB” stand for “Upright Citizens Brigade”.  The Upright Citizens Brigade is a comedy hub dedicated to original comedy. Each of the printed letters is raised slightly and you can feel each individual letter when running your fingers across the sticker.  

In the top left corner of the sticker, some semblance of a human face can be seen and is created using a tan and black color scheme.  There are very thick glasses perched on a sketch of a nose. This image is the symbol of the United Citizens Brigade. This symbol is also the one that my improv troupe, TBA Improv, has adopted. The similar symbols make this sticker even more meaningful to me.  While this object may not be old or objectively valuable, it is extremely valuable to me. It reminds me of arguably one of the best nights and most unique experiences of my life to date. It is also a memento of an experience I will likely never have again, as the marathon is moving to California next year.  It is a reminder of the only time I have ever performed and probably the only time I ever will perform on a New York City stage, at one in the morning, with several close friends. It is a sticker. It isn’t worth much money, if any (I got it for free) and yet, it brings me so much joy. I intend to bring this sticker with me wherever I move and hang it up on display so that I can look at it every day.  This sticker reminds me of a night that I will talk about for years to come.