It's just another day, so what if I've no interest in being "blessed"?

I recently received an e-mail from a non-profit organization. It derives at least partial funding from local government.

The staff person closed with this:

"Have a Blessed Day!"

Verily, the chronic overuse of exclamation marks is bad enough. It makes me all judgmental and potty mouthed.

Restraint, damn it!

Damn it, Insider Louisville, an exclamation mark IS NOT NEEDED at the end of ALL sentences.

As for the desire to bless me and my days, let's begin at the beginning. As widely used in these parts, the "blessed" phrase obviously has specific religious roots, as rightfully asserted by the employer in this case.

In a Code of Ethics violation, US Bank states several customers had complained when Neace said the phrase, which has Christian connotations.

To me, the phrase "have a blessed day" is perfectly fine when uttered by someone on his or her own time, when I'm free to ignore such a usage (as is my grudging custom) or make the sort of snide comment you'd expect from the likes of me, which actually happens very seldom. Yes, I know they mean well. However, it's a diverse world out here, isn't it?

This may or may not be satire.

Local Woman Considers Saying ‘Have A Blessed Day’ Evangelism.

“Of course I’m sharing my faith when I say ‘Have a blessed day.’ It says ‘blessed’ right in there.”

Evangelizing on your own time is one thing, though I'd suggest making a better effort to know your audience.

Indulging while on the clock (as with the bank clerk), or in the process of conducting official business for a taxpayer-funded entity?

This strikes me as completely different, and ultimately indefensible.

Roughly ten years ago, I had official business at Floyd Memorial, and during the course of this appointment, the therapist paused from his duties to ask matter-of-factly whether I was square with Jesus.

Of course, I hadn't come to the hospital to study scripture (it wasn't part of my reality-based health plan), and I told him so. Maybe now that it's become Baptist Health Floyd, there's a Bible study component.

But seriously. Why did this even come up?

I support the separation of church and state, and my hunch is that neither the therapist's nor the staffer's superiors have considered these distinctions. They should. It's never about the shop floor, after all. It's about management and bosses who need to establish the proper tone, and maintain it.

If we're going to continue developing New Albany, can we do it for all of us, and not just one sect?

Let's give the Urban Dictionary a final blessed word.

Have a blessed day!

Black folks' code for "Fuck off, Honkey!"

That Cracker really pissed me off, so I told him to "Have a blessed day!"

#fuck off#go to hell#fuck you#screw you#drop dead