Adventure Tip: Find Easter Eggs!

From M-W.com (Merriam-Webster)

Easter Egg noun

Definition of EASTER EGG

1.  an egg that is dyed and sometimes decorated and that is associated with the celebration of Easter

2. a hidden feature in a commercially released product (as software or a DVD)

If you’ve ever played a video game or watched a DVD, you’ve probably been in the presence of Easter Eggs.  Other than being targets for young children in the blood sport known as “Easter Egg Hunting” (I’ve watched and endured more human cruelty in that yearly event than in Ultimate Fighting---in “Easter Egg Hunting” no referee will protect you), the words refer to hidden material in various forms of media the creators left behind for diligent watchers or players to find.

So in a way, Easter Eggs are a method for the creators to communicate with the players, a tip of the hat, a “Hydee, way to go!”  Some Easter Eggs are easy to find and others are nearly impossible.  The website eeggs.com is a vast collection of Easter Eggs throughout all forms of media and a great resource to check out if you’re interested in this subject.  I personally had no idea that everything from the Harry Potter series to a Beatles song had Easter Eggs!  Cool!

If Easter Eggs are a way for creators and artists to communicate with fans, could Easter Eggs not also serve as a way for people to communicate with each other?   Here are 5 real life Easter Eggs, I’ve found while adventuring.

1.  Underwater Rune    

In December of last year, one of my best friends and I were walking at a local park on a rainy day.  On a rock underwater, we found this:

 I’m not expert on the subject, but I think I’d call that a rune.  Whoever drew this using a heavy marker obviously wasn’t catering to your average Greenway walker.  If you know what this means, please write about it in the comments sections.  To find this rock, we had to almost wade out into the river. 

2.  Warning on a Wall

While on a city hike through Murfreesboro, my friend was teaching me about what photographers call, “the magic hour,” the first and last hour of sunlight during the day.  As we moved through an alleyway, we encountered this graffiti:

This photo was taken by my good buddy, Logan.  You can find his work here.

One could analyze this message in any number of ways, but for me, this doesn’t conjure up a cute, cuddly proclamation.  The stark, dark boldness of this graffiti on the white wall suggests a sense of desperation.  What do you think? 

3.  New Orleans Narrative

My traveling buddy and I had once again set out, this time on a significant, yet drivable distance to New Orleans.  After something like 9 hours in a car, in the chaotic, humid environment of the French Quarter with almost no food in our stomachs was overwhelming and magical almost to the point where we felt we were walking in fiction.  This graffiti only strengthened that feeling:

The message, written in narrative form on an otherwise nondescript wall carries with it a sense of humor.  I like an Easter Egg that has me wondering about the person who created it.  I think I’d like to meet this one. 

4.  John Cage Tribute

Asheville, NC is a city with many colorful, artsy features and interesting, nice folks.  While exploring downtown, I found this wall-sized Easter Egg:

"To accept whatever comes, regardless of the consequences is to be unafraid." ----John Cage

This piece illustrates the power an Easter Egg has to introduce something to another person.  When I first laid eyes on this quote, I didn’t really know much about the composer John Cage.  I liked this quote so much that I did some research on the guy and found this piece of “music” history.   

Easter Eggs can become a method for strangers to share what they love.  I’d thank the artist who created this.

5.  Chattanooga Dancing (and Kissing) Lessons 

If one crosses the pedestrian bridge in Chattanooga and heads to the North Shore, they’ll find this:

"The Kiss"

 This blog does an incredible job of sharing the beauty of Chattanooga as well as the different dance Easter Eggs around the city.  Similar to how the John Cage quote in Asheville can share culture, the dance steps in Chattanooga serve to instruct, to teach.  A person passing these Eggs could unlock a long dormant desire to take the Tango, or they could just enjoy dancing in the street. 

I’m defining Easter Eggs in broad terms.  For me, they can be street art, graffiti, or something a person scrawled on a rock in a river.  Either way, Easter Eggs document a moment in time, and in any number of ways can facilitate communication amongst people who likely never meet.       

Whether in your own city or town, or across the country and overseas, Easter Eggs can be found anywhere.  As a friend pointed out, the sport of Geocaching could be considered the game of Easter Eggs itself.

What are Easter Eggs you’ve found in your own life?  Share about them in the comments section!