For a day or so, my walk to and from work was cheered by the repeated sight of a bright little birdie perched on his twig, looking as if he were taking in his treetop view of humanity. Soon, however, my cheery walk became fraught with irritation. I could no longer see my bright little birdie announcing three nights of Doug Martsch and Mike Johnson at Chop Suey, BECAUSE HE'D BEEN COVERED OVER BY OTHER POSTERS.

How rude.

We've fought long and hard to regain the right to poster our telephone poles, but it seems that an etiquette lesson is in order for some of our eager town criers. A single, simple rule of community--hell, and common sense--dictates the observance of respect when putting up posters: Don't put your poster over another poster announcing a show that has yet to take place. Duh. Especially when yours is a last-minute event. Sure, you're excited and want to get the word out quickly--but it means that after your event is over, someone else will cover your poster, and my happy little birdie gets buried ever deeper, weeks before his message has been broadcast to all who take the time to notice. KATHLEEN WILSON