I was walking along Michigan Avenue at dusk, along a stretch of real estate just north of Chicago’s business district so rife with fancy stores and self-importance a key developer gave it the moniker Mag (as in Magnificent) Mile, when I saw the sign.

It’s a crazy byproduct of the yo-yo weather we’ve been having in Chicago this winter.

We have experienced huge swings in temperature, maybe a change of 40 degrees within 24 hours, more than a couple times.

The day after we had a record-breaking freezing temperature of -27, the temp rose to the mid-forties.

On Michigan Avenue, the yellow warning signs were plentiful.

FALLING ICE.

Of course, people have a strange reflex to such a sign.  It’s not uncommon to look up, to try to see where the cold weather phenomenon turned into a weapon might come from.

The sign might as well read DON’T LOOK UP.

I suppose the impulse is not unlike the reaction people often have to a sign saying WET PAINT.   Many will feel compelled to touch the surface with a fingertip, not fully dragging their digit across an area, just an almost imperceptible touch down, to see if the warning needs to be heeded.

It’s interesting to consider how, no matter how much scientific evidence there is for global warming, some people prefer to trust pundits with their own agendas or simply choose not to believe what can be seen.

It’s interesting to observe my own reactions to warning signs or the recommendations of others.  My operatives and choices represent a mixed bag.

• I don’t usually follow the advice of doctors who don’t ask many questions and seem overly eager to write prescriptions.
• I recognize that I’m more apt to trust a waiter’s opinion on what menu items are worth trying than what is printed on a card as specials.
• And diet advice…. I’ve considered a lot of highly endorsed regimens and usually come back to the idea of following a whatever works for me plan.

It’s not that advice or warnings are a waste, it’s just that I want to pay attention to my inner guidance as well.

Sometimes, I will choose not to drive or not to take the highway to a destination because I have noticed that other drivers seem to be behaving badly on a particular day.

Sometimes, I’ll remember to close a kitchen cabinet door before I hit my head on it in the course of pulling out ingredients for dinner.

Sometimes,  I’ll buy replacement ink cartridges for my printer before I run out of a particular color, not wasting time and placing an order as soon as I unwrap and install my last one.

I’m grateful for signs or information reminding me that I need to pay attention to potential threats or problems.  But I think the purpose of any sign is greater and broader than any specific message.

All signs are basically telling us to PAY ATTENTION.

Fully taking in the warnings that we come across in the course of daily life, in the form of written warnings or flashes of images, is no small thing.