#WaitToTweet: Toilet-texting trends toward topical

We're always looking for creative ways to talk about the importance of clean water. So if we can talk about our business where people are doing theirs, sign us up.

That's what makes our #WaitToTweet campaign fun.

Our infographic and stats about cell-phone-users' toilet-texting trends was our way to educate customers about the flow of water beneath their seats. It's received a nod from The Plain Dealer, Cleveland Scene, and now the Alan Cox Show:

It's not the first time we've been on Alan's airwaves, and the common hook seems to be fecal bacteria. Go figure.

FUNNY: Hastily made blog entry about Edgewater Beach and Mike Polk, Jr.

Based on this photo of comedian Mike Polk, Jr.'s date-night ideas,
CSO might stand for a "Cleveland Saturday out."

UPDATE: The Plain Dealer's Tipoff column shared this post with Mike, and we're flattered he got a kick out of it. While his Cuyahoga County reference is misstated, the tour offer still stands, hard hats and all.

So this summer, we got some attention on the Alan Cox Show. Now we're getting Cleveland Magazine press time thanks to comedian Mike Polk, Jr.

OK, so it wasn't Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District kudos, but yet another poke at pollution at Edgewater Beach and Polk's Cleveland-date-nights-on-the-cheap. (Love is in the air... Wait, that's not love...).

The November issue of Cleveland Magazine gave a write-up for Polk's new book, which features Edgewater Beach—along with its combined sewer overflow (CSO, the large flap gate you see behind him and his date) and reputation—as an idea for "Cleveland dating on the cheap:" In his words:

If you go on a date to Edgewater Beach, you come back wit several rashes, and that makes getting intimate that much more difficult."

We won't speak to intimacy, but rest assured, Mike. Just as we told Alan Cox, we're working to reduce pollution at places like Edgewater Beach thanks to Project Clean Lake. Think of it as our way of reducing "trash and rash"—fewer overflows of pollution to the environment means cleaner beaches. And this outfall at Edgewater opens less than one time per year, but even that is more than we want, so we're working to do even better. Just sayin'.

So enjoy your nights out at Cleveland establishments. And Mike, you could always add "wastewater treatment plant tour" to your list of chap date nights. We'll even give you and your guest primary treatment.

RADIO, part II: "That's a significant drop." Yes, he is.

So when a caller to the WMMS 100.7 Alan Cox Show during Wednesday drivetime reacted to the hosts' conversation about Lake Erie's poor beachwater quality, he rightfully touched on the Sewer District's multi-billion-dollar program to fix some of the problems plaguing the lakefront.

We heard about the call yesterday morning, and our own Jean Chapman sent Alan Cox an email to clarify a few points the caller made. Why not, right? With that, we also used her email as a blog post, embedded a clip from the show's podcast, and added a few points for good measure. In good fun, our spokesdrop Wally tweeted @alancoxshow to let him know he gave us good material and an opportunity to share information.

Then came Thursday's show. Check it out.

RADIO: I'm not sure we can use that in a headline.

The phrase "t_rd reduction" might be awkward in a headline, but it's the way yesterday's beach report and our efforts to monitor and improve water quality came up in drive-time talk radio yesterday. Hear for yourself:

WMMS's Alan Cox Show spent a few segments on the topic yesterday afternoon. And while Lake Erie and its water quality are the punchline for easy jokes [insert burning-river humor here], we have reduced many pollution sources affecting our lake in the last 40 years.

Yet we are the first to admit we have a long way to go. There are many factors involved in the bacteria and pollution along the lakefront, and we're tackling them.