A Long Island grandfather is feeling a bit frustrated after the DMV took away his pee-themed vanity plate. Now, he’s reaching out to the governor for help.
Seth Bykowski, 69, was caught off guard when his PB4WEGO plate was revoked in January. He didn’t think it was offensive—after all, it’s just a harmless dad joke, right?
“I’ve been through 15 states, both red and blue, and people loved it,” Bykowski shared, recalling how once a police officer even stopped him just to say it made him laugh.
In a letter from the Department of Transportation, he was informed that his plate was deemed “no longer compliant” following their “rigorous review process.”
“I just want to bring a little joy and laughter into people’s lives,” he remarked.
When you have to go, you have to go.
Bykowski reluctantly switched to a standard plate with a random assortment of letters and numbers.
“Honestly, no one I’ve talked to ever found it offensive. It’s clever, funny, and witty—just what parents and grandparents appreciate,” he noted.
He came up with the phrase through years of experience with his two kids and his four grandkids.
“You’re driving for ten minutes and someone says, ‘Dad, I have to go!’ And I tell them, ‘Pee before you go!’” he explained.
“Even now, my adult children joke about how I wouldn’t stop for them when they were younger.”
Bykowski drew inspiration from the classic “Seinfeld” episode featuring “Usman.” It was a plate he had desired for decades—but only recently became available.
“I kept asking for it,” he mentioned, adding that when it eventually arrived, his whole family found it delightful.
“My grandkids laugh so hard, I sometimes say, ‘Calm down, or you’ll end up peeing!’”
Now, he’s appealing directly to Governor Kathy Hochul for intervention.
“This whole situation feels absurd amid everything happening in the world. Yet, on a personal level, I think some rights should be upheld,” he expressed.
“It’s just ridiculous. It feels like an administrative overreach. What’s next?”
Bykowski hopes Hochul will take inspiration from former New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, who allowed a similar plate for a local woman named Wendy Auger.
“I reached out to her, and we connected—she’s got a lot of support in New Hampshire,” Bykowski said.
“Their state motto is ‘Live Free or Die,’ and mine is ‘Live Free or Pee Before You Go.’”
Regardless of the outcome, Bykowski has a backup plan if the state doesn’t reverse the decision.
“If I lose this fight, I’ll just frame the plate and hang it in my bathroom,” he declared, not willing to destroy it as the DMV requested.
“Honestly, I’ve seen far more offensive things on the road.”
