By Dan Roark

There are signs you see all the time, but ignore, because you either already know or it makes no sense. Then there are the signs you pass all the time, but don’t actually notice – or it doesn’t affect you (at least at the time you see it). So you quit noticing it.

We’ll begin with digital signs that may or may not change what it says. The picture above actually says “New Traffic Pattern.” I was taking J.D. – our youngest grown son – to work and back for a while. I took a picture with my android phone one day. J.D. took a picture with his iPhone the next day. The next day I had the 35mm camera.

What you see above is the best we got. That is not what we saw with our eyes. Since we could see what it actually said, it ruled out hackers. Hackers would change the message. It had to be a force that kept the correct message from being recreated in a picture. And it would have to be an electric/static force. Which would come from where, exactly? Certainly not the gas station across the intersection.

That is a rabbit hole we are not going down today. Take it at face value – New Traffic Pattern. Here’s the deal: in the numerous weeks we made the trip, the pattern NEVER changed. They did add a stoplight at one point, but the pattern never changed. It went on like that for weeks, not just the week we tried taking the picture. It alternated with Drive Slowly. Those that are going to actually slow down were slowing down regardless – whether there was a sign or not. Either way, New Traffic Pattern would have done the trick. If they weren’t going to slow down anyway, same difference. Whatever way you slice it, it’s using taxpayer money.

Every time I drive somewhere, I’ll see a sign (the electronic signs are relegated to high traffic areas in the city) that seems to be irrelevant or makes no sense. I think, crap, I need to get a picture of that. Then I remember that I’ve got signs on the list to keep me busy long enough to take the pictures. I just need to remember where they were.

Come along on the journey of stupid or useless signs. It’ll be fun!

______________________________

Keep writing the songs that are in your heart.

Peace be with you.

paypal.me/danroark