Big Blue Exit Signs, Dos Equis Guy, Insane Leaders, Venice Beach Drone

We bring you info on the Big Blue exit signs, learn about the Dos Equis guy, learn about insane leaders and fly with the Venice Beach drone!

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Here’s How Much Businesses Pay To Get On Those Big Blue Exit Signs

We all see these signs driving in US highways. I always wondered how businesses get on these signs and how much it costs. And who runs it all. And, by bringing you this article, you will know. Now you can show off to others how much you know about this subject and feel superior to them. Ok, kind of joking around now.

Roadside advertising programs are administered by individual states, though specific service signs like the one in the picture above tend to be farmed out to contractors. One of the biggest of these contractors is a company called Interstate Logos, which works with transportation agencies in 23 states to not only install the huge blue panels, but also to work with businesses to run the programs.

But even if your business meets all the requirements, and you’ve submitted your online application, there may be competition from other nearby businesses. As for which of those businesses get to be on the signs, that depends on the state’s policy. Colorado rotates the businesses at the end of each contract year, but other states like Michigan give preference to businesses nearer the highway, while still others like Washington use a first come-first serve (with waiting list) approach.

Signs generally come in three different types: mainline, ramp and trailblazer. Mainline signs are the huge ones that motorists see on the main highway just before exits, ramp signs are found on either side of an exit ramp and usually feature an arrow and a distance to the destination, and trailblazer signs are found along the route when driving to a business from the exit ramp isn’t straightforward.

The six main types of businesses found on logo signs—local attractions, pharmacies, camping, lodging, food, and gas—are often placed along the highway in that order (in other words, you’ll see the big blue “attractions” sign first and “gas” last), and are usually within one mile of the exit.

The cost of getting on a specific service sign varies by state, but in general, it spans between about $500 and a couple grand per year.

How the World’s Most Interesting Man Befriended the World’s Most Powerful Man

This is not about Obama. This is about the guy who became the most interesting man in the world. You know the one, drinking Dos Equis beer doing…amazing stuff. His personal story is fascinating. And so  inspiring as well! How he labored for decades to break into Hollywood. How he quit Hollywood to start a marketing firm that grew to net $150 million a year. How it then failed spectacularly and he lost everything…

I was in survival mode, conserving every dollar. So instead of the comforts of a hotel before an audition, I had crashed in my pickup. I was living like a hobo. Maybe I really was a hobo, I thought, as I got dressed outside my truck for the audition. The sport jacket that I wore on special occasions was folded in the back, with a camping stove and other gear. Sitting on the opened tailgate, I put on my pants, socks and loafers. I thought back to my first days in Hollywood, hauling around industrial waste to earn a few extra dollars and changing into my suit in my garbage truck, which I also used to get around to auditions. Now, I leaned in front of the side mirror with my razor, trimming a few spots on my beard line without shaving cream or water. After more than 40 years, had anything changed?

Then he talks about how he got THE audition for Dos Equis that led to him becoming a legend…About the thoughts going through his mind that fateful day, the settings for the auditions, the competing actors (300 to 400!) were all Latin younger men. How he a middle aged Jewish guy was there taking a shot for this gig out of pure desperation…

And then the article veers towards how he met Obama and their friendship.

And ends like this:

There are many lessons in my fantastic journey. As I approach my eighth decade, with more fans and adulation than I could ever deserve, I can say with certainty that to be interesting you have to be interested. You can watch the parade that is life—and live vicariously through others, as many do—or you can get in and participate in your own journey. And the best time to go for broke is when you’re already there.

The Madness of King Donald

This is not a political blog. But it is my blog. And blogging tends to get personal. I have always said that Trump is indeed clinically insane. Nothing new. But what I found fascinating about this piece from Foreign Policy magazine is the history with former leaders who had mental issues. And what was done about them. Or what was contemplated.

What happens when a political elite concludes that the real or titular head of state has to be deposed in the interests of the country as a whole? Of course, given Trump’s leadership style, the pertinent question might be narrowed down further: What happens when a monarch is judged as mentally unfit to rule?

And then we get a history of lunatics and what they did, here is the first one:

Don Julius Caesar d’Austria, son of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II, who tortured his mistress to death and walked about for days covered in her blood and brains, attacked his servants, destroyed his furniture, tore up his clothing, babbled and roared nonsensically, and was (allegedly) eventually strangled on his father’s orders in 1609.

Many similar examples follow….I enjoyed reading about them all. There is something about lunatics, like bloggers who blog daily for years with a few $ clicks here and there, cough 🙂

Venice Beach Drone Tour

Is there any place more like California than Venice Beach? Ok, maybe there is, I am just trying to make a point here. I love drones and I love Venice Beach. Must watch, enjoy!

And I leave you with this…School is out!

Check out my updated blog lists: Blogs I Love, Blogs I Like, Blogs To Ignore