Between Calgary and Edmonton I saw several signs that looked like this:
It was a good thing these warnings were up. Those unicyclists juggling while on a rough road can be a real hazard.
Muddled Ramblings and Half-Baked Ideas
Words and pictures and stuff
please tell me what that is! I have been sitting there trying to figure it out.
I’m not sure – my best guess is a motorcycle on a rough road.
I think it is a canadian, wearing a toque, balancing on a tree while holding two bottles of Molsen Canadian.
BTW…I’m from Buffalo…that means I’m half Canadian…
Have to be careful drinking those beers – you don’t want to throw your balance off.
Actually, if you squint just a little, it’s an angry squirrel glaring at you.
You’re right about the squirrel.
.lerriuqs nwod-edispu a ees ouy nwod-edispu ti nrut ouy fI
.sideways only upside-down write can’t I
Ting fs sisincnoi, ihs’t ut?
The squirrel isn’t staring at you; It’s just getting ready to eat your carcass:|
This thing has me thoroughly baffled. I remember when the US decided to implement signage that would replace words with pictures, so even if a driver was from a country that spoke a different language, the driver would still understand exactly what was meant.
At the time, there was a lot of resistance to the idea — after all, if a driver was driving in the United States, shouldn’t that driver already have a good grasp of English? The argument at the time was that there might be tourists from a foreign country, and their inability to speak English shouldn’t prevent them from reading the signs. Besides, that kind of sign was already prevalent all over Europe, and since Europe is more culturally advanced than the US, we should strive to be more European.
Well, that works reasonably well, up to a point. Sometimes, there aren’t adequate pictures to convey the message. Here in New Mexico, the highway department never found a good picture to convey “DANGEROUS CROSSWINDS.” There just wasn’t any good way to show, in a graphic that could be assimilated quickly, that there were winds that could knock a high-profile vehicle off the road. (To be continued …)
The New Mexico Highway Department also faced another challenge — making sure not to frighten tourists off. It was certainly a bad idea to have the word “DANGEROUS” on any highway sign. So the department came up with a new wording: “GUSTY WINDS MAY EXIST.” In areas with particularly strong winds, the sign has a wind sock on top.
Apparently, Alberta has chosen another path to keep from scaring off the tourists. Instead of changing words, the powers that be have apparently chosen to keep their warning sign graphic, and to make it incomprehensible enough that nobody will be frightened about visiting.
I have to say the Dr. Pants seems to be on the right track. Although, it seems to be a warning about holding yer Molsons on a bumpy road, they get all shaken up, making them hazardous to open later.