If Influencers Ask for Free Food, This Ice Cream Truck Owner Charges Them Double

Business owners have given away free food for many years.

Now, influencers have popped up all over, especially on Instagram, looking to promote products and services. The catch? You know it: in exchange for their promotions, they want free products or services – or cash! Larger influencers with millions of followers can make a lot of money for exposure posts. For example, Kendall Jenner raked in $250,000 for one post promoting the disastrous Fyre Festival.

But are influencers losing their charm? Joe Nicchi, an LA ice cream truck owner, recently took a public stand against them.

He’s constantly being hit up by influencers wanting his delicious soft serve in exchange for a post on their Instagram stories. And when they offer him exposure for his food…

That’s right. Influencers pay double! His cones run about $4 each, so if an influencer asks for a free cone, they pay $8. So what ticked him off? According to VICE:

“Last Thursday, I got an event request to do a party on a weekend for 300 people in exchange for the word they love to use, which is ‘exposure.’ I can’t do that; I can’t work for free.”

300 people!? Unreal. This begs the question: Are influencers taking this “marketing strategy” too far?

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The “thank you card” is a nice touch…

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Nicci started his company back in 2014 as a way to make side income while working as an actor. You’ll find him on the streets of LA in a 1960s Mister Softee truck offering a simplistic menu ― chocolate, vanilla, or a twist cone. With the constant influx of influencers asking for free food, he had to put a stop to it all. He’s a small business owner and can’t afford to give away his “bread and butter.”

“The first 30 seconds of talking, they say ‘Hey, I don’t know if you follow me or not,’ so they tell me their screen name and say ‘If you want to hook me up with a cone, I’ll post it to my story. I’m like are you out of your mind? This is a $4 ice cream.”

What these Instagrammers seem not to understand (or care about) is the cost involved with swapping exposure for a product. They are asking Nicci, who is looking to sell to costumers, to “pay” for exposure (to who? He doesn’t know…) by giving out free ice cream. There’s just NO guarantee he’ll see any benefit.

So what if someone has 20K followers – are any of them in LA? What are the chances that they will buy his ice cream and how would he know?

“We work a lot of these [food truck] events on the weekends, and I’m not going to sound like a douchebag, but we have really long lines. It’s evident that we’re a popular business, but I’ve had many young Millennials who say things like ‘I’m surprised that you only have 5,000 followers.’ What does it matter? I have a line down the street. If Instagram went away tomorrow, I would still exist.”

Not all influencers take advantage, and the influencer bubble will burst soon, I’m sure. But in the meantime, Nicci can get back to what he been trying to do all along: Sell ice cream.

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10 Facts About Chernobyl That Will Give You the Creeps

A devastating nuclear disaster took place at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the Soviet Union on April 26, 1986. The incident is back in the public consciousness right now due to the success of the HBO show Chernobyl that dramatizes the events surrounding the accident.

Much of what happened before, during, and after the 1986 event is still the cause of much debate due to the secrecy of the Soviet Union. But one thing is for sure: the Chernobyl accident is considered the worst nuclear power plant disaster in history.

Here are 10 facts about the terrifying Chernobyl disaster and its aftermath.

1. Casualty rate: Unknown

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It’s sometimes strange how different paths in life come together and suddenly your path takes an unexpected direction. The path towards Chernobyl with @jonadbo. We have been there twice now and it remains such a special place because of its history. We ended up there to photograph abandoned locations and we got fascinated by the history. Ofcourse I have watched the HBO series and it’s made so accurate. It’s very realistic and I recognized so many places. I hope that the ghost town of Prypjat remains protected from mass tourism, that it does not deteriorate even more and that nature can still run its own way. So keep it nice. In the end we all have our reason to visit this city. First picture: @jonadbo #pripyat #chernobylzone #chernobyl #ukrain #decay #abandoned #deserted #netflix #disaster #rooftop #tsjernobyl #urbex #urbexphotography #belgiumphotography #belgiumphotographer #canonbelgium #urbexkings #abandonedafterthedark #urbextopia #urbexbelgie #forgotten #forgottenplace #chernobyltour @urbexchampions @urbex_kings @urbexeurope @urbex_3336 @abandonedafterdark @urbex_utopia @urbex_supreme @deurbex

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The number of victims that can be blamed on the accident ranges anywhere from 4,000 to 90,000. Two people died in the initial blast, 29 people died from radiation sickness in the months after the accident, and there are literally thousands that may die from radiation-related causes in the future.

2. A gruesome death

One of the first firefighters who responded to the accident scene was Vasily Ignatenko. He suffered a terrible two-week death from his exposure to radiation, including excreting blood and mucus 25 times a day and coughing up pieces of his own internal organs.

3. Other ailments

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⚠ On April 26, 1986, the fourth block was destroyed, the reactor was completely destroyed. The largest accident of this kind in the history of nuclear energy, the estimated number of dead and wounded and economic damage. ⠀ ⚠ 134 people suffered radiation sickness. More than 115 thousand people from the 30-kilometer zone were evacuated. More than 600 thousand people took part in the aftermath of the accident. During the first three months after the accident, 31 people died, another 19 deaths from 1987 to 2004 can be explained by its direct consequences. ⠀ ⚠ Unlike the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the explosion resembled a very powerful "dirty bomb" – radioactive contamination became the main striking factor.

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People in neighboring areas had to flee their homes and complained of such symptoms as “black spots,” bodies getting “fat, like a barrel,” and turning “black, like coal, and shrinking.”

4. Radiophobia

Because women were terrified of possible radiation poisoning, there were an estimated 100,000-200,000 abortions in Europe after the Chernobyl disaster.

5. Dead trees everywhere

The area around the nuclear power plant became known as The Red Forest because the trees died and turned a ginger color after the accident.

6. Lingerers

Although it’s illegal to live in the area around the plant known as the Zone of Alienation, or the Exclusion Zone, it’s estimated that 130-150 people still live there, many of them older women taking care of their family’s land.

7. Poor animals

If you’ve seen the show, you know that people were not allowed to evacuate with their pets. This actually happened and units were sent in to put the animals down.

8. But…there are still hundreds of dogs there

Descendants of the dogs who survived the aftermath of the disaster still live in the Exclusion Zone. There are an estimated 300 stray dogs here. You can help them out by donating HERE.

9. Tourist spot

Tourists can visit the Exclusion Zone, and it’s actually become pretty trendy after the success of the HBO show about the disaster.

10. Ghost town

There is an abandoned amusement park in nearby Pripyat that looks like something out of a horror film.

While it’s truly terrifying what happened at Chernobyl, the strength that the people of Russia have shown in the face of unimaginable devastation should be commended.

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Tired of Baby Pics? There’s a ‘Baby Blocker’ Plug-In to Block All the Baby Photos on Your Social Media Feeds.

FYI, condoms have about an 85% effectiveness rating (although, to be clear, it’s more like 98% if you use them perfectly correctly), but you know what the best birth control of all is? Being around babies/kids. They WILL eventually annoy or exhaust you, and they WILL give you the opposite of baby fever.

One condom company, Skyn, has come up with an ingenious way to reduce your baby fever even further. They invented a Chrome plugin that will automatically block babies of newborns and toddlers on your social media feed. The plugin replaces the baby photos with photos of other things – landscapes, cars, food, whatever.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

A press release from Skyn explains that the plug-in was prompted by the birth of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s baby Archie, which has apparently led to a flood of baby photos on people’s timelines.

“Numerous baby photos are being shared every hour on Facebook and this is bound to increase over the coming weeks,” explained the company.

“Sexual wellness company Skyn has launched a simple free‐to‐download Google Chrome extension, allowing people to opt‐out of the predictable frenzy of baby photos, following a much-awaited birth.”

Photo Credit: The Baby Blocker

The company went on to say that parents share an average of 1500 photos of their kids from birth to age five, which, WOW. For some people, all these photos “might be a little bit too much.”

“The Baby Blocker was created for them: a simple and fun way to swap baby photos in your feed for images of other things you might like.”

So, for all the curmudgeons who are tired of seeing their friends’ kids’ happy little faces, you now have a way to make Facebook usable again — without offending anyone!

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These Photos Prove That Autocorrect Is Your True Enemy

Want to know something? Autocorrect IS NOT YOUR FRIEND. In fact, it’s your enemy.

So be careful…your well-being might just depend on it.

Here are 15 examples of how bad the dreaded it can be…

1. Might want to end this now

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2. Children nuggets

3. The worst thing ever

4. Boring semen

5. Hmmmm

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6. Boner city

Boner, Amanda!

7. Applesauce

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8. Not for that

9. Woah Potato!

10. That’s pretty bad

11. Hot lips

12. H0ly sh*t

13. The usual

14. Just a short trip

15. Yes, we do

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Thanks #autocorrect #autocorrectfail #lol

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It’s rough out there trying to deal with autocorrect, isn’t it?

The post These Photos Prove That Autocorrect Is Your True Enemy appeared first on UberFacts.

Flight Crew Members Reveal the Things That Happen Mid-Flight That Passengers Don’t Know About

You might actually not want to know this stuff if you don’t like flying in the first place. Fair warning if you want to take the chicken exit now!

#15. Weekend at Bernie’s.

“Not sure if it’s been mentioned already. I was learning to be cabin crew at college and in the event that someone dies onboard, the CC (Cabin Crew) make it less obvious that they have passed. Put glasses on them, maybe a hat. Essentially dress them up as subtle as possible to not alert and or panic the other passengers.”

#14. We’re just as annoyed as you are.

“Pilot here.

We only get paid when the doors are closed and the push back has commenced. If we’re delayed or sitting with the door open, we’re just as annoyed as you are.

At altitude we’re constantly in contact with air traffic control and change to different “center frequencies” (or control for other than US locations)

We’re also doing fuel checks to make sure the fuel burn isn’t abnormal, dodging weather, and probably bitching about scheduling”

#13. Temperature control.

“Ex airline employee here. Often we’d have someone on board with terrible body odor. You can set the temperature in one end of the cabin hotter and it localized the smell to one part of the plane. If you see coffee filter bags hanging anywhere its because someone smells like open ass somewhere on the plane.

FAs often talk about the “hot guy in 23B” or whatever seat he’s in.

Pilots fuck around a lot up front. They’ll take pictures, post on FB, watch movies, automation has taken over a lot of the work on long flights.

Edit: Not really on topic, but don’t ever walk barefoot or in socks on an airplane. The same mop that mops the lav, mops the galley.”

#12. Dodging thunderstorms.

“Not an airline pilot yet (just got hired by my first airline and start class next month) but I’ve been a pilot for 6 years. I primarily teach Chinese airline pilots how to fly but I’ve done some passenger operations in business aircraft on the side.

First of all, all the comments about pilots making cat sounds and Chewbacca noises is 100% true. Also, whenever someone leaves an area and switches frequencies, they yell “SEE YUH” and then a dozen other pilots will key up yelling “SEE YA” one after another. We also enjoy talking shit about people who say “with you,” “got em on the fish finder,” “any traffic please advise,” and “tree” and “fife.”

Also, the things that scare passengers don’t phase the pilots one bit. We don’t give a shit about turbulence or having to do a go-around. The things I don’t like are things you generally won’t know about – thunderstorm dodging, microburst alerts, ice, maintenance issues, etc.”

#11. You’re not being given the full answer.

“Pilot here, most of the time the passengers are not given the full answer on why a flight is delayed or cancelled. Airlines will typically blame cancellations on unrelated events (weather) instead of mechanical issues so they don’t have to pay for hotel rooms/meals etc…

Also, chemtrails are not real. For those of you who believe they are real, give your head a shake.”

#10. Constantly swearing.

“As an Air Traffic Controller we are constantly swearing and yelling at pilots when we’re not on the frequency and then when we key up we use our nice guy voices.”

#9. Gets me every time.

“The scariest moment of my day is when the FA opens the internal bag door (the closet we all throw our overnight bags in) without calling us in the flight deck first. That ding and master caution gets me everytime….”

#8. All the time.

“Pilots are on their phones or reading the newspaper all the time.”

#7. A dead body in the cargo hold.

“As said before in the last thread, there is a large list of things that can be broken but the aircraft can still fly.

Often there will be a dead body in the cargo hold.

There is a crash axe just laying around in the cabin. It’ll spilt open your skull (not tested) but it won’t actually get through the aircraft skin or windows (tested).

Lavatory doors can be opened from the outside by lifting the metal plate saying “lavatory” and pulling the pin under it.

Both pilots may not eat the same meal, but they might be eating at the same time while the plane flies itself.”

#6. In quarantine.

“This started off with us blissfully unaware…ended with mild pant shitting.

I was flying to France in one of those planes with the TV screen up front to show the flight path and where you currently are. I was just about to fall asleep when the captain asked over the PA if there was a doctor on board and if they could go to seat #. I knew this was bad. The flight path changed to Canada and we had to make an emergency landing. We were stuck there for 2 hours. When we finally got to France his entire row was quarantined off. I have no idea what the fuck happened”

#5. Mid-flight mess.

“A lady who was feeling very ill crapped her pants mid flight. A very kind FA managed to get her covered in a blanket and into the bathroom with barely anyone noticing and then gave her a pair of her own pants to wear so she wouldn’t be embarrassed.”

#4. You’re on guard.

“I’ve got an original one for you all. There is a radio frequency we all are required to monitor. Its called Guard. It’s for emergency use and is designed for maydays, and for Air Traffic Control to reach aircraft that may have lost radio contact, or to relay messages from aircraft to other aircraft, etc. every day this frequency is abused. You will hear hundreds of professional aviators meowing, yelling obscenities at each other, and making fun of one airline or another. Often times what will start it is some poor guy accidentally transmitting his PA announcement to passengers on the guard frequency, followed by the very “mature” outbreaks for about 5-10 minutes.

It’s the worst on the east coast.

Edit: just today I heard an airline aircraft trying to relay info about a medical emergency on this frequency through one of their fellow company aircraft. They couldn’t finish any of their sentences without people yelling “YER ON GUUUARD” “HEY NOBODY CARES ABOUT YER PASSENGER” “HEY YOU’RE ON GUARD TOO EH”

#3. Emergency backup.

“I was only a month or two out of IOE (initial operating experience) at my first airline job, flying right seat in a Regional Jet. I had just come back from the bathroom, when the captain pointed that several flight instruments on his side had failed, and he had reverted to using data from my side (basically told his main flight display to start using data from the second independent system).

Soon, however, THAT went bad too, the autopilot disconnected, and here we were at 25,000 ft or so, in icing, hand flying off a tiny little combined last-ditch backup instrument called an IESI (integrated electronic standby instrument, if memory serves).

We declared an emergency, asked ATC to point us in the direction of better weather, and tried to figure out what the hell was happening. Icing on BOTH primary pitot tubes maybe, though that shouldn’t happen (they are heated).

In any case, we ended up making a perfectly safe landing after a diversion, and the passengers never had any idea that, for a few minutes, I was really concerned that things were about to turn very, very bad and that we were down to our emergency backup gauge.

That’s the shortened version without most of the techno-babble anyway.”

#2. We weren’t hired for people skills.

“Pilot here. Late to the party as usual. But, sometimes the passengers may be having a nice quiet flight in the back while the pilots are upfront dodging thunderstorms and yelling their heads off.

We will not only transport dead bodies, but also live transplants, like hearts and lungs. I particularly like the live transplants because we get to cut to the front of the line for takeoff and we get all the short cuts to our destination.

Tip for those who get motion sickness: try not to move your head around. Pilots move their eyes instead of their heads to look at the instruments in the flight deck. Also try to sit in a seat over the wing. This area of the plane doesn’t rotate as much during climbs and decents.

Flight attendants can’t do pilot’s job, but pilots can’t do flight attendant’s jobs for sure. We aren’t hired for our people skills.

Don’t take off your shoes to go to the bathroom. People pee on the floor all the time.

Edit: Wow y’all rock! Thanks for the gold guys! Blue skies and tail winds!”

#1. The pilots are necessary.

“My uncle was a pilot. He says that most people don’t understand how much of the airplane is run by computers. The pilots are necessary but a lot of the elements of flying are automated nowadays.”

I never would have guessed!

The post Flight Crew Members Reveal the Things That Happen Mid-Flight That Passengers Don’t Know About appeared first on UberFacts.

15 Problems People Have in 2019 That Just Weren’t a Thing in 1989

1989 was a good year (and a good album, T Swift). Things were simpler, we were all less connected, and it was a lot easier to turn off once we left work for the day.

So much easier.

But that’s just the start – here are 15 other 2019 problems that weren’t a thing in 1989.

#15. Texting and driving.

Texting and driving.

Edit: distracted has for sure been a thing ever since there was something possible to drive. Specifically though, texting and driving became more and more of a problem as texting got cheaper and easier.

#14. Airport security.

Waiting in line to go through airport security.

#13. Toilet reading.

Being in the toilet without your phone lol I can’t count the number of shampoo bottles I read in the 80’s and 90’s.

#12. Unplugging my book.

having to unplug my book so that I can charge my cigarette.

#11. You flip it over.

Putting a USB in but it dosen’t work so you flip it over and realize you had it right the first time

#10. Used to be you could be left alone.

Being left the fuck alone. Used to be you could disappear for the day and nobody was getting a hold of you until you came home.

#9. Can I come see the cockpit?

Captain…..can I come see the cockpit?

#8. No adult supervision.

Kids under 10 years old being out and about with no adult supervision

#7. The best vacations.

Always being “reachable.” I cannot count the number of times when my wife would call and I don’t answer (for whatever reason). She calls back 5 minutes later like ‘where have you been!?’

Some of my best vacations have been ones with no cell service.

#6. Ohhh…

Having a drink with Bill Cosby.

You wouldn’t think back then anyway.

#5. No i-home.

Your home deadbolt lock running out of batteries

#4. No smoking.

It blew my mind when my mom told me that the hospital asked if she wanted a smoking or non smoking room when she had me.

And people used to smoke while they shopped for groceries. Just flicking ashes on the floor like it’s no big deal.

#3. Ring ring.

Phone going off in a movie theater.

#2. A million dollars.

Trying to retire comfortably on a million dollars.

#1. Because you said the wrong thing.

Having millions of people you’ve never met actively trying to dig up dirt on you and generally ruin your life because you said the wrong thing.

The 80s might not really have been the good ‘ol days, but one thing’s for sure – life will probably never be that simple again.

Until the apocalypse, anyway.

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A Road Trip Expert Plotted Your Perfect Path Through Every National Park in the (Continental) US

Randy Olson is a road trip mastermind, and he’s back with the ultimate road trip through all 47 national parks located in the lower 48 United States. National parks are restricted from development for the preservation or conservation of important land and/or animals, and have been set aside in the States since President Ulysses S. Grant granted Yellowstone the status on March 1, 1872.

The map is an ideal route that leaves out the 12 national parks in Alaska, Hawaii, and other U.S. territories (cause including them it becomes less of a road trip). As with his other maps Olson created this one by plugging the destinations into the Gurobi TSP solver. TSP – the Traveling Salesman Problem – calculates the shortest route between cities while making a loop that has you ending up back where you started.

Image Credit: Randall Olson

He used it to create the ultimate road trip across America, the optimal strategy for finding Waldo (lol), and the ultimate Euro-trip that hits major European monuments.

For this one, Olson suggests setting aside at least 2 months to enjoy the 14,500 miles of driving and all of the sites along the way. Since the route goes in a circle, you can begin at any point you want and find your way back home.

If you’re a national parks enthusiast, you’re going to geek out from the Cascades all the way to the Dry Tortugas, and, for bonus material, the site also points out stops for hundreds of monuments, battlefields, and historic sites you’ll want to check out along the way.

Check out the “Optimal U.S. National Parks Centennial Road Trip” map if this sounds like something calling your name, and make sure to Instagram your trip – I want to see it!

The post A Road Trip Expert Plotted Your Perfect Path Through Every National Park in the (Continental) US appeared first on UberFacts.

A Road Trip Expert Plotted Your Perfect Path Through Every National Park in the (Continental) US

Randy Olson is a road trip mastermind, and he’s back with the ultimate road trip through all 47 national parks located in the lower 48 United States. National parks are restricted from development for the preservation or conservation of important land and/or animals, and have been set aside in the States since President Ulysses S. Grant granted Yellowstone the status on March 1, 1872.

The map is an ideal route that leaves out the 12 national parks in Alaska, Hawaii, and other U.S. territories (cause including them it becomes less of a road trip). As with his other maps Olson created this one by plugging the destinations into the Gurobi TSP solver. TSP – the Traveling Salesman Problem – calculates the shortest route between cities while making a loop that has you ending up back where you started.

Image Credit: Randall Olson

He used it to create the ultimate road trip across America, the optimal strategy for finding Waldo (lol), and the ultimate Euro-trip that hits major European monuments.

For this one, Olson suggests setting aside at least 2 months to enjoy the 14,500 miles of driving and all of the sites along the way. Since the route goes in a circle, you can begin at any point you want and find your way back home.

If you’re a national parks enthusiast, you’re going to geek out from the Cascades all the way to the Dry Tortugas, and, for bonus material, the site also points out stops for hundreds of monuments, battlefields, and historic sites you’ll want to check out along the way.

Check out the “Optimal U.S. National Parks Centennial Road Trip” map if this sounds like something calling your name, and make sure to Instagram your trip – I want to see it!

The post A Road Trip Expert Plotted Your Perfect Path Through Every National Park in the (Continental) US appeared first on UberFacts.

Michelin’s New “Puncture-Proof” Tire Promises to Make Flats a Thing of the Past

Flat tires have been an issue plaguing drivers ever since the dawn of the automobile. At this point, learning to fix a flat is a vital skill that literally every driver on the road should be familiar with.

That knowledge may not be as necessary for much longer, however, as Michelin is here for us!

They’re working with General Motors to develop and test a tire called Uptis (Unique Puncture-Proof Tire System) that doesn’t use air – and therefore, cannot go flat.

They debuted the groundbreaking design at the Movin’ On Summit in Montreal and I’ve gotta say…sign me up.

Image Credit: YouTube

Even though the Uptis has conventional treads on the outside, the middle layer is made of composite rubber and resin-embedded fiberglass spokes. Air would typically provide the support for the outer treads, but in this case, the spokes do the job just as well (arguably better).

Michelin and GM believe these tires will also last longer, because they aren’t in danger of wearing down more quickly due to over or under-inflation. For the same reason, they claim the tires are more environmentally-friendly, since fewer tires means less tire waste over all.

 

Image Credit: YouTube

Right now, over 200 million tires are tossed into the rubbish every single year.

The company plans to test the Uptis tires on a fleet of Chevy Bolts (electric vehicles) later this year. If it goes well, you can expect to see the tires on all new GM vehicles as early as 2024.

Right now, it’s not clear whether or not the tires would be available for purchase separately, so don’t let those tire-changing skills go dormant just yet.

But fear not! A brighter future with less squatting by the side of the road in the heat or rain could be on the very near horizon.

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