It's Severe Weather Season here in Northeast Ohio (aka NEO). What? You didn't know that we had Severe Weather here? I'm going to give you a pass on that, especially if you watch the National News. According to national media outlets, weather doesn't really happen anywhere except New York and California. Oh, once in a while, Severe Weather occurs in The Panhandle and The Gulf Of Mexico, but neither of those places really interests Chief Meteorologists until there's a hurricane or a named tropical storm. At that point one of them has to Time It Out or Track It whether We The Viewers live anywhere near it or not.
Most often, national weatherpersons stand right in front of Ohio and much of the Midwest as they gesticulate about Severe Weather in New York or California, making wide, sweeping motions about Storm Tracks and The Gulf Stream. Sometimes, Rick and I sigh loudly and say things like, "We don't live there!" and "What about the remaining two-thirds of the country?" More often, though, we talk about other stuff, like how weather forecasting has gotten worse the more technology they have, and how bad our basketball fantasy teams are this year, and how cute Theo is, and whether or not I got the mail.
There's one habit that both national and local weather people have that really irritates me, and here it is:
News Anchor: Chief Meterologist Rayne Shein is here to tell us about the Severe Weather alerts raising concerns in some major areas and to time it all out for us. Rayne?
Weather Person: Thanks, Telly. We've got a major front setting up along the I95 corridor that will bring heavy downpours in several metro areas. Out west, look for damaging winds causing problems for those along the 101.
Here at home, our meteorologists/weather forecasters say things like: "This storm is setting up right along I271." Or, "Those of you living east of 77 should prep those snowblowers," or "The line of tornadic activity is mainly south of Route 80."
THAT KIND OF TALK IS NOT HELPFUL TO ME AT ALL AND I BET I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!
First of all, I have no way of knowing--nor do I care--where the I95 corridor is, even though they talk about it constantly like I should. Please do not Feel The Need to inform me because--and I cannot stress this strongly enough--I DO NOT CARE. I feel like the only people who know Routes, Interstates, and Roads like this are people as old as my mother, who used to be able to tell you extemporaneously exactly how to get every single place in the country she has ever been, using all the exact route numbers and cardinal directions. It was uncanny. She still may be able to do it; I refuse to ask her.
Secondly, I could not tell you immediately, unless I am in my house, which direction is north, south, east, or west. Okay, I could tell you if I was at the lakehouse. Or at my childhood home. Or in my car, which has a dashboard compass, but I would be cheating. If someone gives me directions and tells me to go east on such-and-such a road, I glaze over. Means nothing. Tell me left or right. What am I, an original Native American describing territory? A clipper ship captain using the North Star to chart his course? Speak in concrete terms to me that mean something tangible. You have a map right there; point to it. "If you live in the Avon-Avon Lake area, blah blah blah"; "counties below this imaginary line (or left or right of it), blah blah blah." I can even accept north, south, east, west if you refer to the map, but don't point to a plain old map and start rattling off a bunch of highways as if I'm a Greyhound bus driver. In New York or California. Because, honestly. People live elsewhere, too. That's just fact.
If you are having Severe Weather where you live, irrespective of which Interstate you are near, I hope you get through it with no damage and no floody basement, which I can now be assured of, thanks to a huge cash outlay and several days of people digging and working at my home. Let's not talk anymore about that.
Instead, talk to me of Stupid Weather Irritations and BiCoastal Weather Biases in Comments.
LOL, sorry, I'm not only a Californian, I also give directions via East/West, etc. How do I know what direction you're going to come from? Ted and Maya are on your side, though, and their eyes glaze over. Ted may in fact be worse than you. He likes to point when he talks, and he ALWAYS points the exact wrong way. "I went to Safeway for bananas", he'll say, pointing West. Safeway is East of us. And we've lived here for 28 years, and he GREW UP in the neighboring town, and I didn't even ask him which direction Safeway was, or which way is West or North or anything. It baffles my brain, because my brain works differently. I know my brain baffles them, too. (I lumped Maya in there, but actually I don't know whether she knows which way to Safeway, because she doesn't point. She just says, "I went to Safeway", and leaves it at that.)
ReplyDeleteOur weather this week is in no way severe, but I am glad that you brought it up so I can mention that it was 75 on Tuesday, and today we have snow on the top of our local mountain. (Just a dusting, but STILL. UNHEARD of in April.) It will be in the 70s again next week, much more normal springtime weather.
I only know where 80 and 95 are because I live near 80 (and drove it from SF to Philly twice), and when we lived in Philly, we were near 95. I do know that 80 is East - West, and 95 is North-South, and they meet in New York. Also, I'm sorry you are ignored by the national meteorologists. I've never lived anywhere that was ignored by them, except for our time in Alaska, and why would they talk about weather in the interior of Alaska on the national news? Unlikely. I will admit to being surprised that the middle gets ignored as much as they do, since SO MANY people live there. You have my sympathies.
J--Stop all of those things you are doing immediately. They're terrible. I'm the same as Ted; I often point, and Rick shakes his head and tells me that I'm way off. He points in an entirely different direction, and I'm always completely taken aback. It's also impossible for me to sit in the living room and figure out where things are in the basement, i.e. which things are directly below where I'm sitting. I can't imagine it. It's frustrating, too, because I'm so smart in so many other ways. I hate feeling stupid.
DeleteWhen the national meteorologists talk about California weather, I always think of you, and I think of how dry the state was for so long. Is California out of its drought now? You'd think someone would mention that, but I guess because it's not near a major highway, it doesn't make the news.
Also, all of your chitchat about 80 and 95 and North South East West made me a little crabby. Luckily, you mentioned Alaska, so I could think a little bit about visiting there, and it saved me. 😉
Nance, I'm sorry that I made you crabby, but glad I could redeem myself with the Alaska talk. You did make me laugh though, talking about how crabby you get and how you don't know the layout of your basement in relation to the living room. I have never had a basement, so I don't know how I would fare on that test.
DeleteCalifornia is out of the drought this year! And I think last year most of the state was out of drought too. It's LOVELY. It's such a cyclical thing, we know it will be back, but gosh it's nice to not worry so much about it. Especially since I have a drip in my bathtub that I won't be fixing any time soon, because it involves opening the wall, which means replacing all of the tile, etc etc.
Right now it's Tuesday, almost 3pm, and it's 77 degrees and gorgeous outside. Tomorrow is our high, it is supposed to be in the low 80s. Oddly, it's going to cool down again on Friday, and it may even rain on Saturday. I guess that's spring for you. Luckily I have thus far been spared the weather related sinus headaches, so I'm fine with it.
J--Oh, I'm so glad for California. I'm also glad that all the almond farmers can show their faces in public and not feel guilty for using so much water (not that I'm a big consumer of their crop). I'm sure you're enjoying the fresh, green look of spring there and watering your plants with a generous hand. How lovely.
DeleteI sympathize about your ugly repairs to the bathroom. We just had massive work done on a failed basement wall, and it meant ripping out part of the back patio so it could be done, as well as some of the driveway because of course it had to be the most costly and most messy and destructive job ever. I cannot tell you how many mini-meltdowns I had. There will be more since the patio still needs to be replaced. Big home repair jobs are the worst, but all I can say is to get it done before it reaches Crisis Proportions (like ours did).
Your weather fluctuations are mirrored here, but with a ten-degree difference or so. And probably more clouds. As long as there is no sleet, snow, or high winds in the forecast, like you I'll take it. Walks lately have been so nice (and so needed). Enjoy your spring!
I give directions in terms of landmarks --- Turn at the Piggly-Wiggly. No, not THAT Piggly-Wiggly. The one that burnt down in 1973. Go a bit or so until you see the big cow field. Well, it might be corn now, but it used to be cows. Get the gist. You ain't getting here from there (or wherever it is your are coming from, or to .....whatever).
ReplyDeleteI lived in the land of hunker down. Say what you say. If a hurricane (or a big sneeze) is coming off the Atlantic anywhere south of Maine, we folk in Florida need to hunker down (which means buy beer, bread, peanut butter, and for some really odd reason, diapers. Then, eat it all before the sneeze arrives. Oh wait, NO, not the diapers. Not sure what the diapers are for. No kids at home in decades AND I've never been in a storm so bad I crapped my britches. But, I guess it could happen.
Here in Philadelphia, whatever is going to happen is going to kill us. If not today .........soon.
Dee--I'm a fan of landmark directions, too. Rick knows that, and he gives his directions accordingly: turn right at the Sunoco; left at the apple picking place; keep going until you see the KFC.
DeleteHere in NEO we get tornado warnings and severe thunderstorm warnings. Weather people like to talk about hail, but we almost never get any. It's a running joke with Rick and me that It Never Hails. High winds are always a possibility and a real concern with a lot of mature trees both here and at the lake (where our boat is another worry).
I noticed that milk was left off your list of hurricane staples. As were eggs. I'm guessing that's because they're perishable. No ice?
I'm guessing you're glad to be away from all that, but the snow is a dubious tradeoff.
You are so funny. I do not know what number is on any interstate unless I've just exited said interstate a few minutes prior. How or why would I retain that knowledge? My mom started giving directions, in the last 10 years, based on ways to avoid traffic. We live near Chicago - it is almost impossible to avoid traffic. She would route people SO far out of the way, because there might be other cars. It was so annoying. Now that Alzheimer's is getting worse, she just says things like, "I went to that other store." She can't explain where anything is.
ReplyDeleteOur local weather is pretty good and fairly accurate. Is that because we live in Chicago? I don't watch a national news program anymore, but I used to be a fan of the Today Show, so I know of what you speak.
Anytime someone speaks of weather people, I feel obligated to share that I once interviewed accidentally to be a weather person in South Bend at the NBC affiliate. A woman who coached my club lacrosse team thought I was funny. She was friends with the NBC big wig (as big as that wig can be in South Bend), so she got me an interview. I didn't know what it was for. It was hysterical. I am here to tell you, speaking about places in reverse because they use smoke and mirrors and all other kinds of witchery to have that map appear in the background of the weather person - well, it was hard and confusing. I'm 100% positive that they still play my audition tape at their Christmas parties for a hearty laugh. I knew nothing of what I was doing. Afterward, the interviewer sat me down and reviewed the tape with me. It was painful. I was biting my cheek, trying not to laugh. He was so serious. I was dying to say, "Listen, Mr. Suit - can we please share a laugh about this, because you explaining how I don't measure up is so unnecessary." My college graduation was the next day and I came back to campus almost speechless as I tried to explain the interview I'd just done.
All that to say, glad I'm not one of those weather people who frustrate you.
Ernie--I just watch a half hour of national news at 6:30 each evening. I can't stomach any more than that.
DeleteI love knowing that you auditioned accidentally to be a weatherperson! Yes, I know using a green screen and all that has to be intimidating and challenging. Especially if you didn't even know that you were trying out for that position. LOL
My mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's several years ago. Before then, she and my late father were just like your mom--masters of avoiding main roads and highways to skirt traffic. She used to chide me often by saying, "Your father and I never drove on route 2. We always took the back roads to get to the doctor. We hated all the traffic." I had to tell her dozens of times, "Well, all you have to do is ride now. I'm driving and dealing with the traffic." And to them, if there were five other cars on a road that allowed you to go more than 35, it was just too much to take.
Like you, I don't know any routes, roads, interstates, etc. unless I'm on them at the time, for the most part. And once I exit, they do, too from my brain and consciousness. Thank goodness for GPS. And weather apps on my phone that are customizable !
I grew up in the Boston area, and there are two highways that feature prominently in storm coverage: 495 and 128 (which in the circle around Boston is actually 95 as well, but no one calls it that near Boston). The weird thing is, they'll say things like "2-4 inches inside 128 and 4-6 outside 128" or "inside 495 will stay with rain, but expect it to change to snow outside 495" because very often, the storm lines did seem to fall on those highways!
ReplyDeleteI have a decent sense of direction from my dad, but honestly, I don't really like being told to go east or west either. Like, do I have to bring a compass to get there?
ccr--Okay, that was a lot of numbers and routes that didn't apply to me in NEO and made me feel like I was watching the news with a national meteorologist again. Plus, you defended the concept of using highways in forecasting. It made me fussy.
Delete😉
Here's the thing about being told to go east or west: how are you supposed to know? I mean, really. Let's say you're in a city you're not familiar with, and someone says go east. How the heck do you know which way it is?
It kind of makes sense only if they're using the direction together with the highway--I know, I know, that sounds worse!-- but am I taking 75 North or 75 South? Those are things that will be on the highway signs.
DeleteBut then it all falls apart when you realize that 75 North takes you toward Tampa, which IS north of here, but 75 South goes to Miami, which is straight east. It's all so confusing. I don't blame you for being bothered by it all.
Oh Nance, your point about being in a strange city hits home. I know my directions here, and somehow they are always related to 'Which way is the ocean?', which is always West. But take me out of California, and I will admit that I have no idea what direction anything is. And when we were in Philadelphia for 2 years, I knew which way the ocean was (How? I don't know!) but then I thought that was West and had to keep correcting myself. So my entire life is a lie.
DeleteJ--See, that's the thing. My mother used to always tell me to "remember the lake (Erie) is always north." How the hell is that helpful if I can't SEE the lake or if I'm in New Jersey or Pennsylvania? Every time she said it I wanted to smack her.
DeleteLOL that your entire life is a lie. EMBRACE YOUR SHAME, JULIE! LOL LOL LOL
I take your point. I am aware of interstates and major arteries that connect them together, but my beef is when the weather forecasters start talking about townships and little towns in the tri-state region that have similar names. They give no context like I should know the difference between Miamiville and Miamitown, or which of the many Miami townships they're blathering on about. Don't get me talking about Dayton KY versus Dayton OH. I think the weather forecasters truly believe that we're all glued to the TV screen watching their maps, instead of acknowledging that we're all half listening to what they say.
ReplyDeleteAlly--Oh, yes. All meteorologists are now convinced that we are as geeked about weather as they are. It is their mission to Teach Us About Weather. Whether we want to learn it or not. They ignore the fact that we're tuning in to HEAR THE FORECAST, PERIOD. We don't really care about the whys and wherefores of how it comes to be, or where the jet stream is and how the weather is produced/originating. We just want to know when the rain/snow/endless damp cloudiness is ending. Toss up the Extended Forecast Graphic and shut up.
DeleteI get my weather from my phone which is linked to where I live so it's very local and pretty accurate!
ReplyDeleteEllen--And thank heaven for those customizable phone apps. I ignore the weather on TV for the most part and rely on those.
DeleteBut when I watch a half hour of local and a half hour of national news per day so as to stay informed, I am exposed to televised weather. And it irritates me.
I bet you have no trouble with conditions 'coming down from Canada', which lies to the north of you. I, on the other hand, grew up in a city where Detroit, Michigan, was directly north of where I lived in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Please stop banging your head on your keyboard, Nance. These things are meant to try us.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter's partner and their daughter both have directional difficulties so severe that navigation for them even in known territory is a problem. And where we live now is so crazy a route to discover that I send all people wishing to come here a map, with colour co-ordination. And left, right turn directions. I would never have seen JG's sister, otherwise, and my YD still mistakes her left for her right on occasion, although she uses a compass with skill.
It is all good. I think direction sense is a born ability, like the ability to hear music accurately. I have the first but not the second, and my family suffers if I ever try to sing.
And both the post and the comments are the best entertainment I have had today. Thank you all, in whatever direction.
Mary--I'm so happy to entertain you, and I'm sorry it has taken so long. March was a terrible slog for me, as you know.
DeleteI cannot fathom any place in Canada being south of a place in the states. Did your statement send me to a map? No, sadly, it did not. I take your impeccable word for it and stew in my geographic disinterest and ignorance.
I agree wholeheartedly that Sense Of Direction is inherent/innate/present at birth. Is it hand in hand with Math Aptitude? Spatial Awareness? I wonder. I have little of both aforementioned as well although I am a whiz at basic arithmetic, helped along by my work as a bank teller to put myself through college.
Do you have a great appreciation for music, though? Rick loves music, listens to all kinds all the time, dances wonderfully, but cannot sing. Still, I do like to hear him try. I find it endearing.
I trust that you are feeling better and recovering steadily. I'll send you an email soon with a few photos. XO
Both of my directionally challenged family members are math maniacs. University level calculus and goodness knows what else. The daughter who cannot tell left from right sings and can tell you what the key should be. Not that that helps me. The other daughter can do math AND sing and I sometimes am amazed that I produced her. In parts, yet. I am arithmetically challenged, if that is the polite term? Sigh.
DeleteMary--So much for that theory, then! I'll simply let it be.
DeleteAt this late stage, however, it's not something I'm inclined to work on even if it isn't inborn.
Well, it looks like the Weather People have gotten to our sweet, kind, Nance! 🫣
ReplyDeleteI honestly don't watch the news, so I rarely know what is happening outside of my bubble, news-wise or weather-wise. I use the Weather App and check to see how my days will be, if I even think about it at all.
I know East, West, North & South and will give those directions BUT ONLY when I'm on the coast of Florida, because I know where the Gulf is, then those directions are easy peasy for me. If I'm anywhere else...say, the Georgia Mountains, or traveling elsewhere, NOPE. No directions from this girl. I'd go with Landmarks and not highway numbers; just turn left at the Waffle House, pass the rickety old gas station, etc....
BB Suz--March was a terrible, no good, very bad month. A lot of things got to me.
DeleteI feel a responsibility to watch some news. Not only do I want to be informed about my community at large, I feel it's important to be educated as a whole, especially as a voter.
Like you, I love the way landmarks help ground me visually. They're like touchstones that reassure me--there's the Sunoco! Yes! I'm in the right place. When I'm at our lakehouse, it's easy for me, too. The lake is east. Simple to take it from there--as long as I'm nearby. But once I drive relatively far from it...all bets are off.
—TODAY’S RAMBLE OR: THE “GEEZ” REPORT—
ReplyDeleteDIRECTIONS:
When I first moved back to the States, I was utterly confused by all the compass points being given to me for how to get somewhere, like uh, “Take northbound I-30 East.” Turns out the “East” part of the highway is because I-30 splits into two parallel interstates, which I did not know of course, one running through Fort Worth and the other running through Dallas. And then there’s “The Chinese restaurant is on the southwest corner of Stumble St. and Bumble Road.” Geez.
I have grudgingly adapted. Somewhat. For long trips, I still prefer old-fashioned paper road maps (even if I have to hold them in the direction I am heading so I get the left-right stuff correct, lol.) I have tried GPS (now that I have a car that is actually equipped with that), but quickly abandoned it because the chirpy little GPS voice kept throwing me into a panic by announcing I needed to get in the right lane to turn at the stoplight when this meant getting over 3 or 4 lanes of traffic in less than five seconds.
THE WEATHER:
In recent years, I have been obsessed with the weather on days when I have to commute to the Uni because there has been so much shitful stuff happening. Last year it rained relentlessly during the entire fall semester. Read: driving on the turnpike in blinding rain with sky to ground lightning and tornado warnings. The spring semester brought an Icemageddon and more flooding rains for weeks on end. And the uni won’t switch us to remote learning until cars everywhere are spinning around on major freeway overpasses or people are literally drowning in their cars. I don’t rely on any weather reports because they change so frequently, e.g., the midnight thunderstorm with predicted hail the size of tennis balls gradually moves to 7 a.m. when I am heading out the door to work. (Insert Geez No. 2.)
On Bicoastal Weather Biases: Agree with you on the unfairness of that, especially because it seems like there is more and more severe weather everywhere.
CURRENT WEATHER OBSESSION:
Severe thunderstorms are now predicted for the afternoon on Monday, April 8th. Everyone is holding their breath to see if this will happen before or after the Total Solar Eclipse. Or not at all. Thousands of people are already pouring into The Metroplex. I imagine it's going to be crazy traffic everywhere in the path of the eclipse. I'm staying home. Gave my students at-home study work on Monday so they don’t have to commute to campus as so many of them do. Better for me, too; I ain't driving back home on the freeway with nut jobs trying to watch the eclipse while they drive. And there will be idiots who do. (Insert Geez No. 3).
XXOO
Ortizzle--You are heard! We here in NEO are IN THE PATH OF TOTALITY, especially our county. Everyone is completely excited and a few communities are completely closing down. Smart schools are actually renting out their parking lots for viewing. Rick and Sam are either working half days or not at all, TBD by a Sunday night decision from their bosses. Hopefully, the forecast will cooperate, but it has been all over the place thus far. Honestly, they haven't been all that accurate about a single day yet this week. And there have been multiple warnings on TV and in the newspaper about NOT DRIVING AND TRYING TO WATCH THE ECLIPSE; DO NOT EXPECT TO PULL OVER ON HIGHWAYS IN ORDER TO WATCH THE ECLIPSE. Sigh.
DeleteGPS--Sometimes our GPS (onboard via Toyota) will have a delay as you've described, too. It's terrible. My other irritation is that it always wants to route me via a toll road for some reason, even for the shortest of destinations. (The Ohio Turnpike is ubiquitous in my area.) Sometimes, I can foil this by looking at the route ahead of time on Google Maps and remembering where I'm going. Believe this or not lol.
You're right that the weather is becoming more extreme and changeable, and oddly so. Not that Some People will ever admit it. It might be time for TX to invest in some winter road preparedness (salt trucks; brine solution) rather than hide its head and think that this sort of thing is rare anymore.
Thankfully, your commuting days are just about over! Hooray! How many more now?
GOOGLE MAPS:
DeleteFor local trips in the city, I use them, too. I always make a list of all the key turns with the names of 3 or 4 streets that precede each one I have to take. I have used this method since my days in Madrid when I had to use a city street guide book; I was often congratulated by taxi drivers for giving them directions that avoided the usual traffic snarls.
TEXAS WEATHER:
We DO have salt trucks, brine solution, etc. But on the day of The Icemageddon: the ice storm included freezing rain, sleet, hail, and snow, all of which repeated relentlessly in a matter of hours to create several layers of ice. I asked Mr. O. to be my chauffeur that day because I knew by the time I finished my last class… it was not going to be pretty. The Uni didn’t cancel classes until after 3 p.m., of course. It took Luis 2 hours (usually a 50-minute commute) to pick me up in the afternoon with several near-miss accidents. And don’t even get me started on The Electric Grid. Abbott will rot in hell for not not spending money on that before the Nightmare of 2021 when folks froze to death in their homes. Also crossing fingers that Cancún Ted loses in November…
THE END OF THE COMMUTE:
It’s almost here! Classes end on April 30th with Final Exams in early May. Several loose ends to tie up as I will have to train the person who is taking over my position, but it’s someone on staff, thank God, and not An Outsider who would have Zero Idea. I plan to meet on exam days when I have to be at the Uni anyway. Right now I am deep into Excavation Work. My office has looked like a war zone for YEARS. Very cathartic tossing out Mounds and Mounds of Paper, Old Exams, etc. And also eye-opening. I am stunned at the shitload of things I have had to do over the years, many of which I had forgotten. At least it makes me feel like I have accomplished a few things, lol.
O--Cleaning out your office must be like a trip in a time machine. And a therapy session, too.
DeleteOrtizzle: I don't need this. I'll never use this. This can go. And this can go. Not my problem anymore. Nope. Nope. Nope. Never again. Never again. Goodbye, goodbye, and good riddance!
Sigh. Good times. Are you wearing sunglasses the whole time since the light at the end of the tunnel is so close and so bright? I bet you are!
Not wearing sunglasses yet, but likely will after I finish cleaning the office, lol. It IS like a trip in a time machine! Your comments on what I would say are spot on: The Voice of Experience! The only thing I could add would be: "Why the hell did I ever save THIS in the first place?!" Example: Transcription in Braille of an exam for a blind student. I always requested these to check them out for accuracy because the staff in the Alternative Testing Center were clueless about reading Braille (in any language; they had a machine that they used to produce these tests). I learned it when I taught English to blind students in Spain for 3 years: can't read it with my hands, but definitely can sight read it, write it backwards with a slate and stylus, and type it on a Perkins typewriter. —Comments like this make me think of a retirement project: writing memoirs of my 23 years in Spain. Many names would have to be changed to protect the innocent, however. lol.
DeleteO--Sight reading Braille! Good heavens. Your talents never cease.
DeleteAnd I'd read your memoir for certain. You've had an astonishing life, and not just the years in Spain.
Some days, I think my phone's GPS/map function is the best thing ever invented. I am terrible at directions and also need the "turn at the red barn" kind of instruction. Have you been downtown (or are you close to downtown??)? I am always happy to see Cleveland on the national map for good things. Looks like a pretty exciting time. I have my Guardians shirt and spiffy glasses ready for Monday. Am hoping it is not cloudy.
ReplyDeleteElle--I agree! GPS gave me so much more freedom!
DeleteI'm about 20 minutes away from downtown proper, but I'm a big fan of Cleveland--the whole family is. Jared is getting married in the Botanical Gardens, and we all love downtown. We had Cavs season tickets for years and years.
You're going to have such a great time at the Eclipse Game/Dark in the Park! It's the Home Opener! It's the Eclipse! It's Cleveland! I hope you report back here and tell us all about it.
You are so funny...I hope you meant this post to be humorous! I learned to read a map in high school but at my part time job back then. At the flower shop where I worked they had a big city map hanging on the wall and, yes, I learned where all the major highways cut across our city and later on as I started traveling around the state thus when our weathermen give storm watches out naming highways, I completely get it. I have a pretty good sense of directions, too, based on where the sun is at in the sky and the time of day. Nature gives you other clues out in the woods. Still, I don't like being lost and will right myself as soon as possible. My husband didn't mind being lost, found it to add to the adventure of being on vacation.
ReplyDeleteJean--Yes, I was venting my irritation in a humourous way. I'm glad you got that.
DeleteI'm sure there are some jobs and even hobbies that can make a person more adept at directions and spatial awareness. And some people learn it out of self defense.
But I'm calling BS on some of the so-called Natural Cues, like moss on the north side of trees. Our trees have moss all over them. They're no help at all. And I take that personally. I've always championed trees! How can they let me down so shamefully?
You are 100% accurate in everything you say about roads and directions. I still use my car's map program to get almost everywhere in my OWN HOME TOWN. And our roads are ridiculous so telling me that I need to turn on 13th Ave St Ct SW does not help. My dad used to be a UPS driver so he knows all the roads. It's like he's a magician or something.
ReplyDeleteAs far as weather, we're somewhat lucky because NC is "just" north of Florida & sometimes weather heads our way from there so we get to hear about it. But frankly, I just let Alexa tell me my weather. I get tired of all the words.
Bug--My kindred spirit! I use the GPS in my car to get me around all over the place here, and I was born and raised in this county. And now, since damned construction has been ongoing for over a year, I am constantly detoured like a rat in a maze, taking me down streets I've never been on before, disorienting me terribly. I feel like I'm losing my mind, literally. It's so humbling. Your father would be dismayed, wizard that he is.
DeleteYour last sentence is so, so true. I find myself ignoring the weather 90% of the time because "of all the words." I wait for Rick to announce, "Nance, ____day! Pick Of The Week!" He alerts me to which day's forecast is the best, and I look at that day's graphic to see its high temp and chance for rain/sun. Then I'm out. Of course we're hoping that Monday is a clear day for The Eclipse since we're right smack in the Path Of Totality. And let me tell you, there have been A Lot Of Words about that for a long, long time. Sigh.
I know I-95, only because of living in NJ. It's a very east-coast thing, so of course it's annoying to everyone else!
ReplyDeleteI can't handle cardinal directions either--I too know them only in my house! It's also of no use to me if I'm told in 75 feet/5 yards, etc. Just give me a landmark and say L or R!
maya--Yes! I can't estimate yards or feet either that well. If someone tells me a tree is fifty feet tall, I accept it, and I'd accept it if they told me it was 250 tall just as readily.
DeleteSame thing with weight. I once estimated my granddog Zydrunas's weight at about 35 pounds. Sam looked at me incredulously; Z weighs about 75 pounds. Honestly, I had no idea.
I married a man who has all that Practical Knowledge. Good thing, huh?
Nance--Yes, I'm glad our partners have that practical knowledge. Engie said in another context that humans are not "meant to be solo creatures," that is an insight that works so great here too!
Deletemaya--Wise words from Engie there. I'm always glad that Rick and I seem to balance each other out in so many ways. We chose well. Happily, it seems our sons have done the same.
DeleteI don't even know cardinal directions in my own home. I don't need it in my life and as soon as someone says "go north on Main" I hear nothing because it is no longer relevant to my life.
ReplyDeleteI think the national weatherpeople really do just tell the weather where the vast majority of the population is and (I feel like I'm breaking bad news to you, Nance) the middle of the country is not where that is. Honestly, I'm not sure why there are national weatherpeople since weather is such a localized thing.
NGS--I always wonder why they bother with a weather segment on the national news, too. It seems superfluous, especially now with weather apps.
DeleteAs far as where the people are, this table from census.gov is interesting. According to it, the national weatherpersons should hang from the ceiling and focus on the South. A lot. (But can they hang further toward, say, the Dakotas, so I can see Northeast Ohio? Because that would be pleasant.)
I wish someone would do a study about the kind of people who don't have any sense of direction. Do we share other common traits? Are we all bookish? creative? mostly female? brown-haired? Is there a gene or a certain birth order? My interest is piqued.
Nance, I think that just like religion or politics, you and I should abstain from talking about directions, as I am like Rick, and like Julie (comment above). Plus I live in California. However, maybe a saving grace is that I never watch the weather channel or whatever channel you are getting your weather from, so I have no idea what they are saying about any place. I do check my local weather, especially now that I am going to be outside most days and so it really matters what the weather is like.
ReplyDeleteAs a side note, I do not watch TV, BUT I did have to have CNBC on at my last job and it used to annoy the Dickens out of me because the headlines were pretty much the same every day, with perhaps a tiny difference here or there. A market "hitting a session high/low" was a big one, or "earnings beat/miss" was another. The Fed "raising/lowering rates" or the Jobs number "rising or gaining in number" were big too. Each week, it was essentially the same thing and the worst part is they always preface it with "BREAKING NEWS" as if the stock market going down or up is something new.
Kyria--I never watch The Weather Channel, either. I get exposed to weather reports because they're part of the half hour each of national and local news that I watch each day to stay connected to my community and the nation at large so that I can be informed. It's especially critical now, when our vote is so momentous.
DeleteI can see where the constant yammering of any station could be annoying, especially one heavy with jargon and specific terminology. And yes--the overuse of Breaking News is becoming ridiculous. That's a whole post in and of itself.