Minor things that bother you

[kphoger]

This Purple Heart County sign

In my opinion, I feel like it doesn't mean anything. It feels like the result of some generic county council resolution. I assume passing some resolution dedicating the county a 'Purple Heart County' doesn't come with any strings attached other than some signs at the county line.

The more I think about it, dedicating a road or even a county to veterans, Purple Heart veterans, Gold Star families, and others should come with a matching contribution to charities, or even government funded programs related to supporting those veterans and veterans' families. Otherwise, it's just a way for a councilmember to get some easy support and good press.

You'll be glad to know that, as of 2003, literally every mile of the entire Interstate highway system in the state of Kansas is the "Purple Heart Trail".

[The_Ginger]

You'll be glad to know that, as of 2003, literally every mile of the entire Interstate highway system in the state of Kansas is the "Purple Heart Trail".

To add to this, WV 2 is signed as the Purple Heart Trail throughout the state, and there were a couple of signs for the Purple Heart Trail along Texas 100 and Texas Park Road 100 that I noticed.


I should make a map of every highway in the U.S. and beyond that carries this designation. I'd say it's 5% or higher.

[NE2]

This Purple Heart County sign

In my opinion, I feel like it doesn't mean anything. It feels like the result of some generic county council resolution. I assume passing some resolution dedicating the county a 'Purple Heart County' doesn't come with any strings attached other than some signs at the county line.

The more I think about it, dedicating a road or even a county to veterans, Purple Heart veterans, Gold Star families, and others should come with a matching contribution to charities, or even government funded programs related to supporting those veterans and veterans' families. Otherwise, it's just a way for a councilmember to get some easy support and good press.

Don't you know that county went off to war and got injured? Ignore which side it was fighting on.

[DenverBrian]

It's similar to the people who say "EST" when referring to the time

Obviously that's bad because "EST" stands for Empire State Trail, and telling someone "we'll meet at 6:00 PM Empire State Trail" makes zero sense (even if you're meeting on the trail, you still need to specify where on the trail).

(yes, I know what you actually meant)

Equating EST with Empire State Trail is a minor thing that bothers me.

[JayhawkCO]

It's similar to the people who say "EST" when referring to the time

Obviously that's bad because "EST" stands for Empire State Trail, and telling someone "we'll meet at 6:00 PM Empire State Trail" makes zero sense (even if you're meeting on the trail, you still need to specify where on the trail).

(yes, I know what you actually meant)

Equating EST with Empire State Trail is a minor thing that bothers me.

I think it's just superlative.

[vdeane]

It's similar to the people who say "EST" when referring to the time

Obviously that's bad because "EST" stands for Empire State Trail, and telling someone "we'll meet at 6:00 PM Empire State Trail" makes zero sense (even if you're meeting on the trail, you still need to specify where on the trail).

(yes, I know what you actually meant)

Equating EST with Empire State Trail is a minor thing that bothers me.

We use it all the time at NYSDOT.  It's become my default association of the acronym.

[kphoger]

Equating EST with Empire State Trail is a minor thing that bothers me.

We use it all the time at NYSDOT.  It's become my default association of the acronym.

Because of that comment, I decided to do a Google search for {wikipedia est} and see what came up first.  The top result was Erhard Seminars Training, which hasn't existed since I was three years old.

Looks like those of us who first think of Eastern Standard Time are the oddballs...

[1995hoo]

....

Looks like those of us who first think of Eastern Standard Time are the oddballs...

[kphoger]

EST is just French for EAST.  You know, Eastern Atlantic Standard Time.

Looks like those of us who first think of Eastern Standard Time are the oddballs...

[1995hoo]

EST is just French for EAST.  You know, Eastern Atlantic Standard Time.

Looks like those of us who first think of Eastern Standard Time are the oddballs...

I have to say the mental image of those signs as "EDT" and "OUEDT" is mildly amusing, but then I have a warped sense of humor anyway.

[kphoger]

I have to say the mental image of those signs as "EDT" and "OUEDT" is mildly amusing

Only if the other one says "sus".

[LilianaUwU]

EST is just French for EAST.  You know, Eastern Atlantic Standard Time.

Also known as Newfie Standard Time.

[kphoger]

Newfie Standard

Oxymoron?

[TheCatalyst31]

The bus company must use the "same seats" rule, like on school field trips when the teachers didn't want kids fighting over seats on the way back.

Well, you noticed the same thing I did but came to a very different conclusion.

I think I came to the same conclusion (that the bus company screwed up and showed the same seat map for both trips), but I put a funny answer instead.

[Scott5114]

This Purple Heart County sign

In my opinion, I feel like it doesn't mean anything. It feels like the result of some generic county council resolution. I assume passing some resolution dedicating the county a 'Purple Heart County' doesn't come with any strings attached other than some signs at the county line.

The more I think about it, dedicating a road or even a county to veterans, Purple Heart veterans, Gold Star families, and others should come with a matching contribution to charities, or even government funded programs related to supporting those veterans and veterans' families. Otherwise, it's just a way for a councilmember to get some easy support and good press.

All of the entrances to Inyo County, California have signs that say "Inyo / County Line / Where We Honor Veterans." As opposed to, I guess, Mono County, where they give veterans a real hard time or something?

[kphoger]

I think I came to the same conclusion (that the bus company screwed up and showed the same seat map for both trips)

That is not the conclusion I came to.

My conclusion is that nobody has actually booked a seat on either trip yet.  But the bus company wants to fill the seats somewhat evenly, so they block out half the rows until closer to trip time.  But the only way to block them out is to call them "occupied".  The minor thing that bothers me is that those seats have not actually been booked, yet I cannot book one of them.

I'm going to test this theory out by looking at departures closer to today's date.

* kphoger opens up a new browser tab...

It appears that they juggle open rows around as people book tickets in order to evenly spread out the passengers—except that they allow for more people to book on the driver's side than on the passenger's side.  I assume this has to do with weight distribution, especially considering that luggage gets loaded under a bus from the passenger's side more than from the driver's side.

[DenverBrian]

Speaking of EST, the entire movement to go to year round DST is a minor thing that bothers me. 

[kphoger]

Speaking of EST, the entire movement to go to year round DST is a minor thing that bothers me.

Even though I personally prefer Standard Time over DST, the movement would irritate me a lot less if the suggestion were to just move everyone ahead one hour and still call it Standard Time.  The concept of year-round DST is silly to me because of the name.

[flan]

Very very minor but it seems like practically every other news headline these days has the word 'quietly' in it. It seems to be the new buzzword to satisfy the hunger of those who wanna be even further in-the-know. To, rightly or wrongly, sow distrust in the powers that be, or to promote polarization and a culture of conspiratorial vigilance. Though to be fair, it might partly be frequency illusion on my end as well, or confirmation bias or something like that. But glancing at Google News, even in the past 24 hours it has shown up in the news dozens and dozens of times.

Or, looking at Google Trends, it has really picked up steam over the last year:


I swear I'm not (normally) a conspiracy theorist like this but it's an interesting trend. And the word's quiet overuse just slightly annoys me  . Use a goddamn thesaurus once in a while, at least lol

[kphoger]

Yes:  use of the word quietly has been quietly gaining momentum among certain segments of the population.

[Beltway]

Calling a navigation system a "GPS".

It is NOT a Global Positioning Satellite.
It uses the GPS constellation of 24 satellites, but that doesn't make it one.

[Rothman]

Calling a navigation system a "GPS".

It is NOT a Global Positioning Satellite.
It uses the GPS constellation of 24 satellites, but that doesn't make it one.

People who don't know what GPS actually stands for and will probably die on that hill claiming they do.

[elsmere241]

People who don't know what GPS actually stands for and will probably die on that hill claiming they do.

A year after finishing my BSc in Geography/Planning, I started taking Continuing Education GIS classes at Rutgers in early 1997.  My parents thought at the time it had something to do with using GPS to draw better paper maps.  As late as 2006 my father put in his journal "John had a GPS conference".

My father's first response when I told him my plans was, "Do you really think you could get a job doing that?  You could be writing COBOL now!"

[GaryV]

People who don't know what GPS actually stands for and will probably die on that hill claiming they do.

Unless they first die in the wilderness because they blindly followed the GPS.

[Beltway]

People who don't know what GPS actually stands for and will probably die on that hill claiming they do.

I probably overestimate how many people know what it stands for, in any detail, other than a radio signal reaches the device.

One of my longterm interests is the space program, so I do.

Last month I gave a presentation on Artermis III-V to the Richmond Astronomical Society monthly meeting. Of course, that is a different topic.

Unless they first die in the wilderness because they blindly followed the GPS.

Some motorists have in Death Valley.