Random Thoughts

[Max Rockatansky]

If someone joined this forum and only had interest in the sports and off-topic boards, and showed limited to no knowledge of roads, how long would it take for anyone here to catch on?


No, I'm not targeting a specific person, I thought of this awhile back and just now decided to write it in here.

Are you sure?????

When I said something similar, it was referring to you.  I didn't mean it as a compliment. 

The_Ginger's point is correct...a newbie should build credibility as a forum user by making substantive comments about roads, and after you've done that for a while, you're more likely to be welcomed in Off-Topic and Sports.  And the other aspect of it that builds credibility is engaging in threads other people started, rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

The "should want to obtain credibility" part sounds great in theory.  Thing is that it has become increasingly clear that this is turning into another P13 or Tolbs type scenario. 

[Rothman]

If someone joined this forum and only had interest in the sports and off-topic boards, and showed limited to no knowledge of roads, how long would it take for anyone here to catch on?


No, I'm not targeting a specific person, I thought of this awhile back and just now decided to write it in here.

Are you sure?????

When I said something similar, it was referring to you.  I didn't mean it as a compliment. 

The_Ginger's point is correct...a newbie should build credibility as a forum user by making substantive comments about roads, and after you've done that for a while, you're more likely to be welcomed in Off-Topic and Sports.  And the other aspect of it that builds credibility is engaging in threads other people started, rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

The "should want to obtain credibility" part sounds great in theory.  Thing is that it has become increasingly clear that this is turning into another P13 or Tolbs type scenario. 

I don't even know if credibility is as important as fitting in with the culture of the board for those who care less about roadgeekery.

[Molandfreak]

Changing subjects, is Laurel a Baltimore or Washington suburb?

Laurel is a Billings suburb.

How about a Yanny suburb

Yomama is a Yanny suburb.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

If someone joined this forum and only had interest in the sports and off-topic boards, and showed limited to no knowledge of roads, how long would it take for anyone here to catch on?


No, I'm not targeting a specific person, I thought of this awhile back and just now decided to write it in here.

Are you sure?????

When I said something similar, it was referring to you.  I didn't mean it as a compliment. 

The_Ginger's point is correct...a newbie should build credibility as a forum user by making substantive comments about roads, and after you've done that for a while, you're more likely to be welcomed in Off-Topic and Sports.  And the other aspect of it that builds credibility is engaging in threads other people started, rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

The "should want to obtain credibility" part sounds great in theory.  Thing is that it has become increasingly clear that this is turning into another P13 or Tolbs type scenario. 

I don't even know if credibility is as important as fitting in with the culture of the board for those who care less about roadgeekery.

I am a big roadgeek, probably bigger than I am a sports fan, it's just I don't have much to say about roads in this forum since I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

[Max Rockatansky]

If someone joined this forum and only had interest in the sports and off-topic boards, and showed limited to no knowledge of roads, how long would it take for anyone here to catch on?


No, I'm not targeting a specific person, I thought of this awhile back and just now decided to write it in here.

Are you sure?????

When I said something similar, it was referring to you.  I didn't mean it as a compliment. 

The_Ginger's point is correct...a newbie should build credibility as a forum user by making substantive comments about roads, and after you've done that for a while, you're more likely to be welcomed in Off-Topic and Sports.  And the other aspect of it that builds credibility is engaging in threads other people started, rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

The "should want to obtain credibility" part sounds great in theory.  Thing is that it has become increasingly clear that this is turning into another P13 or Tolbs type scenario. 

I don't even know if credibility is as important as fitting in with the culture of the board for those who care less about roadgeekery.

I am a big roadgeek, probably bigger than I am a sports fan, it's just I don't have much to say about roads in this forum since I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

I reeled off a bunch factoids about the US Route system for Nevada and Arizona in that concurrency thread.  You don't necessarily need to be driving to learn something about a highway corridor.  A lot of hobby members don't drive but it doesn't necessarily stop them for contributing something meaningful. 

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

If someone joined this forum and only had interest in the sports and off-topic boards, and showed limited to no knowledge of roads, how long would it take for anyone here to catch on?


No, I'm not targeting a specific person, I thought of this awhile back and just now decided to write it in here.

Are you sure?????

When I said something similar, it was referring to you.  I didn't mean it as a compliment. 

The_Ginger's point is correct...a newbie should build credibility as a forum user by making substantive comments about roads, and after you've done that for a while, you're more likely to be welcomed in Off-Topic and Sports.  And the other aspect of it that builds credibility is engaging in threads other people started, rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

The "should want to obtain credibility" part sounds great in theory.  Thing is that it has become increasingly clear that this is turning into another P13 or Tolbs type scenario. 

I don't even know if credibility is as important as fitting in with the culture of the board for those who care less about roadgeekery.

I am a big roadgeek, probably bigger than I am a sports fan, it's just I don't have much to say about roads in this forum since I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

I reeled off a bunch factoids about the US Route system for Nevada and Arizona in that concurrency thread.  You don't necessarily need to be driving to learn something about a highway corridor.  A lot of hobby members don't drive but it doesn't necessarily stop them for contributing something meaningful. 

Illinois is my area of expertise, but I haven't learned a lot for Illinois, and heck I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

[D-Dey65]

There's something I noticed tonight while I was seeking pictures of object markers to categorize in Wikimedia Commons. I found out that the four of them added to the NRHP-listed White Rock Forge Covered Bridge in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania has the stripes from the Type 3 Object Markers on each corner of the bridge extended beyond the signs themselves. And no, I won't show an example from this, because I don't have permission from the photographer to post them anywhere else.

[kphoger]

... rather than starting a new one of your own especially in Off-Topic every time something pops into your head.

I don't have much to say about roads in this forum

Nobody is forcing you to say anything.  Not having much to say about roads doesn't mean you have to talk about a whole bunch of other random crap.

I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

A lot of hobby members don't drive but it doesn't necessarily stop them for contributing something meaningful. 

This.  There have been several respected forum members who either don't drive or else began contributing to the conversation before they got their license.  Especially in these internet days, there is plenty of roadgeekery to be done from the comfort of your own home.

I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

What did you previously mention that has contributed to your forgetfulness?

I don't even know if credibility is as important as fitting in with the culture of the board for those who care less about roadgeekery.

I think that, because this forum tends to attract its share of people with strange mental and/or personality quirks (especially The Spectrum™), we tend to tolerate socially obnoxious behavior more than we probably should.  This forum is in some sense the Island of Misfit Toys, but it's also a public space where etiquette still matters.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

What did you previously mention that has contributed to your forgetfulness?

I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

[kphoger]

I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

What did you previously mention that has contributed to your forgetfulness?

I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

Please explain how not having a license makes you forget things.

Please explain how not having a roadgeek companion makes you forget things.

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

What did you previously mention that has contributed to your forgetfulness?

I don't have a license and don't have anyone to do anything road related with.

Please explain how not having a license makes you forget things.

Please explain how not having a roadgeek companion makes you forget things.

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

[Max Rockatansky]

Are you capable of obtaining a license?

[kphoger]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs, pretty much the only thing I have time for now is GSV.

[Max Rockatansky]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs, pretty much the only thing I have time for now is GSV.

I thought that you said you were in your 20s?  Assuming that is actually true, who gives a fuck if your parents don't like you looking at roads?

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs, pretty much the only thing I have time for now is GSV.

I thought that you said you were in your 20s?  Assuming that is actually true, who gives a fuck if your parents don't like you looking at roads?

I am in my 20s, they just think roads are just a thing to get from place to place and nothing else.

[Max Rockatansky]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs, pretty much the only thing I have time for now is GSV.

I thought that you said you were in your 20s?  Assuming that is actually true, who gives a fuck if your parents don't like you looking at roads?

I am in my 20s, they just think roads are just a thing to get from place to place and nothing else.

Never mind about that license question, I think you indirectly are answering it.

[hotdogPi]

If they don't approve of your hobby, that is an actual issue of bad parenting.

I've still managed to get a decent amount of mileage without a car. Since 2020, incomplete list:

• A lot of walking, about 1,250 miles of unique roads total — much of this is on local roads, but I often get photos of cool signs on the way that I didn't know existed; I've walk-clinched MA 108, MA 286, and NH 38, and I could probably walk-clinch MA 38 (I have most already), MA 150, MA 203, NH 88 (missing a small portion), or NH 286 without too much effort
• I've taken a bus to/from NYC about five times and I've gotten at least one new segment every time.
• Harrisburg roadmeet: Greyhound there (got some of I-76), plus the roadmeet itself had roads to Hershey and a few miles up the Susquehanna, and I walked 5-10 miles in the area including a new county over the Susquehanna.
• Albany mini-meet (two days), got some of US 7 and US 20 since Pittsfield was an intermediate stop on the bus, plus some walking in Albany
• Trips with my mom to Acadia (driving the whole way), Paris and London with a coach trip to Windsor, Stonehenge, and Bath so I got some long-distance roads that way, some of Florida (mainly FL 589, Turnpike, and FL 528 corridors), Orange County CA (various roads), Seattle
• Day trips by bus: Hyannis and Woods Hole, MA/RI/CT tripoint (train to Worcester, bus from there), Newport RI (train to Providence, bus two different ways to Newport and back)
• Day trips by Amtrak but got several miles on foot: Portland ME (first route numbered 25), New London and Mystic CT (also got several miles by bus between the two)
• Eclipse trip in Burlington VT: on the way back, took US 7 → VT 103 → NH 12 with someone else since my Greyhound on the way back was canceled
• Drove with someone else from Discord (not our community) to Mount Monadnock one time and Saratoga Springs another time

I also have trips by car to Québec City, Ithaca NY, Waterbury VT, Mohegan Sun, Franconia Notch State Park, a covered bridge "loop" near I-89's southern end, and a different covered bridge "loop" in central Massachusetts from before 2020.

[kphoger]

I reeled off a bunch factoids about the US Route system for Nevada and Arizona in that concurrency thread.  You don't necessarily need to be driving to learn something about a highway corridor.  A lot of hobby members don't drive but it doesn't necessarily stop them for contributing something meaningful. 

Illinois is my area of expertise, but I haven't learned a lot for Illinois, and heck I forgot a lot for Illinois due to complications of what I previously mentioned.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs

Again, what does that have to do with forgetting anything?

Never mind about that license question, I think you indirectly are answering it.

I think your questions would be more satisfactorily answered if you changed them to these:

1.  Why don't you have a license even though you're in your 20s?

2.  Why do your parents still have such a big say in what you do even though you're in your 20s?

I strongly suspect the answers to those two questions are related, or even the same answer.

[Molandfreak]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

No, I have to do roads behind their backs, pretty much the only thing I have time for now is GSV.

I thought that you said you were in your 20s?  Assuming that is actually true, who gives a fuck if your parents don't like you looking at roads?

I am in my 20s, they just think roads are just a thing to get from place to place and nothing else.

That doesn't answer the question of why they care what you do in your spare time.

[formulanone]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

pavement
is
a
very
horrible
thing

[Max Rockatansky]

Because if I had a license I wouldn't have to worry about the second one, but since I don't I have to do the second one, but my family don't care, I am intentionally forgetting because I feel like they want me to.

So...  your parents want you to forget factoids about the Illinois road system, therefore you forget them on purpose?

pavement
is
a
very
horrible
thing

I can get behind teaching the kiddos that everything but a dirt surface is bad.

[kenarmy]

When US routes get decommissioned, are their associated special routes decommissioned by default as well?
Furthermore, are there instances of special routes existing nowhere near the parent due to a reroute or truncation?

[kphoger]

What is a "special route"?

[I-57/Route 66 Fan]

What is a "special route"?

Good worst possible answer question for tomorrow