Some of you know that recently my DD obtained her driver's license. Since then, I have been fielding calls from her with questions such as:
Where is Sun City? (Where she performs with the Symphony several times a year.)
Where is an ARCO Station? (To get gas--we gave her an ARCO card so she doesn't have to carry cash.) Mind you, I told her where 4 ARCO stations are located on her usual daily routes. And she rarely states her location when asking this question.
Where is Raymond Cree Middle School? (This is a school she attended for 3 years.)
Last night was the kicker. She has a 4-day weekend after finals. She and some friends decided to drive up to Big Bear for some snowboarding. She called at 4:30 to tell me they were going to stop and eat and then be on their way home. At 8:00 she called to say she'd be late. She had taken a wrong turn and ended up in BARSTOW! (That's like an hour north of where she was and 2 hours north of where she was headed!
I used to be like that. I grew up in a small town in the mountains and knew where I was by which mountain or river I was in front of. I had NO concept of N S E or W when I left for college in Houston. I would actually get lost for a couple of hours and that was the best way to learn my way around. I wouldn't recommend it in downtown Houston, but when you spend 16 years as a passenger, you don't really pay much attention to directions. That's why I have to be the driver if I really want to learn where to go.
Different story for you though! For me, getting lost was an adventure. For my mom, it was probably a complete nightmare!
I am definitely directionally impaired. I couldn't count how many times I have been lost. My mother was the same way. My step-dad took her to the bank one time and waited for her in the car. She exited the bank through a different door and couldn't find his car. After a long time, he went and found her. They got in a big fight, cause she swore he'd moved the car to play a trick on her.
When I moved to Norman, OK to go to OU, I got lost my first day of classes. I walked to class and then couldn't find my way back to the dorm. Literally walked around for hrs. Felt too dumb to ask anyone how to get back to dorm. LOL.
I once left Tulsa, OK to come home to Stigler and made a wrong turn. Ended up in OK. City which was an hr. and half in the wrong direction. When people use to give me N, W, S, E directions, I'd ask them to please tell me to turn left, right or go straight. LOL.
I worry that my DD will be the same way. She is 14 now and says she "never is going to drive". I know she'll change her mind. The thought of her driving is very scary to me. My son is 21 now and he never has a problem with getting lost. I think most males are less directionally impaired.
I dont really have problkems with directions but DH has absolutely no sense of North/south/east/west!!! He even gets confused with everyday streets to go to work (work is only 0.8 miles from home)!!!
We want a GPS really bad esp for safety reasons (can tell exact location to 911 if needed in the middle of nowehere on some long highway)
and for other cities when we rent a car.
I started out driving and having NO sense of direction (and I had lived in the same town for my entire life, and it wasn't NEARLY as big as the southern CA area.
How the heck did she end up in Barstow?!?! That is WAY off course.
I will say, though, that my lack of direction has now been limited to specific cities. For example, I have a great sense of direction in Davis/Sacramento/Marin and most of the Bay Area...but NOT in San Francisco or LA. LA for me is easier than San Francisco (which, in my opinion, is the hardest city in CA to drive in...because there is a section of town where the grid goes all off-kilter and you can't make 4 right turns and be back where you started...).
Maybe it will improve or settle itself onto a particular city. If not, I'm a great believer in mapquest!
How the heck did she end up in Barstow?!?! That is WAY off course.
Apparently, her "back seat driver" who gave her directions promptly fell asleep! When he woke up, he realized they were on the wrong course, but it had been almost 2 hours. They turned around at Barstow after getting gas and a potty break.
I like the idea of a GPS, but add that to her ipod and cell phone for gadgets that can cause accidents.....
Since living here for 16 years, I rarely get lost. But I had to go to Indio (only 10 miles from home) a few weeks ago and I got turned around and drove for miles not knowing just where I'd end up. Thankfully it is a fairly small valley here and I know that eventually I'll run into a recognizable landmark!
LA for me is easier than San Francisco (which, in my opinion, is the hardest city in CA to drive in...because there is a section of town where the grid goes all off-kilter and you can't make 4 right turns and be back where you started...).
Help! I'm on the corner of "walk" and "don't walk" and it keeps changing!
I'm pretty good with directions. I love some people's directions. "We're just this side of such and such." Just this side? Which side?
My older daughter is the pits! I had to give her directions to our house when she and the kids came to visit. Never mind she grew up here and the city hasn't changed that much since she left.
Oh, man. My city is designed on a grid and most of the streets are nicely N/S and E/W. I also have mountains in the East. I know which way is North, South and West because I have my beautiful mountains. When I travel to places that do not have mountains conveniently located to the East, I get lost. When I travel to places that, ugh!, have hills and trees and you can't see anything, I get lost.
I have been to Oklahoma. I am ALWAYS turned around when I am in OK. Where is north, south, east and west, and how can I tell without some type of landmark?
But then I get lost in the mall. And any hospital I don't know very well. And in parking garages.
Oh, man. My city is designed on a grid and most of the streets are nicely N/S and E/W. I also have mountains in the East. I know which way is North, South and West because I have my beautiful mountains. When I travel to places that do not have mountains conveniently located to the East, I get lost. When I travel to places that, ugh!, have hills and trees and you can't see anything, I get lost.
I grew up in SLC, Utah which is exactly what you refer to with the Grid (is that where you are?). Here in the Coachella valley, we also have the wonderful mountains as a landmark (and the Salton Sea--just like the Great Salt Lake!). I really don't know why I get turned around in Indio--it's not like the mountains aren't there....very strange. My sister lives in Texas, and when you have to learn your directions based on water towers....well, that just doesn't cut it for me!!!
I also have mountains in the East. I know which way is North, South and West because I have my beautiful mountains. When I travel to places that do not have mountains conveniently located to the East, I get lost. When I travel to places that, ugh!, have hills and trees and you can't see anything, I get lost.
When I first moved to Michigan, I thought that Southfield was south of Detroit because of the name. While in downtown Detroit one day I hit I-75 South trying to get home (Southfield) and ended up SUPER lost. I called my hubby in tears stating that I was lost. He asked where I was. I screamed back "I"m lost da**it! That means I don't know WHERE I AM!!"
A lot of cell phones now have GPS and Navigation software loaded into them. There's generally a small monthly fee, but the peace of mind is worth it. (Says a fellow directionally challenged individual!)
Is there hope for the directionally impaired?
(That's like an hour north of where she was and 2 hours north of where she was headed!
