# Sense of Direction



## JRHill02 (Jun 20, 2020)

I have always abhorred receiving directions that use Left and Right. Many times I have been mislead because someone's instruction was from the wrong reference even when clarifying the starting point. So when told go left, if I ask "Which direction is that?" I often get a response "I don't know my directions." Wow - really? I grew up in the city and numbered streets ran N-S; named streets were mostly E-W. I believed many city people navigated by landmarks.

As a young kid my dad made me memorize street names and I never got lost. And numbered streets incremented as I went west. Dad was a letter carrier go figure. From that I think I began to learn directions without thinking about it by shadows and approx time of day by the sun. Some cities aren't on a grid though....

Later I had a career that took me to very remote areas over two states, off highways and county roads before 911 addressing and I would have to get detailed directions. I was astounded how many rural/country folk including farm and ranch families, etc. didn't know NSEW. If I would be told to turn Left after (about) x miles and asked which direction that was I might get the "I don't know the direction" answer. I knew I was heading for trouble because if I asked them to picture where the sun comes up and where it sets and if their right hand was to the sunrise they were looking north so what direction am I turning? They would get pissed at me. Or my alternative was to get bogus directions which would throw me way behind schedule or get stuck on a minimum maintenance road in the middle of nowhere.

So I ask this of y'all: do you know NSEW or do you have to use Left and Right in directions because the other person doesn't know the direction?


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

I use both, for those directionally impaired...as in...go left which would make you going to the north, and after five miles turn right which would be to the east.. I hate left/right directions.

Mon


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

I know NSEW, and when arriving at a new location I always orient myself. When I run into this problem when getting directions from people. I ask them if they know where New York, California, Canada, and Mexico are. Believe it or not this usually works.


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## robin416 (Dec 29, 2019)

I use both. But you're safer if I use port and starboard since I almost always get left and right wrong.


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## JRHill02 (Jun 20, 2020)

robin416 said:


> I use both. But you're safer if I use port and starboard since I almost always get left and right wrong.


That one would confuse me. I could clarify it right now but would forget it before it was ever needed.  I would have the utmost respect for someone on the water on a cloudy night that could estimate direction without a compass. Prevailing wind?

In those work travels I had enough of those failed location issues that I was an early adopter of technology of the time. Our trips on the road were 4 days at a time taking 4 to 11 stops per day. Those where the days of a Motorola bag phone and turning it on cost $3 and $1+/minute to call if you had a signal. One lost event could screw up every call following. So each truck had a GPS that connected to a laptop running a mapping program. DeLorme Street Atlas USA (CD ROM) would import the location and show it real time in the truck. When I made the appmt with the customer I could follow their instructions at my desk using the same software. You wouldn't believe the number of times I was instructed to turn right when there was no right turn, etc. When confirmed I printed the map on the back of the work order so all we had do do was match the GPS with the work order map. "Oh, you're right, it's left. How did you know that?" Or how much further from the RR tracks, irrigation canal or transmission lines? "How do you know that?" Or my personal favorite: "Turn right a the white farmhouse." Response: "All farm houses are white. Can you give me something else?"

That was then. Today with Google maps people are even more spoiled. If one can't roughly tell directions and there is no cell signal then what? Right now as I write there is now cell connection anywhere around me. I could give directions and they'll still get lost. So I take the ATV to the highway and lead them.

NSEW - it's becoming a lost sense.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I much prefer absolute vs relative

give me NSEW 

give me street names 

where I live everything is numbered on a grid tell me a house number and street I can tell you how far and in what direction you need to go 
yet people get lost here on the grid all the time , the Fedex man is constantly dropping packages at the wrong houses


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## nehimama (Jun 18, 2005)

I prefer NSEW to Right or Left.


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## 67drake (May 6, 2020)

I can do both also, but prefer someone, if explaining to me verbally, use NSEW. 
My wife and kids always laugh at me. If we’re going on a trip, I look at a map (some people don’t even know what that is), and write it down. I also can then envision the route in my memory. I can drive cross country this way. GPS is for people who were never Boyscouts I guess. I’ve seen it screw more people up than help. I have one property that you would never be able to get to if you rely on GPS.


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## 67drake (May 6, 2020)

Here, I drove to my sons house in Florida from Wisconsin last summer.I had this setting on my counsel. I didn’t have to stop and look at a map till I got in his neighborhood.
My favorite town is Kenosha Wisconsin, as far as directions go. All NS streets are Avenues, all EW are streets. Give me and address in that town and you know EXACTLY where it is, even if you’ve never been there!


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## robin416 (Dec 29, 2019)

Where I don't do well is in the larger cities. It overwhelms me. I can go out in the middle of unfamiliar woods and make my way home every time. But the city? Forget it. 

I have had GPS lie to me but I caught it before it led me on a marry round about way to get out of Birmingham.


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## robin416 (Dec 29, 2019)

67drake said:


> Here, I drove to my sons house in Florida from Wisconsin last summer. I didn’t have to stop and look at a map till I got in his neighborhood.
> My favorite town is Kenosha Wisconsin as far as directions go. All NS streets are Avenues, all EW are streets. Give me and address in that town and you know EXACTLY where it is!
> View attachment 108135


I've actually gotten on the road and just drove. No maps, no directions. I left Morganton, GA and landed where I wanted to be in MI ten hours later.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

67drake said:


> Here, I drove to my sons house in Florida from Wisconsin last summer.I had this setting on my counsel. I didn’t have to stop and look at a map till I got in his neighborhood.
> My favorite town is Kenosha Wisconsin, as far as directions go. All NS streets are Avenues, all EW are streets. Give me and address in that town and you know EXACTLY where it is, even if you’ve never been there!
> View attachment 108135


I'll be on 90, 39 and 74 next week.


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

67drake said:


> Here, I drove to my sons house in Florida from Wisconsin last summer.I had this setting on my counsel. I didn’t have to stop and look at a map till I got in his neighborhood.
> My favorite town is Kenosha Wisconsin, as far as directions go. All NS streets are Avenues, all EW are streets. Give me and address in that town and you know EXACTLY where it is, even if you’ve never been there!
> View attachment 108135


You forgot the G in Champaign.

Just sayin'....

<Pony ducks and runs>


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

East of the Mississippi River, I'm great with NSEW. With a map in my hand, I'm great with NSEW.

West of the Mississippi and mapless? Better give me "right, left, turn at the old fillin' station" directions.


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## 67drake (May 6, 2020)

Pony said:


> You forgot the G in Champaign.
> 
> Just sayin'....
> 
> <Pony ducks and runs>


You know, when I posted that pic I saw it was spelled wrong, but I STILL couldn’t remember how it’s spelled. That’s one word I always spell wrong, and always will.


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## Snowfan (Nov 6, 2011)

I use compass directions almost exclusively. I used bad grammer, too.

Once, while driving truck, I asked a county cop where a certain welding shop was. My mistake. He gave me rights and lefts but I had no idea what he was talking about.

You head out of town (he pointed) till you get almost to where that big oak got blown down bout 10 years ago. Turn left. Go till you get past (told me some guys name) old place. Not his boys new place. Not too far past that you'll see a couple old silos. You'll see the shop back aways from the road on you right. Can't miss it.


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

Usually when someone says, "You can't miss it", you will.

Mon


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## JRHill02 (Jun 20, 2020)

I have to admit that when I go to the sig bity (there's my misspelling) I do use Google navigation. It's pretty good for traffic jams and time to arrival. But on the way there and home on the highway I enjoy the same sights I've seen a bunch of times. Its just a thing with me but I love driving and the sights. There's always something I haven't seen before.

But frankly, I hate driving in the city esp with a crew cab w/8' box and finding a parking spot.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Columbus will mess you up if you use compas directions. You might need to go south but you have to take the north ramp to get to the south. GPS isn't much better. It might tell you to bear right at the fork when there is only one lane and you need to turn left, to go south on a long curve that ends up heading east.

Where I grew up, there were few road signs. People would give directions like, head west past the Brubaker farm, or go north where the feed mill used to be.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

frogmammy said:


> Usually when someone says, "You can't miss it", you will.
> 
> Mon


That's like the math books that fequently state "The proof will be left to the reader." That means they couldn't figure it out and there's no way in Hades you will either.

It's frustrating to be lost out in the country, stop to get directions and the old codger says "You go down the road a piece until you get to the spot where the old red barn used to be. Turn left."..or better-- "You can't get there from here."

GPS/Maps & Directions for rural areas often includes unpaved cow paths, Boy Scout's short cuts thru back yards and other routes that are liable to get you shot for tresspassing.

The problem with N-S-E -W directions is that many roads don't go straight N-S-E-W, and many numbered roads that go NW-SE or NE-SW are numbered on the road signs only as N,S,E or W...???... W-I94, for instance, runs from Chicago to Minneapolis-- 400 miles north and 400miles W of Chicago


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## oldasrocks (Oct 27, 2006)

Try getting lost in a foreign country sometime. Long story short I was in Taiwan in a small town of 2 million people looking for a 7-11. Walked forever and decided to go back to motel. All the signs in chinese of course.
I had zig zagged several times .Luckily I have a good sense of direction so headed towards where the railroad was supposed to be and found it. Then able to follow it down to the station and then to motel. Wife was ultra pxxxxxx as it was 2 am before I got back. Would not believe my story to this day and that was 20 yrs ago.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

oldasrocks said:


> Try getting lost in a foreign country sometime......


I was lost in Italy once---No. Make that, One of the times I was lost in Italy, I stopped to ask directions of four old codgers sitting in the shade...The first guy points and says"You go down here a km (Europe, you know. To normal people that's about 5 blocks) then turn etc etc."...The next guy jumps up and says "No No No." He points in anoher direction and yells while gesticulating wildly (was he talkiing with his hands or just chasing away the flies ? Big problem in Italy) "you go this way and turn etc etc" The third, then the fourth guy jump in with their own stories, all different.

I mumble "Si. Grazie," totally ignored by the four, and I drive away. I look in the mirror after about four blocks and the four are still waving, pushing each other and arguing while each points in a different direction.


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## Nimrod (Jun 8, 2010)

Some people have a good sense of direction. I think they have bits of iron in a yet undiscovered organ that is tuned to the magnetic field of the earth. You can blindfold them, take them for a ride, set them down in totally unfamiliar surroundings, and they intuitively know what direction NESW are. I am not one of them. I don't get lost but sometimes I don't know where I am.

I am old school. I am very comfortable talking about directions as NESW or even in degrees, like S is 180 degrees and W is 270. When I go hunting I always have a compass and a map. I have all the MN USGS topo maps on CD and can print out whatever area I am hunting today. Many is the time I have stepped off the trail into thick woods to search for a grouse I shot. I KNEW the direction to get back to the trail was exactly opposite to what the compass said. That dang compass was always right. My basic strategy if I get lost is to strike out in a straight line following the compass in the most likely direction and walk until I hit a road, river, or artillery practice range. Then I know where I am at and can find my way home.

I have a GPS. It is handy for finding the boundaries of my property. Not so much for figuring out where I am. It reads out in latitude and longitude. I have no idea what these mean except that if it ever reads north of 60 It will be cold out. If I make a note of the latitude and longitude where the truck is parked and then go wandering through the forest I could use the GPS to proceed on a straight line back to the truck but it doesn't know what's between me and the truck. It could be the Grand Canyon. I know the GPS will let you backtrack your wanderings but who wants to see the same trees twice?

I don't have one of those devices that go in your car and give you directions to your destination. There are horror stories about people blindly following them. You need to exercise a bit of common sense when using one. Far too many people don't have a lick of common sense but that's a rant for another day.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

"Oh! Look at the grouse! Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk."


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## JRHill02 (Jun 20, 2020)

Danaus29 said:


> Where I grew up, there were few road signs.


 Our only gov't sign is "Minimum Maintenance Road Ahead" and people think if they pull off that the trail will be better because it doesn't have the same sign?!? Ya just can't make this stuff up. Of course there are the "No Trespassing" "Dead End" "Private Road" "Land Owner's and Invited Guests Only" etc. All of the signs apparently apply to someone else, not them.


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## sharkerbaby (Jan 15, 2016)

If I ever move and I'm not near a large body of water I fear I will be perpetually lost. I grew up in upstate New York and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to suburban Detroit and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to western Michigan and still oriented according to where "The Lake" was, now I'm in Chicagoland and even now I get around by being aware of where "The Lake" is. Over time, which lake was "The Lake" changed and where it was directionally changed but no matter where I lived, once I got a fix on "The Lake" I could always find my way to where I wanted to go.


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## JRHill02 (Jun 20, 2020)

sharkerbaby said:


> If I ever move and I'm not near a large body of water I fear I will be perpetually lost. I grew up in upstate New York and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to suburban Detroit and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to western Michigan and still oriented according to where "The Lake" was, now I'm in Chicagoland and even now I get around by being aware of where "The Lake" is. Over time, which lake was "The Lake" changed and where it was directionally changed but no matter where I lived, once I got a fix on "The Lake" I could always find my way to where I wanted to go.


Hmmm. To fix a problem with snoopers and thieves you put up a sign at the turn off to the boat ramp that says "Short Cut But Go Fast."


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## Pony (Jan 6, 2003)

sharkerbaby said:


> If I ever move and I'm not near a large body of water I fear I will be perpetually lost. I grew up in upstate New York and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to suburban Detroit and always knew where "The Lake" was, moved to western Michigan and still oriented according to where "The Lake" was, now I'm in Chicagoland and even now I get around by being aware of where "The Lake" is. Over time, which lake was "The Lake" changed and where it was directionally changed but no matter where I lived, once I got a fix on "The Lake" I could always find my way to where I wanted to go.


That's how it is with me!

In NE Ill-annoy, my brain knows where The Lake (Lake Michigan) is. Even in the dead of night, I could always find East.

Moved West of the Mississloppi, and now I can hardly tell up from down.


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