Odd Signs & Symbols

We were on I-10 West coming home from Arizona this weekend and saw a large type of sign I don't recall ever seeing before.  It raised more questions than it answered.   We saw one at about mile 17 on the AZ side, then another about 50 miles into California.  They were meant to show the number of open parking spaces in upcoming rest areas.  But what good does it do to know there are 9 open spaces at a rest area 100 miles up the road?  By the time we get there an hour and a half later, the number must be different, dozens of vehicles must have come and gone since then. The sign in Arizona did have numbers, with the middle slot blacked out.  I just didn't get my camera out in time to capture it.   The missing number suggested that particular rest area was closed.  Sure enough, the Cactus City Rest Area just West of Chiriaco Summit was not only closed, it had been completely dismantled and dug up on both sides of the road.  The sign in Calif...

We were out along the Borrego-Salton Highway today and saw a kind of road sign I had never seen before.  They are easy to miss: just tiny white signs with some dashes and lines: These are actually indicating when the passing areas were beginning and ending.  So, when the solid yellow line down the middle of the road was about to switch to dashes to allow passing, one of these signs will say so.  And when it switches back, there's another tiny white sign with dashes and lines. I wonder how many drivers even notice these. I also wonder if they make any difference.  We're used to just looking at that yellow line -- when it breaks into dashes, expect that people will be passing us. The signs have different symbols depending on what the lanes are doing at that location.  I suppose they can be a little bit helpful to someone, once in a while.  I only saw them because I was looking for the mile markers. 

We were at the Sedona Public Library today, and enjoyed the big patio outside.  We were there about 15 minutes before they open so we had a chance to explore, and we liked the variety of memorial stones added to the walkways. There are most often the names of loved ones or past donors to library causes.  But sometimes they are quirky quotes or little bits with personality. I can do without the ones that are references to scripture or bible quotes.  You can't commemorate your loved ones without pushing your religion at everyone who walks by? Here are the ones that resonated the most with us today.  Motivational or positive, or bits of wisdom, from any source: I have often wondered exactly how these memorials are submitted or selected.  There must be some charitable process that gets the words onto the commemorative tiles, with some amount of donation.  I could not find this on the website for this particular library, but all kinds of other donations are ...

We were walking at Jacks Pond in San Marcos CA a few weekends ago and saw this new public project: a "rock snake" where anyone can paint a rock and add it to the designated snake-shaped area. This gave us some ideas for future craft projects.  We could paint some rocks and add them to the mix.  What a fun way to add color to the park area.  Part of my brain says it would be nice to know who painted each rock, that it would be good to at least include your initials.  My other half says it should be entirely anonymous.  Just add a rock like everyone else.  There's no credit for this.  It's for the community. Oddly, we were in Sedona AZ today at the public library, and there was a brand new baby rock snake starting right in front of the book store. This was either a very odd coincidence, or some widespread new form of community art project.  We will keep our eyes open for more of these.  It looks like they are popping up in many places.  He...

We stayed at a brand new hotel in Buckeye, Arizona, the "My Place" on Watson Ave.  There were switched and buttons we could not figure out.  I did not order a special handicap-accessible room, but we seemed to be the only room on the 4th floor with a "hearing-impaired door alert" button. And I'm not sure everyone else got a "hearing-impaired master switch" either.  I think the desk guy confirmed that you turn on the switch inside the room to activate the "doorbell" outside the door. As for which category of "signs and symbols" this would be ... it would fall under "accessible." They also had this pleasantly snarky "Do Not Disturb" flapper on the doorknob.

We stayed at a brand new hotel in Buckeye, Arizona, the "My Place" on Watson Ave.  We were surprised to see a full, industrial-strength fire system in the stairwell.  Every floor had a place to hook up a fire hose, with all the heavy-duty valves and support systems. As for which category of "signs and symbols" this would be ... it would fall under "safety check."