Month: January 2013
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Atlantis Lite
I’ve been thinking about towns submerged by reservoirs. I don’t know why that suddenly came to mind or why it fascinated me without prompting. It’s one of those things. This is also a topic that interests many other people apparently. They’ve written all sorts of definitive lists of underwater ghost towns. I won’t replicate those…
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How Low Can it Go?
I stumble across the most fascinating bits of information in unexpected places. It happened this time as I examined the unusually-wide median strip between the eastbound and westbound lanes of Interstate 8 in southern California. Then I learned of a nearby oddity further down the highway while reviewing various roadfan websites. Interstate 8 A motorist…
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Mystery of the Mexican Quadripoint
Does Mexico have a quadripoint? I’m not asking that as a trick question. Ideally this should have an easily verifiable solution. Either four Mexican states touch at a common spot — a quadripoint — or they do not. The answer however is considerably more elusive. I remain at a loss as I attempt to uncover…
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Remarkable Sundials
I started fixating on sundials after stumbling across the dueling Dodge City railroad time zone sundials during Kansas Mountain Time. Fortunately I don’t think I’ll reach a point where I’m compelled to compile a list and go out of my way to visit them (as I do with lighthouses, fortifications and breweries). However, I’d probably…
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Highpoints of the Crown Dependencies
How does one refer to the Bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey, and the Isle of Man collectively? I pondered the British Isles Euler diagram and didn’t see a specific designation. “Outlying British Islands” seemed like a possibility although I didn’t want to diminish their significance. I think “Crown Dependencies” covers the three, and only those…
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Time Zone Boundary Craziness
Please forgive me for another Time Zone article. I actually had another topic in mind so I’ll bump that one to make room for an unusual observation. Loyal reader David Overton commented on Making the Switch that the most recent Indiana time zone adjustment exacerbated an odd situation. Drivers traveling along a single 19 mile…
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Making the Switch
I learn the most amazing things as I delve into topics. For instance, thanks to Kansas Mountain Time, I now know how to change an area from one time zone to another should the need ever arise. The simplicity actually surprised me. It seemed much easier and less bureaucratic than I would ever imagine. Let’s…
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Kansas Mountain Time
Loyal reader Mr. Burns pointed out that my intended Dust Bowl route will traverse a psuedo-geo-oddity. I’ll move from Central Time to Mountain time while heading due north. That happens in other places sporadically, although not as rarely as moving east from Mountain Time into Pacific Time for example. One can’t be too choosy in…
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Odds and Ends 6
We have lots to talk about today in convenient bite-sized morsels. Time passes, familiar stories change, unexplored topics surface, and readers continue to contribute great ideas (thank you!). It’s a convenient moment to dust-off a periodic recurring theme on 12MC. I call it “Odds and Ends.” Like a bad movie spawning endless sequels, the Twelve…
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Jalisco’s Ghostly Hand and Bony Fingers
My efforts to update each one of hundreds of customized maps to the current version of Google Maps has been an ongoing chore. Not every aspect has been without benefit though. For instance it allowed me to ponder my complete index of places featured on Twelve Mile Circle in more detail than I’ve done in…