Signposts

What’s the deal with these signposts?

They are everywhere!

Do you really want or need to know how far you are away from N.Y., London, Tokyo, or Singapore?

Sure, they are mildly interesting stuck out in the middle of nowhere; and they are a good photo opportunity. But most of the time I don’t really care.

I guess if you can’t visit the Equator, the Prime Meridian, the Tropic of Cancer/Capricorn, or the North/South Pole; they are the next best thing.

Sometimes they list less well known places.

I saw one that included Bratsk, Russia. Like anyone is going there in a hurry. They must have had an exchange student visiting when they made the sign. Or it’s an in-joke for the locals.

Sometimes there is a place mentioned, but it has a different name than the one used in English.

Usually some multilingual person figures it out and enlightens the rest of us. It’s almost always one of the big cities in South Africa. I thought the Dutch owned the franchise on multiple names for the same place; but the South Africans are a close second.

I’m amazed there isn’t one of these on the moon.

I guess it would be pretty boring: every place on Earth would be the same distance away.

The sign could include other planets and the sun though.

I can just imagine some aliens stopping by and looking at the signpost.

“Ahh! That’s Earth. Lock n’ Load brothers; Lock n’ Load.”