# Tell us an interesting random fact you stumbled across (Part 1) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 13, 2020, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674 "2020-04-13T03:19:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 293
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5850 "2023-01-06T22:57:26Z")
You have a problem with France Avenue disappearing and then popping up again elsewhere? When I was first driving, this served to add confusion but I became better at navigation because of it. St. Paul, though, as Jesse Ventura said “Whoever designed the [St. Paul] streets must have been drunk,” is apt enough. The street addresses measured in distance from the Capitol and the city is a bowl that does not have the Capitol at its center. The best way to navigate St. Paul is through memorization. Also because navigation apps have been notoriously bad at dealing with St. Paul roads. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2023, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5851 "2023-01-06T23:57:41Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > You have a problem with France Avenue disappearing and then popping up again elsewhere? That’s one of them. Also Lyndale, Xerxes, and don’t even get me started on University Avenue. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2023, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5852 "2023-01-07T14:29:36Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > They definitely have some rules. Oh yeah, we follow that stuff. And developed our own street naming regulations. I’m not at work, and can’t remember the name of the USPS document. I guess what I was saying is they are not actually involved in the road naming process/approval. Not in our county anyway. They aren’t involved at ALL. We send out a courtesy email to all agencies. EMS, Public service USPS UPS etc. when there is a new street. Nobody seems to do anything with it though. It’s all handled through GIS. EMS uses GIS data for routing and such, and they will give input at least. I think the USPS in my county is largely disinterested since they don’t deliver mail. POB only here. ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2023, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5853 "2023-01-07T22:20:45Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > Also Lyndale, Xerxes, and don’t even get me started on University Avenue. I concur. That’s one of the reasons I tend to prefer St. Paul. St. Paulites don’t claim that their street layout makes sense, but Minneapolitans’ do despite the evidence to the contrary. 😁 ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5854 "2023-01-07T23:50:09Z")
I don’t see why an interrupted street would matter. I grew up on Catharine St. in Philly in the 5700 block and our address was 57xx. The street stopped at, IIRC, 47th st. and picked up again on the other side of the Schuylkill. If you were in the 2100 block, say, your address would be 21xx. How would that be a problem? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2023, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5855 "2023-01-08T04:52:18Z")
Has anyone here seen [this thing](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mojave-megaphone)? [![](https://cdn1.jigidi.com/thumbs/21HLNYCO/l) ](https://cdn1.jigidi.com/thumbs/21HLNYCO/l) No one seems to know why it is there, out in the middle of nowhere. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5856 "2023-01-09T16:35:04Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > [Every Interstate is diagonal](https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/interstate/finalmap.cfm). Some are more diagonal than others but all get away from true eventually. Although it looks more grid-like west of the Mississippi. But even when an interstate is going diagonally or makes a right-angle turn, it still maintains its directional designation. This is why people get confused sometimes: “I’m heading to Chicago from Milwaukee and there are all these signs and I don’t know which lane to be in and it says I-94 East but I want to go SOUTH and besides if I go east, I’ll be in the lake!” ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5857 "2023-01-09T17:58:07Z")
Even worse when two interstates share the road for a bit and you see signs for both - example - I-90 East and I-81 South. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen reports of at least one place that merges a North and South for a few miles. (Or maybe an East and a West.) It’s a lot easier than spending millions to separate the roads. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5858 "2023-01-09T18:01:33Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > example - I-90 East and I-81 South. Is this a real example? I’ve driven I-90 and I-81 through Syracuse a few times and it seems they just intersect, not share a roadway. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5859 "2023-01-09T18:05:47Z")
No. I meant example just to pull two numbers at random. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5860 "2023-01-09T18:21:34Z")
US221 and US421 in Boone NC have that issue. It makes sense in the larger context. US221 goes from northeast to southwest while 421 goes from northwest to southeast. So where they share the same east-west section of pavement in Boone, you’re simultaneously going north on one and south on the other. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5861 "2023-01-09T18:23:49Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > I’m pretty sure I’ve seen reports of at least one place that merges a North and South for a few miles. IIRC I77 and I81 ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5862 "2023-01-09T18:32:32Z")
> [@Mighty\_Mouse](#): > > Is this a real example? A real example would be I-84 (e/w) and I-15 (n/s) for about ten or twelve miles in northern Utah. Another odd case is US 101, which goes north up the Washington coast to Port Angeles and then reverses its N/S designation as it continues down the east side of the peninsula to Olympia. Very few highways reverse their direction without a name change or having “alt” added. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5863 "2023-01-09T18:34:55Z")
The 101 is e/w and then switches to n/s around Los Angeles ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5864 "2023-01-09T18:37:03Z")
And if you think you can drive from Milwaukee WI to Minneapolis/Saint Paul MN just by staying on the Interstate designated “I-94”, you’ll be disappointed to learn that somewhere in Wisconsin I-94 goes into hiding. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5865 "2023-01-09T18:48:16Z")
I recently discovered that I have a very remote connection to the [Pizzagate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizzagate_conspiracy_theory) pizza place in Washington, DC. The establishment is [Comet Ping Pong](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Ping_Pong) (because they have ping-pong tables as well as serving pizza), and it has a retro exterior neon sign that says “Comet.” [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Comet_Ping_Pong_Pizzagate_2016_01.jpg/1024px-Comet_Ping_Pong_Pizzagate_2016_01.jpg) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Comet_Ping_Pong_Pizzagate_2016_01.jpg/1024px-Comet_Ping_Pong_Pizzagate_2016_01.jpg) That sign was originally on another DC store, Comet Liquors, which closed at about the time that Comet Ping Pong was opening in 2006. The owners of Comet Ping Pong bought the sign from the owner of Comet Liquors, who, as it happens, was the uncle of one of my best friends. My friend (of 50+ years) told me this story a few weeks ago. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5866 "2023-01-09T19:15:57Z")
Yet another example: I-15 takes about a [five mile jog](https://www.google.com/maps/@45.9993466,-112.5516699,12.87z) along I-90 in Butte MT. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5867 "2023-01-09T19:19:33Z")
> **[Quantum Highway](https://medium.com/manuvian/quantum-highway-af09c06a2cfc)** > > Nothing like going East and West at the same time. This is the one I remember (in Berkeley, CA) ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5868 "2023-01-09T20:34:57Z")
> [@Lumpy](#): > > And if you think you can drive from Milwaukee WI to Minneapolis/Saint Paul MN just by staying on the Interstate designated “I-94”, you’ll be disappointed to learn that somewhere in Wisconsin I-94 goes into hiding. ? **[Where does that happen](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/42.5018406,-87.9513208/Minneapolis,+Minnesota/@42.4260038,-87.9748412,12.5z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!3m4!1m2!1d-87.921998!2d43.0266655!3s0x88051991bcecd231:0x653f54a42367822a!1m5!1m1!1s0x52b333909377bbbd:0x939fc9842f7aee07!2m2!1d-93.2650108!2d44.977753!3e0?hl=en)**? ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2023, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674/5869 "2023-01-09T20:56:43Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > > [@Lumpy](#): > > > > And if you think you can drive from Milwaukee WI to Minneapolis/Saint Paul MN just by staying on the Interstate designated “I-94”, you’ll be disappointed to learn that somewhere in Wisconsin I-94 goes into hiding. > > **[Where does that happen](https://www.google.com/maps/dir/42.5018406,-87.9513208/Minneapolis,+Minnesota/@42.4260038,-87.9748412,12.5z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m5!3m4!1m2!1d-87.921998!2d43.0266655!3s0x88051991bcecd231:0x653f54a42367822a!1m5!1m1!1s0x52b333909377bbbd:0x939fc9842f7aee07!2m2!1d-93.2650108!2d44.977753!3e0?hl=en)**? Between Madison and Tomah, where I-94 is completely subsumed into I-90 and afaik isn’t even dual-signed, it’s just I-90. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=292) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-us-an-interesting-random-fact-you-stumbled-across-part-1/851674.md?page=294)