Trying to learn unfamiliar areas, part 1

The most misunderstood and uneducated statement a person makes about their hometown or region is, "Yea, I know that area."

Reality sets in quickly when you realize you don't know it like you think you know it. You may know three-fourths of the streets but some start then stop blocks apart as well as the street/housing numbering sequences. In older cities, these sequences are as arbitrary as arguing with the town drunk.

One of the first routes I was assigned during the summer of my first year was confusing. I returned to it after work and retraced it, trying to learn the area better. However, after going around blocks and blocks of streets like a merry-go-round for an hour, I had a dizzy headache which all but erased everything I had learned.

I was asked, "How do you know where someone lives in a rural area, especially when the address reads simply 'RT 2 BX 240'?"

First, you rely on other drivers to get you started if you don't know the area. Second, maps could help, but only if the driver would log the rout numbers and where the box numbers begin and end. But that takes diligence and discipline that a hectic schedule rarely allows. Third, all of the route's information was stored only in memory by most drivers.