Here's something you might be interested in.
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
Big Screen — Movie commentary
Blurt — Music's inside track
Booze News — San Diego spirits
Classical Music — Immortal beauty
Classifieds — Free and easy
Cover Stories — Front-page features
Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
Letters — Our inbox
Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists
Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news
News Ticker — News & politics
Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna
Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated
Poetry — The old and the new
Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers
Reading — The hunt for intellectuals
Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails
San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds
SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
The weird signs of San Diego
Cruise ships, trucks, Balboa Park
To: Matmail: I’ve always wondered about those signs you occasionally see on the freeway that say “Landscaping Ahead.” Why does Caltrans feel the need to alert drivers to upcoming ice plant?— Ann, Mission Valley
Just one more signage mystery, like “Cruise Ships Use Airport Exit” and “Trucks OK.” My personal favorite was the chunk of 163 south through Balboa Park marked at the north end “Begin Scenic Drive” and, half a mile or so later, “End Scenic Drive.” Scenic it was, but hardly worth a special trip. (Recently the “End Scenic Drive” sign has been removed, making us look less like idiots to out-of-towners.) But the landscaping notices are quite logical to Caltrans. The agency lets contracts to private companies to plant and maintain our roadside vegetation. Once the deal is struck for a particular stretch of road, Caltrans erects signs to let us know that shoulder work will be taking place in this area, and they’d be obliged if we stay alert and not hit anyone, The contracts usually run for five years and require that the companies maintain the ice plant, poppies, whatever, until they are well established and looking good. The landscapers set their own inspection and maintenance schedules, so rather than putting up temporary signs only when people are actually working, Caltrans erects permanent signs so the companies can come and go as they like. When landscaping (the stuff) is chugging along just fine, landscaping (the activity) ends, and the signs come down. If Caltrans were fully truthful, the signs would say, “It’s possible that from time to time over the next few years you’ll see people here spraying, and weeding, and feeding, but we can’t predict exactly when that will be, so just keep on your toes and be prepared for anything.” That would give us one less thing to fret about in our overstuffed lives, but is that what government is here for? I don’t think so.
Here's something you might be interested in.
The weird signs of San Diego
Cruise ships, trucks, Balboa Park
The weird signs of San Diego
Cruise ships, trucks, Balboa Park
To: Matmail: I’ve always wondered about those signs you occasionally see on the freeway that say “Landscaping Ahead.” Why does Caltrans feel the need to alert drivers to upcoming ice plant?— Ann, Mission Valley
Just one more signage mystery, like “Cruise Ships Use Airport Exit” and “Trucks OK.” My personal favorite was the chunk of 163 south through Balboa Park marked at the north end “Begin Scenic Drive” and, half a mile or so later, “End Scenic Drive.” Scenic it was, but hardly worth a special trip. (Recently the “End Scenic Drive” sign has been removed, making us look less like idiots to out-of-towners.) But the landscaping notices are quite logical to Caltrans. The agency lets contracts to private companies to plant and maintain our roadside vegetation. Once the deal is struck for a particular stretch of road, Caltrans erects signs to let us know that shoulder work will be taking place in this area, and they’d be obliged if we stay alert and not hit anyone, The contracts usually run for five years and require that the companies maintain the ice plant, poppies, whatever, until they are well established and looking good. The landscapers set their own inspection and maintenance schedules, so rather than putting up temporary signs only when people are actually working, Caltrans erects permanent signs so the companies can come and go as they like. When landscaping (the stuff) is chugging along just fine, landscaping (the activity) ends, and the signs come down. If Caltrans were fully truthful, the signs would say, “It’s possible that from time to time over the next few years you’ll see people here spraying, and weeding, and feeding, but we can’t predict exactly when that will be, so just keep on your toes and be prepared for anything.” That would give us one less thing to fret about in our overstuffed lives, but is that what government is here for? I don’t think so.
Comments