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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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I'm listening to NPR's report on the World Economic Forum's first-ever event held outside of Davos, CH. The participants at NYC's venerable Waldorf-Astoria are being protected by, among other things, "Jersey barricades" (if I heard correctly).
Helen? Whitman? Can anyone splain/etymolify this one?
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Angel, I was given to understand* a few weeks ago that Buffalo generously "donated" snow to its improbably snow-challenged neighbor city, Rochester, for the latter's Winter Festival.  1) Is this true? b) Do y'all want it back? iii) Is there a special name for this kind of donation? ~~~~ *where does that expression come from?
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Joined: Aug 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2001
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Jersey barricades
long concrete barriers, about 3' high and impassible to cars, of the sort that might run along the median strip of a highway. Thus they would be readily available to government bodies, and have come into recent prominence as follows:
From the Chicago Tribune newspaper (site requires registration):
For Chicagoans, one unfortunate outcome of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks has been the barricading of the plaza at the Chicago Federal Center... The plaza, whose exuberant red "Flamingo" stabile by Alexander Calder provides a perfect counterpoint to the cool black high-rises by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, long has been a popular gathering place and a symbol of an open and accessible federal government.
But all that changed on Sept. 11 when a scheduled farmer's market on the plaza was shut down because trucks delivering produce were thought to pose a security threat.
Within days, concrete "Jersey barriers" went up around the borders of the plaza, and the once-vibrant public space took on a whole new character. People could still walk through it, passing through small openings in the barriers, but it seemed chillingly empty.
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Carpal Tunnel
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OP
Carpal Tunnel
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The proto type Jersey barrier was created by the NJ Dept of Highways-- to discourage NJ drivers from having head on meetings in the middle of some of NJ's older roads..
they were designed to be effective at preventing vehicles that hit them from going over them.. if hit sideways, the gentle ramp at the bottom is designed to lead you back into your lane.. but the angle of incline chages at about 8 inches, and becomes steeper.. this is designed to stop or (worst case) flip a vehicle over.. (thus limiting the injures to only the passengers in one vehicle.)
they have other names.. i vaguely remember the scene in the movie "volcano" set in LA, the la brea tar pits starts spewing out lava.. to stop the lava flow, the FEMA guy calls for ???(K bar?).. what ever.. what he wanted, and got was Jersey barriers
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Dear ASp,
In answer to your questions,
1) Yes!
b) Nope!
iii) Being good neighbors. Buffalo is known as the city of good neighbors
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But very iffy road signage.
The entrance to the roundabout which would have taken us onto the bridge at Niagara put us in the wrong lane on the roundabout.
Poor Dear Kiwi, first its the road signs giving you trouble, then it's the ramps conspiring against you. There, there. [soft stroking angelic-e]
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Passing through Buffalo at all was actually the result of an earlier navigational accident anyway ...and then, when leaving: The entrance to the roundabout ... the wrong lane on the roundabout ... after we came on to the roundaboutWhat roundabout trip you had, Kiwi! The mental picture is scrumptious. We see country drivers in our city too.  Buffalo is simply so neighborly a city that it wanted you to come, and didn't want you to leave.  But my friend, you must learn when in Rome to drive as the Romans do! (And here's hoping that Kiwi never has to face the notorious drivers and roundabouts of Rome. Right, Emanuella?)
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Joined: Jun 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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I once perfected that dive you speak of CK. I was moving back from Mexico, driving a 19seventy-something Monte Carlo coupe, packed to the roof with my belongings and no side mirror on the right. Coming into Houston during rush hour, out of nowhere appeared my exit with the accompanying phrase "next right" as I was merging at 60 miles an hour from the left. I had about 1/4 mile to cross 4 lanes of traffic, hit the exit doing sixty, hit the brakes because it was a circular exit, speed limit 25. The trick was to speed up to the 2 car-length hole and dive. All I can say was "Which bag did I pack my clean undies in?"  It was a real thrill, as in Heeeeha. Don't ever want to do it again. Rally racing, Hev? Pffffft! Right, Jackie and Bel?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Jersey barriers/BarricadesThese cement dividers, as we usually call them, are ubiquitous on our highways, especially on Route 22 (merrily nicknamed "death's highway") in Union County where I grew up in the central part of the state (30 miles from New York). But I've never heard 'em called a Jersey barrier OR barricade. Maybe they only call them that outside of the state...you know, like we call lousy drivers "New York driver!" (had to get one in there, Helen! ) Unless somebuddie's jes puttin' me on...getoudda heer! Joisey Barricades? Fogettaboutit! the only place they use a "Joisey" accent is in Brooklyn...seriously
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Carpal Tunnel
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Up here in God's Country (Northern New England = Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont) Jersey barriers caused a real problem ... small animals trying to cross the roads would come up against them and were usually killed when trying to get back across. Now the barriers have small hole in the bases, gouged out by construction workers, so little critters can safely get through.
I imagine this might be true in other areas where there is still enough forestation to give homes to woodland critters. When in other states I always check to see if the barriers have similar escape-through holes.
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