Oh how we love our Garmin!!!!! When we bought a GPS a year or two ago, I wasn't really sure that we needed one. GEE--was I wrong!!!! The Garmin is fabulous for us --since we love traveling on back roads instead of interstates. AND---it's also great at helping us find waterfalls that may be WAY back in the woods/mountains.
It's great especially when we find short-cuts (since we usually ask the GPS to take us the shortest distance rather than the fastest way). Many times these great short-cuts are not even on maps. Recently, when we were coming from North Georgia to Knoxville, the GPS even took us a new way ---where we could by-pass Chattanooga. That was SO neat---and something we had never done before.
Most of you know that we NAME things around our home. Our car is Mrs. P (Prius); my new laptop is Polly; etc. SO---our GPS is named Miss Barbeak... You are gonna ask where in the world we got THAT name!!!! Right????? So now you know that there's a story unfolding!!!! Here it is!!
The first day or so that we got our GPS, George was busy playing with it and learning about it. He wanted to check it out---so he looked for restaurants in our area listed on the GPS.. One of those restaurants was Buddy's Barbecue.. SO---we got in the car and told the GPS to take us there. We have the GPS programmed to a little lady's voice... She took us exactly the correct way to the restaurant.. But--when we got there, she said this: "Turn right and enter Buddy's BARBEAK"...... George and I laughed and laughed ---that this poor little lady did not know about Bar-be-cue... From that day on, she received that NAME.
Wherever overseas they make these GPS's---I'm sure they try their best to get the pronunciations right, but many times, they do not... Even the name of our street (which definitely is a weird name) is hard for Miss Barbeak to pronounce. Our street name is Baltusrol Road. (It even took me awhile to learn this one!!!)... When we say the word, we run it together and put the emphasis on the 'rol'... When Miss Barbeak says it, she puts the emphasis on the "tus" part.... SO funny!!!
There have been a few times that Miss Barbeak takes us the wrong way. One time, when we were in Georgia, she tried to take us over a mountain on a road that is NO LONGER THERE.... We had driven back-back-back in the mountains --the road gradually getting bumpier and more narrow. Finally, when Miss Barbeak told us to turn left, WELL---there was NO ROAD there.... Maybe at one time there was a road there, but not now. We had to turn around and go back to the main road and tell her to 'detour'....
One time, we were driving on a back road and there was a wreck ahead of us, so they had the road closed. We just told Miss Barbeak to find another way---and she did. WONDERFUL!!!
The best thing for George is when he can tell Miss Barbeak to "SHUT UP"---and she doesn't even get mad. Besides his mother and daughter, George has THREE women in his life: me, Mrs. P, and Miss Barbeak..... There's only one of us who will talk back to him. Wonder which one that is?????? ha ha ha
IF you travel alot --especially if you enjoy the back roads, get a Garmin. Don't waste your money on a cheaper one because they will only tell you enough to get you confused!!!!! Garmin should give us some money for advertising for them---but this really is a GREAT GPS.
Hugs,
50 comments:
I wondered if you two used a GPS to find all those wonderful waterfalls. Well I wish I had a need for a GPS but lol I don't travel much farther than the city of Tulsa.
Betsy: That was a neat story on your GPS, great name. I read Miss Barkback, maybe a name for ours.
They really are such wonderful gadgets!
Fun post Betsy. I share your love with the GPS. My last trip to Ohio, I told mine three times in a very loud voice-"I LOVE YOU" as it took me through large, complex cities without a hitch. I have adopted mine as a family member.
It can steer you wrong on rare occasion so I always use a map as well. It really takes the stress out of travel especially if you are traveling alone with out a navigator.
I love the story on Miss Barbeak's name, Betsy! We could really use one of these. Like a lot of men, Tom won't ask for directions, so we sometimes end up lost. And when we're in a city, we ALWAYS seem to end up in the very worst section, the kind of place where you lock your doors and hope you don't hit any red lights. And I have heard good things about Garmin---they really do seem to be the best.
Great story....
Even though Mags (what we named ours) lead us astray the other day.....I"ve enjoyed using it!
I am pathetic when it comes to sense of direction, I probaly would get lost even with a GPS!
Sunny :)
Funny story Betsy! I have heard those GPS are great. I've also heard they can take you to some roads that don't exist.
Hope you have a wonderful day.
That is a very useful navigator!
I love my navigation system! I love maps - always have. And I am just enough of a techie to like gadgets. So a map gadget was right up my alley!!
I was thinking of purchasing one for Vol Fan. He is always getting lost and calling me for directions. Which model do you have?
We enjoy our GPS, too. Haven't named it yet ...
I wish I would have read this post a year ago when we got ours. It seems to take us on the longest, most confusing routes! I'm glad you like yours.
I don't have one yet but I have been told to get a garmin niuvi before cause they are the best.
You have the best stories.
This made me laugh so hard!!! Barbeak??? too funny. We named our gps Betty. She is so darn polite, even when we make a wrong turn or if she gets us lost and we yell at her, she stays the same pleasant betty all day long!
Cute story, Betsy! We call ours different names according to how she is behaving! Some of the names were not too nice. I hate it when she says "Off Route"! All in all, they do a terrific job!
GPS and back-country waterfalls - now that's the future right in your lap!! Love the story about the new passenger in your car!!
We've been thinking about getting one of these! Thanks for the recommend.
Hahaha, Mrs. Barbeak, that's classic! Great post, Betsy.
That's a funny story, Betsy. I just love the way you tell it:)
We have one too. Our daughter gave it to us as a gift, I guess she didn't want to worry about us driving around in circles...
We agree Garmin is the best.
That is a great story.Very funny. your blog is always so interesting and informative.
~~HUGS ~~
Our GPS is the garmin handheld kind for backpacking -- but it really is wonderful, a great tool.
Funny about the mispronunciation.
Funny story. I have a Garmin too---a bit different than yours though. Alas, it has no name. MB
Ya'll have waay tooo much time on your hands, LOL. I love how much fun ya'll always seem to have....I really trying to figure out which woman in George's life talks back to him....tee hee!
We have a GPS in our car, and even though we don't travel as much as you guys do (although my husband does quite a bit of driving for work!), we really like it:)
I got a Garmin recently and I love it!! Now I don't have to tell my husband that he is lost and that we should stop for directions...which always starts world war 3...because of course..he, being a man couldn't possibly be lost!! lol
This is a really cute story, Betsy. Knowing the story I think the name is perfect.
My son used one of these when he was in Austria on business one time. He wanted to drive to Poland to visit Auschwitz and he ended up in the middle of a field because the GPS was took him on an old road which was no longer there!! He got there in the end but he said it was the middle of the night and raining hard and he doesn't speak the language and he was getting worried but he made it.
Like yours, they can't always be relied on!!
Just remember to not lose your map reading skills! gps units are not reliable a lot of the time. Just ask some of us rv'ers who have to back a trailer or huge motorhome a long way to get out of a gps-mess. it's sure not fun then. I guess most of the time on main roads it's fine. Once it tried to send me across a covered bridge in VT that had been closed for three years! ACK!
I suspect this is an example of one of those "things" you don't need until you get it and then you can't live without it.
I remember the telephone was like that for many people as was electricity. But now that we have them, it would be hard to go back.
I love my GPS - it has all the important data on it - hot fishing holes, huckleberry patches, nests, cascading waterfalls in Yellowstone (off the beaten path) and animal trails and crossings in the forest!!!!!
Great post.
I know Miss Barbeak comes in handy.
My friend has a Garmin and we were riding together from an airport in NW Arkansas trying to find the place where were staying. It kept saying turn right turn right turn right. It was just going in a big circle. We had to finally give up and call the place.
Glad you've had good experiences with your.
My husband names things too. He was driving "Blue Thunder" when I met him.
♥ Joy
So funny Betsy !!
I love my GPS, her name is Ms. Bossy Boots....since she is always telling us where to go ;)
We love our TomTom, too and arguing wtih the "lady" in it is half the fun....since she can't argue back :-) I always feel like when we ignore her and take a different route that she must sigh heavily and say, "these people just never listen to me...so why do they ask??"
I like how you personalize things,by giving them a name.It sure works.I hope Miss Barbeak can take you on many more adventures.Have fun.
Ruth
I keep thinking about one, and came very close to getting one a while back. Neal is always telling me I should get one, now adding your voice to my mental list.
A GPS is sounding better and better. I'm going to do some research on the Garmin. I do a lot of cemetery hopping and would like to be able to record specific grave coordinates.
Thanks for another great article.
I loved the story...hugs..m.
Isn't a GPS amazing (when they work, that is)? How did I get along with out one?
Dh gave me my "Sam" for my birthday two years ago. I named "her" after Samantha, the driver, on the BBC FOYLE'S WAR series. I even switched the voice to a British accent.
We ADORE our Garmin!!!!Especially when she tried to say the Indian names in Florida.Jon just loves that!
But,she has always been spot on.
Enjoyed learning of your new friend "Miss Barbeak" and how she was named. I hope she directs you to many, many more waterfalls! I think I might just have to get my husband one for Christmas, then if we get lost it won't be my fault!!
Cute post! I'd love to have one but since I don't go much I guess it's not necessary.
Betsy we are a family of the two of us, 3 cats and 3 Garmin GPS!! My only explanation is we have one each and the other is a special handheld for Geocaching.
We also crack up at some of the pronunciations and always find ourselves mimicking them!
I love this, we are constantly getting told to 'turn around' when we go to Glasgow as it doesn't understand the new motorway, it thinks we are crossing the farmer's field.
Loved reading this.
I loved this entry, Betsy! Especially the way GPS got her name...teehee.
Hugs
Mine is Jill, my brother's is Delilah... go figure. Great post!!
We have a really great Garmin and we never use it! We buy a new Gazetteer every year. Guess old habits die hard. We really should use the Garmin since we could download so much stuff on memory cards for it.
Hahaha! Love it....our GPS is just regular old "Jill," and she gets very mad when we go the wrong way. I love it when we make 3 or 4 wrong turns and she changes her tone of "recalculating." If you keep it up long enough, she say, "could you please follow the designated route?" Rick and I almost had to pull over when we heard that one. It seems someone has a sense of humor there!
Betsy hi. Just discovered your blog and looking around only to laugh out loud at this post. We named ours gramella, and I'm not sure why but we still laugh when she says re-cal'cu-late in a somewhat disgruntled voice.
Lovely photos of family and landscapes and waterfalls. If you ever get to the Pacific northwest, we have some beautiful ones here.
What a great story!! And I love my little gadget too...what a marvelous world we are living in.
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