4 ms·

The meme is definitely oversized - Breezewood is pretty small. If you feel this is somehow representative of America then you must have been asleep through the

by Isamu 7y ago

The meme is definitely oversized - Breezewood is pretty small. If you feel this is somehow representative of America then you must have been asleep through the vast miles of farmland and wooded hills leading up to it and stretching forever beyond it.

mindslight 7y ago
It makes sense if one focuses on human constructed attractions, especially if one is confined to major travel routes with the goal of getting to a destination. I think part of what makes this photo look unique to many is that Pennsylvania sits between the extremes of the Northeast's planned rest stops, and the Midwest's natural four-corners ones - so it's exceptional from both. It's larger than one standard concrete building with pluggable vendors, and it's denser than fuel stops with truck scales, overnight parking, etc. Pennsylvania also has this hilly thing going on that tends to concentrate, hide, and focus business gatherings. Travelling across the country, the real depressing pattern is McDonalds ahead 10 miles, ... 5 miles, ... 2 miles, ... 1 mile, .... half mile, "turn around you missed McDonalds!", next McDonalds 36 miles, repeat. I believe the bigger rest stops actually break the homogeneity by offering more variety. But on longer distances, one actually comes to see the value in chains - predictability. And I say this as someone who goes out of my way to avoid chains. Of course that's all still focused on the commercial infrastructure that supports travelers. If you're roadtripping, especially west of Pennsylvania (ie clear of the Megalopolis), and not basking in the novel landscape, you're doing it wrong.
- Isamu 7y ago
  I think we agree. In Pennsylvania ("Penn's Woods") the under-developed landscape still towers so gigantically above the developed landscape that I wonder what people think they are seeing during travel. Of course, things pop up to serve the travelers along the highway, so the from-the-highway view is not truly typical, but still. The developed landscape seems all that is considered. But I see a Pennsylvania that is vast and filled with forest.
woodrowbarlow 7y ago
landscapes change as you drive across the country, but no matter the landscape, you are never far from a cacophony of corporate iconography packed into a little strip mall nestled at the bottom of an otherwise-disused exit ramp. it's one part of America that nearly everybody has interacted with directly.

by Isamu 7y ago

mindslight 7y ago

It makes sense if one focuses on human constructed attractions, especially if one is confined to major travel routes with the goal of getting to a destination. I think part of what makes this photo look unique to many is that Pennsylvania sits between the extremes of the Northeast's planned rest stops, and the Midwest's natural four-corners ones - so it's exceptional from both. It's larger than one standard concrete building with pluggable vendors, and it's denser than fuel stops with truck scales, overnight parking, etc. Pennsylvania also has this hilly thing going on that tends to concentrate, hide, and focus business gatherings. Travelling across the country, the real depressing pattern is McDonalds ahead 10 miles, ... 5 miles, ... 2 miles, ... 1 mile, .... half mile, "turn around you missed McDonalds!", next McDonalds 36 miles, repeat. I believe the bigger rest stops actually break the homogeneity by offering more variety. But on longer distances, one actually comes to see the value in chains - predictability. And I say this as someone who goes out of my way to avoid chains. Of course that's all still focused on the commercial infrastructure that supports travelers. If you're roadtripping, especially west of Pennsylvania (ie clear of the Megalopolis), and not basking in the novel landscape, you're doing it wrong.

Isamu 7y ago
I think we agree. In Pennsylvania ("Penn's Woods") the under-developed landscape still towers so gigantically above the developed landscape that I wonder what people think they are seeing during travel. Of course, things pop up to serve the travelers along the highway, so the from-the-highway view is not truly typical, but still. The developed landscape seems all that is considered. But I see a Pennsylvania that is vast and filled with forest.

woodrowbarlow 7y ago

landscapes change as you drive across the country, but no matter the landscape, you are never far from a cacophony of corporate iconography packed into a little strip mall nestled at the bottom of an otherwise-disused exit ramp. it's one part of America that nearly everybody has interacted with directly.