“Thumbdial” – Finding Direction In The Fog

Ken — Sat, 20 Oct 2012 00:00:35 +0000

Without a compass or GPS, how do you determine direction in the fog when you cannot see the sun or landmarks? We know that the sun rises in the East and sets in the West, and if we know the approximate time of day we can tell basic direction. We know that at Noon the sun is due South so mid-morning the sun is South East and in the mid-afternoon the sun is South West. The trick is locating the sun to gain our bearing.

The “thumbdial” method is reminiscent of the “sundial” but works in reverse. A sundial when correctly oriented can determine the time of day. A thumbdial, when you know the time of day tells you the direction of the sun, thus providing orientation. The secret of the thumbdial is that it reveals the sun’s location by revealing it’s shadow.

Begin by standing in an open area and placing the tip of a knife blade on top of your thumbnail and rotate it slowly, watching for a slight shadow to be revealed on the matte textured surface. The location of the sun of course is on the opposite side of the knife blade from the shadow. The wide and narrow silhouette of the blade helps to accent this. The sun’s brightness is defused in fog but still maintains a brighter presence which is revealed by the very slight shadow.

The shadow that you see may be slight, but that does not diminish it’s importance in determining what could be the critical revelation of direction.

Reading Glasses x 2

Ken — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 02:59:49 +0000

Imagine that you’re traveling on the road at night with no GPS to guide you. Nothing looks familiar but fortunately you have a map of the region. The only problem is that the overhead light is marginal and you’re over 40 now and the fine print is only a blur. Your spouse offers their reading glasses that you put on with resignation. However, that small type still eludes you. You remember that you keep a spare set of reading glasses in the glove compartment so you take them out to see if they work any better, but they seem to be the same level of magnification. All of a sudden a brain storm strikes… what would happen if you combined the two glasses and wear both of them at the same time? Voilà ! The fuzziness becomes clear enough to read and you are able to find your present location and the means to reach your destination.

In my case, my wife taught me this trick when I couldn’t read the numbers on my old cell phone. I was truly amazed and now I’m eager to pass this trick on to all the newbies in the reading glasses crowd.

If you use reading glasses and haven’t tried this method yet, you need to give it a try… you too will find it amazing!

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“Thumbdial” – Finding Direction In The Fog

Reading Glasses x 2