Your head is there to move you around

There is a 1980's REM song called STAND. I never appreciated the great wisdom of those lyrics until I became a dispatcher.

Stand in the place where you live
Now face North
Think about direction
Wonder why you haven't before
Now stand in the place where you work
Now face West
Think about the place where you live
Wonder why you haven't before
If you are confused check with the sun
Carry a compass to help you along
Your feet are going to be on the ground
Your head is there to move you around

It is incredible how completely unaware of their surroundings people can be. You live in a place for 15 years and you don't know which way east is? Especially on the wasatch front. Little Hint: the big mountains are to the east.
When you tell me that the suspect went "right" I really don't know which way you are facing at the time.

There is wonderful technology available to us. Cell phone towers give us communications almost everywhere, we have caller id, GPS.
But let's not forget our good old god given sense of direction.
Now look away from the flashing computer screen, look outside and figure out where on the planet you are.