Zzyzx

This post is more silly then anything serious.  I'm sure every child on long school trips have played the alphabet game.  It helps pass the time.  Or maybe they don't play such games with modern technology.  My brothers and I didn't have IPads, tablets, or fancy handheld games.  Goodness, I still remember the original, blocky Nintendo Gameboy with no back light; never got one, but I sure wanted one.    

So we played the alphabet game on 3 to13+ hour car trips, watching out for signs and license plates to be the first to find all the letters between A to Z.

I don't know how old I was when I noticed the Zzyzx sign, which is close to Baker California.  It seemed that whoever created the sign had a sense of humor and played the alphabet game.  A  good, easy way to get those last three letters.  At least that's what I assumed, and the thought amused me, so I never looked into it.

Thank goodness for wikipedia!  (Do kids realize how spoiled they are?  Back in school we had to look in hardbound encyclopedias to get information).

Zzyzx California, formally Soda Springs, was named in 1944 by Curtis Springer who claimed it was the last name in the English language, though he may have made it up.  The name is officially the last place name alphabetically.

The springs was originally a spa retreat for the elderly, but it is now the Desert Studies Center where they do research.    

There are even Songs and Movies based on Zzyzx; one of the movies stared Katherine Heigl.

So mystery solved.  Zzyzx has nothing to do with a silly kids game, but I still think Curtis has a sense of humor coming up with the name in the first place.

(Image Source Info) Soda Dry Lake in Zzyzx