How the Killer Got in Here
Would we let them kill our younger selves?
Age
How old am I today? "Age doesn't matter."Les Snead, General Manager of the Rams talking about then 30-year-old Ram's Head Coach Sean McVay Let me start by saying I am not a football junkie. In fact, I largely limit my viewing to the Super Bowl. But as we find out, the Head Coach for one of this year's Super Bowl teams, the Rams, was 30 years old when he was hired. He is now a whopping 33. So let me say this about that. Age is a number. A state of mind. I could be seven. I could be ninety-nine....
ROBOTS and AI
ROBOTS & ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE [caption id="attachment_media-11" align="alignnone" width="1880"] Photo by Matan Segev on Pexels.com[/caption] Elon Musk thinks people everywhere should be frightened of AI. Bill Gates told Charlie Rose that AI was potentially more dangerous than a nuclear catastrophe. Even the recently deceased Stephen Hawking said, “I think the development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race.” What do you think? Here's what I don't like. I don't like that the first few volleys of conversation in the chat room are AI. Maybe from a robot. I don't know! "How can I help you today?"...
Flip
The calendar doesn't care. Its pages flip. The new day comes into view. If it's a plain daily calendar, it's not much fun. The best calendars are those big monthly calendars with images that take your breath away. The ones that make you smile, even sigh at how beautiful they are. Some are sweeping vistas of romantic places. Some are such unique animals that you question if they really exist. Calendars do this on purpose, so you don't have to suffer as much with your life's passing. I have a favorite calendar. It's from Paper Source, and I buy one...
Deadlines
[caption id="attachment_231" align="alignleft" width="281"] What do I have due today?[/caption] Deadlines are the lines drawn in the sand, the air, and on calendars. They are imaginary lines past which one should not go, or you'll die. Die of what? Failure? Disappointment? Losing a job? Not answering a need? Shame? Deadlines are a form of communication. "I need this by noon so we can move forward on the project." There should be no room for negotiation in a deadline. There is no room for negotiation in death, is there? So why do people push up against deadlines by crushing the work to...
E Is for Eternity
Eternity — it was the last thing I thought about when I died. I was supposedly going someplace (as they say) for a long time. In fact, they say the place you go will be the place you stay for the rest of time. I cannot fathom this any more than many people can fathom living with the same person for all one’s lifetime. But the fathomability of all things varies with each person’s fathom factor, which may change as one ages, or may be one of those things stapled onto your DNA as much as your eye color...
So Now We Know
We thought we would like knowing. In fact everyone that knew liked knowing at first. But now it's a little weird. It's strange knowing when your sister is going to die. It's simply surreal when people boarding planes are asked if they know. It is difficult to cope now that you know when your spouse will die. Yes you knew they would. But now you when. It's horrifically different. People that know wish they didn't. People that know find ways to pretend they don't after all. Everyone is on edge. Some people plan for it. They stage big going away parties, like they are moving, or retiring....
What Would You Do If You Knew?
I sometimes wish I knew when I was going to die. I'd make different plans. Maybe I'd travel more, worry less. Why worry? What's to worry about if something can't kill you? Well, I have thought about that. Living in a mangled body would suck. Severing one's fear of death would take one thing off the list. Hah. I don't worry about dying. I know that I will. Now I can know when. Ah, but the biggie is knowing how. Don't know that yet. Maybe that's for later science... hacking the "HOW" code, now that we've cracked the "WHEN" code....