Daily Grind? Not So Much.
01/20/08 10:26 AM
You would think that in the 3 plus days since my last post I would have something interesting or informative to say. You would think that. I would have thought that as well. Sure things happened. Time didn't exactly stand still (our perception of the passage of and weaving of existence through it, that is), the world didn't come to a grinding halt.
Question? What would the world grind against? If the world came to a grinding halt we would be long gone before it happened. I think the gravitational effects of something approaching to within grinding distance would have already decimated the living things on the orb. The tides would most surely have been sucked into turmoil, the tectonic plates and the volcanoes would have crushed, rended and liquified and spewed.
When I was only a lad, in my early teens, I read the captivating book When Worlds Collide by Edwin Balmer and Phillip Wylie. Written for serialization in 1932 and 1933 (the year my father was born) for Blue Book magazine and made into a novel in 1933. It told a tale of two rogue planets entering the solar system and on a collision course with the Earth. One planet, Bronson Alpha was to pass close enough to Earth to cause all the catastrophic problems I mentioned above, the second planet, Bronson Beta will take a stable orbit in the place of the Earth which will be destroyed when Bronson Alpha comes back from a trip around the sun. Scientist Cole Hendron built two large ark spaceships to take some of humanity to Bronson Beta to see that some of mankind survived. After I read that book I got the sequel 
After Worlds Collide also by Wylie and Balmer written in 1934.
A couple years later, while I was in high school, I read another sci-fi on Terraforming Venus but I can't for the life of me remember the author or title. It involved seeding the atmosphere with bacteria to convert the sulfuric acids and CO2 elements to more Terran friendly conditions and sending colonists to start over and making a more utopian beginning. There was no collision or grinding of planets involved in this one but the ideas no doubt stemmed from the earlier works of Wylie and Balmer. I saw similarities in concept when I was geeking on this fiction, now some 32 years later I fail to remember its title, but I know if I leave it for now it will come back to me like a love released only to return stronger.
Speaking of old books, and it turns out that I am, have been or was; Friday night Miss Kay brought me a tidbit of history that is right up my creek (you expected alley, you had a right to expect alley, but wait for it, just read on intrepid explorer of thoughtspuked for pleasure, just read on.
Friday at work I felt my phone vibrating. I was on the sales floor where I'm not supposed to take personal or cell calls, so I walked into the empty purchasing office to receive the call, it was from Kay (as even the dullest bulb should have guessed by now). She said she found a family heirloom of sorts, a book that was given to her granddaddy by a family friend. An autobiographical book on and about growing up in the covered bridge capitol of the world,Parke County Indiana and of course covered bridges and is thus titled, "The Covered Bridge." The book was written by Carl E. Killion, Sr. and was published by The Journal Printing Company of Carthage Illinois in 1966. Kay told me that the family simply called Mr. Killion, "Killion" and brought it to me later that same day at the kegling center where a book on the Covered Bridge would actually really be right up my alley. Between frames I told Kay and Rich about the destination of the Mystery Vacation, and they took a vow of silence on the subject in Jenni's presence.
Back on the oil patterns I was bowling like a man possessed, with my first three game series over average in at least a month. I ended the night with my best series of the league, just three shy of 500. Apparently the man who possessed me while I bowled was not much better than I am because even with his cohabitation I am still the beneficiary of "the Gumby" for next weeks opening game as my final effort was still weakest among my Copies Plus team peers.
Tonight I bring my new heightened bowling savvy to the alleys again as a member of Mel and Them, then apparently I am now bowling on Tuesdays at 7:30 as a member of team Chatterbox 4. My memory loss concerns me yet again, I don't remember signing up for a 9 week commitment of bowling but I guess I will give it my all. I will probably remember the Book and Author from 1976 before I remember this. I often find it funny how The Brain works.
You would have thought that in the 3 plus days since my last post I should have something interesting or informative to say. I hope I did. As is often the case after I got going, I kind of got going. So I hope you finished reading the post instead of deciding that it was nothing worth a bit of your time.
Chuck Pace © 2008
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Question? What would the world grind against? If the world came to a grinding halt we would be long gone before it happened. I think the gravitational effects of something approaching to within grinding distance would have already decimated the living things on the orb. The tides would most surely have been sucked into turmoil, the tectonic plates and the volcanoes would have crushed, rended and liquified and spewed.
A couple years later, while I was in high school, I read another sci-fi on Terraforming Venus but I can't for the life of me remember the author or title. It involved seeding the atmosphere with bacteria to convert the sulfuric acids and CO2 elements to more Terran friendly conditions and sending colonists to start over and making a more utopian beginning. There was no collision or grinding of planets involved in this one but the ideas no doubt stemmed from the earlier works of Wylie and Balmer. I saw similarities in concept when I was geeking on this fiction, now some 32 years later I fail to remember its title, but I know if I leave it for now it will come back to me like a love released only to return stronger.
Speaking of old books, and it turns out that I am, have been or was; Friday night Miss Kay brought me a tidbit of history that is right up my creek (you expected alley, you had a right to expect alley, but wait for it, just read on intrepid explorer of thoughtspuked for pleasure, just read on.
Back on the oil patterns I was bowling like a man possessed, with my first three game series over average in at least a month. I ended the night with my best series of the league, just three shy of 500. Apparently the man who possessed me while I bowled was not much better than I am because even with his cohabitation I am still the beneficiary of "the Gumby" for next weeks opening game as my final effort was still weakest among my Copies Plus team peers.
Tonight I bring my new heightened bowling savvy to the alleys again as a member of Mel and Them, then apparently I am now bowling on Tuesdays at 7:30 as a member of team Chatterbox 4. My memory loss concerns me yet again, I don't remember signing up for a 9 week commitment of bowling but I guess I will give it my all. I will probably remember the Book and Author from 1976 before I remember this. I often find it funny how The Brain works.
You would have thought that in the 3 plus days since my last post I should have something interesting or informative to say. I hope I did. As is often the case after I got going, I kind of got going. So I hope you finished reading the post instead of deciding that it was nothing worth a bit of your time.
Chuck Pace © 2008
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