Reflectivesurfaces's Blog

     I think it was Douglas Adams who first gave me the idea.  I am one of those science fiction geeks who can’t wait to read the next story about the world that is outside this world.  Douglas Adams had a writing style that felt real to me.  I could understand the seemingly unrelated connections of his tales because my mind always had a tendency to jump around too.   But it was the answer to life, the universe and everything that caught my imagination.  42.  That’s it.  42.  I have often over the years wondered what the ultimate question was.   Was it:  “How many important connections one makes in a lifetime?”  or “How many really stupid movies do you have to sit through before you received the enlightenment of the holy people?”  or maybe “What is the divisible number by the great number of factors?”.  Obviously, those are not the proper questions.  It is important that Mr Adams started his series with the demolition of planet Earth, which was to be a super computer created to formulate the answer to that age-old question of life, the universe and everything, in case you haven’t read it.  Maybe interpretation is everything, in this instance.

    I have been a bit obsessed with this number recently.  It would be because it happens to be my chronological age this annum.  I state chronological because everyone who has ever met me calls me immature, so obviously my “self” is aging at a different rate than the planet circles the sun.  I probably would have done better on Mars, with its longer rotation, but it is very cold and I am not a big fan of the cold.  Being a Canadian, withstanding.

I have thought that perhaps since I am a resident of Earth and am the chronological age of  the ultimate answer, that perhaps I have some great understanding that is hidden within me.  Perhaps, deep within my inner child is the response that people have been waiting to hear for generations.  I may be the next prophet of comprehension.  The Stephen Hawking of enlightenment for the average Joe and Joeleen (except that I would be able to keep my native accent).    I would state the GREAT TRUTH and everyone who heard it would turn to their neighbour and say:  “Yup, that sounds about right!”  And ticker-tape would fall, like manna, from the heavens and balloons would be released to the wind and I would get a pony.  But I think we all know that would never happen.  Ticker-tape is a dinosaur in the land of computer technology when your stock prices flow across the screen like…well… ticker-tape.  Balloons are frowned upon when released because some animal species out there really likes the taste of latex and will consume them, causing a really frightful tummy ache.   And the balloons were often not really impressed with the whole experience either.   The pony part is possible, but would have to be one of stouter stock to handle my less-than-waif-like frame.   But in my delusion, the GREAT TRUTH would turn out okay for me.

    This delusion has cause me to rethink my purpose.  I believe the technical phrase for it is  “Midlife crisis”.  This is a little known phenomenon that mostly seems to have an effect on men.  After becoming infected, the usual course of treatment is to run out and buy a fancy toy, often a convertible, and try to lure a young woman into it.  Not a very lurative sport for the rest of us.  I have no interest in luring young women, unless they would be interested in some light housekeeping duties, like my basement.  The odds of that are low.  My midlife crisis is taking a different form.  I have created a mantra for myself…At 42, start something new.  I repeat that daily.  To keep the panic at bay for tossing one career in hopes of finding something less combative.  ( I had an exciting career that I will have to tell you about one day, but has nothing to do with me becoming a prophet.  Except for a thorough understanding of the direction that shit will flow if left unhindered.)  But Mr. Adams knew there was a significance tied to that number.  He must have, or else why not pick a prime number, or at least an odd number, to suit the style of his writing.  It is my mission to uncover the truth of this number.  Or figure out the question that is related to this number.  Or, at the very least, keep myself from assuming some unnecessary car payments.

   So…this little adventure begins.