Random Thoughts & Questions

I think about things way too much. I'm very analyitcal, and usually too critical. I find it difficult to just be "in the moment" at any time or any situation. When I'm in public, I feel like I'm some CIA operative, always looking around, checking out the surroundings, casing the other people, looking for things out of place, stuff like that. I ask lots of questions (in my mind, not too often aloud) about how things work, why things are the way they are, how something came to be over time. There are ways in which this trait helps me in life, ways in which it hinders. Because of that, I'll probably post the occasional blog that just gets some weird thoughts off my mind. Here's a few things brewing in there recently:

In the last few weeks at a theme park in Louisville, a 13 year old girl's feet were sliced off by a loose cord on one of those "free fall" rides. Within a few days of that incident, a rollercoaster in Dollywood just stopped with people stuck on a hill in the middle of the ride for about 3 hours. Last year (or maybe 2 years ago) on a ride in Pigeon Forge, someone died when they fell from the ride. These kinds of things happen pretty much every year at theme parks across America, yet it seems to phase no one. People still flood the parks, wait in long lines, and ride the rides again and again. Yet, if 3 people get sick somewhere because of something in a jar of peanut butter, every jar is pulled from the shelves nationwide and no one will buy that brand again.

Lexus just introduced a car that parallel parks for you. Is this for real? If the car makes a mistake and runs into another car, who's at fault? Will Lexus pick up the insurance bill? I actually have a good idea for them. Why not put a button inside the car that causes all four tires to turn 90 degrees in one direction. Another button would indicate the direction of travel. It would only function if the car was first placed in park. Upon switching the gear to drive, you could then drive your car sideways in one direction. Then you just line up to the open space, turn the wheels sideways, and ease in. Pretty soon there'll be cars that sense you're coming and swing the door open for you automatically. Personally, I'd like to own one with robotic cleaning arms that drop from the ceiling every time Eli decides to spill his food or drink all over the seat.

How much longer until hard currency (pennies, nickels, dollar bills, checks) are no longer in existence? Cards have been in use for years. Thumbprint payment is right around the corner. Not far down the road is retina recognition, so you'll just walk in a store, get what you need, walk out, and the computers do the calculating for you. The disappearance of currency will be sad. I'll no longer have change weighing my pockets down and driving me crazy. My wallet (normally full of nothing but ones and lots of grocery discount cards) may actually fit in my back pocket without stretching it.

But then I won't have anything to hide in my fingers and "magically" pull out of my son's ear. No worries though. By that time, he'll be riding virtual reality roller coasters that are even better then real ones, and driving hover-cars powered by outlawed peanut butter.

The old "quarter in the ear" trick probably won't be as impressive.