Listography: Time Travel
The delectable Kate over at that blogging powerhouse Kate Takes 5 has served up an intriguing prompt for this week’s Listography challenge: time travel.
Putting aside the fact time travel will never happen (coz if it ever did, someone would have come back to us FROM the future by now, wouldn’t they?) I have to come up with five times and places, past or present, to travel to.
So we must fire up the DeLorean, load up some plutonium to generate the required 1.21 gigawatts (because this sucker’s nuclear), maybe buff the flux capacitor a bit (they can’t touch you for it) and get this thing up to 88mph…
[If you didn't understand that last bit, you are obviously too young and I hate you. Moving swiftly on...]
- My high school, December 1987: I was in my first term of sixth form and I was sinking fast. After aceing my O levels I embarked on A levels in English, History and French. One term later my head was ready to explode and I decided to quit at Christmas. So first port of call on this temporal trip would be to my old self, to slap myself about a bit and advise myself not to make a mistake I’ll end up regretting. I’d tell myself not to worry about the zits either…
- Dallas, Texas, November 1963: The assassination of John F. Kennedy has intrigued me for years and years. I’ve flip-flopped from dyed-in-the-wool conspiracy theorist to pragmatic realist on this one. So I’d love to take up a vantage point (perhaps in a local book depository) and see what really happened on that November day. That killing arguably changed the world and affected millions of lives. To think one Commie nutjob was responsible just seems so… unsatisfactory.
- Headingley Cricket Ground, 21st August 1981: Yeah it’s a cricket one! Some blokes choose the 1966 World Cup final; this is my great moment in sport, where England came back from what looked like certain defeat to beat the Australians with a brilliant rearguard batting display followed by some blistering bowling. Okay, I’m sure you ladies have nodded off by now, but I’d love to be in the crowd to watch the drama unfold and be the only one invading the pitch not wearing flares.
- Earth, 20th July 1969: The day the world held its breath. I’m completely fascinated by the Apollo missions – the courage and bravado of the pilots, the technical hurdles that needed to be surmounted, the sheer immensity of the undertaking – so I’d love to witness Neil Armstrong setting foot on the lunar surface for myself. Yes it was a Cold War pissing contest, yes it sucked $170 billion out of the US economy but this was exploration on a scale not seen before nor since.
- A newsagents, last Friday: Armed with the knowledge of the winning numbers for Friday evening’s Euromillions lottery draw and the certainty of a one third share of £121 million! Of course, because of the company I work for I’m not allowed to play the game myself, so even if time travel were possible (and see my caveat in the second paragraph above) I would have to erm… give it all to charity or something. Perhaps sink it into a project to invent a time machine? No, that’s not right… oh I’m so confused…
You may have noticed all these choices involve heading back to the past to events which have already happened and which, in their own way, have left an indelible mark on history (even the lottery win for a couple of lucky buggers). But what of the future, you ask.
[waits for you to ask...]
I prefer to leave the future alone. No one’s future is written yet and I’d rather let things pan out, be the architect of my destiny, as it were.
Besides, I couldn’t stand to see every Premier League won by Man Utd and every UK Eurovision entry get nul points. That knowledge would be too burdensome to bear…
Now you should pop over to Kate Takes 5 and read the other terrific time travel tales…
Great choices, particularly self in 6th form and moon landing x
Thank you, lady
First of all, this is such a boy post! I’ve been in The Delorean by the way.
Secondly, they might have visited us, but because of the space-time continuum malarky they weren’t allowed to intervene in case they created a paradox.
Right, onto your times/places. I considered JFK’s assassination too, but only so I could shout “duck” at the right time. I love the idea of being on Earth during the Lunar Landing, but I think I’d rather be on the moon so I could take photographic evidence that it wasn’t faked.
Good post Mr.
Oh don’t blind me with science… (my brain hurts)
And of course it’s a boy post. I’m a boy (or hadn’t yer bleedin’ noticed…)
Great post. You’ve mentioned that about leaving sixth form before now. I think we need to make you believe that you can do all the things you want to do without the bits of paper. They are only needed to get into certain jobs and after a few years, it doesn’t matter if you’re talented and hard-working. You are both of those things.
Cricket one, I would love. I’d do World Cup too – I was alive then but only 18 months old and not aware of stuff like that at all. I can’t imagine what it must have been like. And I remember the moon landings – but only vaguely, I was about Missy Woo’s age then.
Not sure what my others would be. Actually, I know one. I’d like to go back to meet my grandmother who died before I was born. I always feel I missed a piece of my life by not having met her. Maybe I’d understand my mum better if I had.
Am I being told off in that first paragraph? Sounds like I’m being told off…
Only if you like being told off.
You’re not actually. We all need help to varying degrees with our self-belief. I’m just offering help. And maybe Tangfastics as required.
Fab post. I chuckled at being in the newsagent with the winning lottery numbers. I too have no desire to look into the future – why spoil such a wonderful surprise?
Exactly!
OK I need a bit of an essay here. a) – delectable and a powerhouse? Flattery will get you everywhere. b) – Time Travel Impossible? – I think The Boy and Me has covered that off but I’ll just add that if they did come back maybe they only had 5 chances too and pre 2011 wasn’t one of them…c) If I give you an A for this will it help the High School Dropout thing? d) Cricket. That one’s a bit like Ireland beating England in the cricket during a game of almost certain defeat not so long ago isn’t it?
And finally e)Euromillions – I think you may be sharing your prize with some of the other time travels that have been hanging around this week…
So to sum up. Great List – thanks for joining. x
a) I know
b) I stick with my hypothesis
c) Probably not
d) Harumph
e) You’re just a party pooper…
Good journey down memory lane, I would have choosen some of those but not sport. Would like to have been one of the first scuba divers to see the marine world before we polluted it so badly, and I could keep my winnings to give to causes I believe in.
That’s a great choice, the scuba diving. I’m no expert and didn’t know it was that bad. Thanks for commenting
1. School days absolutely.
2. JFK, possibly, it’s bothered me for a while as well.
3. You can stick the cricket up yer arse. I wouldn’t waste a time travel chance on anthing sports related.
4. Definitely. The world needs closure on that one.
5. A week past Friday good sir, and I think you’d find you got a 100% share of about £80m.
Valid comments all. Thank you, sir!
Like your post, love the thought of time travel. Wish I had time to join in and post my own thoughts on time travel but i’m supposed to be working today! So sorry I only just discovered your message to me on Twitter! I’m really new to Twitter and didn’t know I had 6 messages!
LOL no worries. Try this exercise in blogging when you do have time.
Firstly you will have to hate me…too young I think (I’m an 82 baby) – either that or stupid!
Secondly you would definately get on with my husband; Cricket and history (he is a history teacher and did his degree paper on JFK!) and lives for cricket!
I have just asked him about the bit I’m too young for and clearly he is not! (Back to the future right?)
’82? *sighs*
Your hubster sounds like a fine man! I’m a JFK fan too!
And yes, BTTF indeed! You’ve never seen it? You’re missing a treat.