Loving Life

So here we are at the end of time.... again. I am writing this blog post in anticipation of the end of the world: December 21, 2012.

In my lifetime I have survived three official "End of Time" events and I am sure, many unofficial calls that I obviously didn't pay much attention to until last year when a man (Harold Camping?) predicted the end May 22, 2011, but the end failed to appear. This was his second such prediction. I feel sad that he isn't very good at predicting and hope he secures other work, and yet find myself quite happy he was wrong.

This predicting of the end of the world must be a lot like the housing market; just when you think it can't go any lower... boom, there it is. Another end of the world.

As I mentioned earlier, I have survived three doomsdays, hopefully four after the 21st, and feel the need to talk about these false starts or more accurately, false stops stopping.

March 10, 1982 - The Jupiter Effect

I must admit, at the time this prediction came to light, I was busy being a newlywed and a college student and I remember being horribly uninformed while I attended college. Once on a visit home, we heard Gerard's younger brother talking about a war going on and we both said "what war?" We had no idea Argentina and England were warring over the Falkland Islands for 74 days. After that embarrassing incident, I became addicted to CNN Headline News.

On March 10th, my husband and I celebrated our 5 month anniversary (we didn't really celebrate our monthly anniversaries because we were busy getting an education ;). Anyway... The Jupiter Effect is the rare instance when all the planets end up on the same side of the sun. This event would then cause catastrophic natural disasters which would put an end to all the goings on here on earth.

The Falklands Conflict began on Friday, April 2, 1982. I don't know for sure but maybe someone was feeling a little pissy about selling his Grateful Dead collectibles so he could go on a drinking binge to drown out the end and woke up April 1st feeling like a fool. This might get him to thinking, "I'm going to get the Falklands back!" Like the end of the world, wars don't always make sense.

January 1, 2000 - Y2k

Yes, I ask myself this question often. Why K2? And then I remember that was the name for the ski company on Vashon Island and I go to wondering how many people commute on the ferry from the Seattle area to Vashon...  and are they still in business... and are there skiing opportunities on K2... Hi. My name is Darcy Cline and I am a research addict. I LOVE RESEARCH!

Okay, settle, settle. Y2k was a dumb theory that when all the clocks turned over to 2000, it would all go wrong because the sad guy setting up computer time blah blah blah was working under a little black cloud and didn't see a future, so he set all the timers to end at 1999. (I didn't research this, but I think it went just like I said.)

So everyone, (scientists and everybody with math like calculus and triggermonetary believed this?) expected that stuff would blow up and the world would end like one giant New Years Eve celebration gone awry, where Dick Clark's famous ball falls off and rolls around Times Square killing all people everywhere. I should write horror.

Nothing happened. Moving on... (85% of the 200 employees commuted from Seattle area, K2 moved manufacturing from Vashon Island to China in 2001, closest ski resort is 175 miles away from K2)

June 6, 2006 - The Antichrist Returns

Now the return of the Antichrist is something to fear. I know this. Two months ago I renewed my AAA membership and the representative issued me a number that had 666 in the middle of it and I thought that was just asking for roadside disasters. I asked if we could renew with our old membership number and she assured me I had to make due with the new evil number. (AAA, 666 - this is just asking for bad juju.)

A week later the cards show up and I refused to hand them to my kids and say "happy driving... oh, and beware the Antichrist!" I put them all back in the envelope and let them sit on the counter while I stewed about the evil number. A day or so later, a representative from AAA called and asked how our service was upon renewal. She was an angel, I tell you.  I explained my misgivings over the stupid number on the card and she was the all-helpful, smile-voiced angel of mercy who eliminated the evil number and reinstated our old membership with a flap of her snowy white wings. Good wins out over evil.

Having just said that, I can't remember this date coming or going. That could be due to the fact that during that time I was anemic and can't remember many things because my blood wasn't strong enough to send oxygen to my brain. George W. Bush was president then... it's best we put this behind us.

Well, here I am at the almost end. We have one more end of time prediction to contemplate. (Yes, I couldn't resist publishing this on 12/12/12 at 12:12 am. I am still here for those who thought it would happen now.)

December 21, 2012 - End of the Mayan Calendar

A Beautiful Mayan Calendar - I might have ended time way
sooner than the Mayans if I had to draw up one of these.

I have less faith in this prediction simply because an ancient culture failed to buy a new calendar for the next 5000 years. Yes, I do believe it was lack of foresight on their part but we have to consider they might not have known what they were doing, hence their mysterious cultural and environmental collapse around AD 900-ish.

Granted, we haven't lived through this new and current end, but I have faith and hope that we will be running around from December 22nd to the 24th, cursing the doomsayers, buying all those gifts we didn't buy when Christmas was getting hijacked by the hourglass, and overjoyed at finally having a valid reason for postponing the shopping.

I am happy to report, we have all our Christmas shopping done for the first time in... probably ever and we paid cash for everything. GO US! I still have gifts to make and that cannot be postponed. The future is coming and I am looking forward to celebrating the holidays with my family as I wish hope and joy to  all of you to experience each day as the world continues to spin.

Peace.

My Calendar Design for Winter Quarter - Simple

P.S. 3797 is suspected as being another end of time date and I really don't have much interest in this date since I plan on living less than 150 years... that gives me about 98 years which would put me in La La Land or 2110, which is probably a number freak's next special date.

Nostradamus has predicted many things and is known as a prophet and philosopher. His prophecies stop abruptly at 3797. Well now that could mean many things... (If I stop chewing gum... does that signify I stopped abruptly or with great meaning?) I suspect it was a bit like the Mayan calendar... maybe he retired to write romance novels and knit scarves... just saying.



If you are interested in more research, here is an interesting website that has listed the most number of End Predictions I have seen. Get past the bad graphics and see a load of information that is very interesting, indeed: http://www.bible.ca/pre-date-setters.htm.

Please take a moment to read Joanne's story in my previous post, A Kinder Kidney.