Entries this day: EV Proof_of_Youth Why_celebrate_days_old

EV

1:03pm JST Saturday 26 August 2006

Just talked with a cat who's working with a team trying to build the world's biggest super computer in 2010, on the order of teraflops for operating speed. I think he said 20 times the speed of today's fastest super computer.

I told him about an article I read about a new transister technology; I will send it to him.

6:25pm JST Saturday 26 August 2006

Wow! Fantastic. My last student (the one who was late) wanted to translate a buncha stuff for her work, so I typed it up for her on my computer. We weren't able to get through all of it, so she wants to meet me again in Shibuya EV! Wow!

Proof of Youth

4:33pm JST Saturday 26 August 2006

Upon first meeting me, people usually think I'm younger than my birthdate thinks. Most of my students think I'm around 25. Cool. Nice. thank you. I try hard to stay young.

- - -

At times I meet people who are older than me, and, as people do, they seem either older, younger or the same age as themselves.

I imagined, that at some day, I would hear "when you're as old as me, you won't think that," but I will be older than the person already. Booyah!!!

That didn't happen today.

But

It just about happened, and had my student been a bit more confident with English, I prolly could have pulled it out of him.

After 10 minutes of "ug; when will this be over" conversation, I was like, "do you have a dream?", hoping that he did, and could spark the discussion, but betting he didn't.

he didn't. He was too old to have a dream.

"how old are you?"

"31, maybe."

(( this is not a misquote. he said "thirty-one, maybe." ))

"Maybe??"

"are you so certain about your age?"

"I am 13232 days old today." (for some reason I messed it up, but then corrected it) "wait wait. I am 13,303 days old today." (( don't fuck wit' me and try to prove yer point by thinking I don't know how old I am. ))

And I proceeded to sell him on counting days instead of bemoaning years.

(gotta student now; gotta go.) - - - - (nevamind; she will be 15 minutes late.)

So I whipped out my trusty laptop and emacs with its calendar program and it quickly calculated my student is 11570 days old today. "Today! only today. you are eleven thousand five hundred seventy days old. Congratulations!"

The new way of thinking took a bit to settle into his brain, but soon he was like, "celebration every 500 days... not as often as most people."

"But more real than most people." and I told him party sizes are related to the number of zeros in the number. "Today, for you, one zero. a small party. This lesson is your party."

"I have never heard of this type. Is it your idea?"

"yes."

"do your family tell you days old?"

"No. My idea."

My idea. Basically yes, celebrating every day as beautiful and unique is not my original idea. But annual celebrations that slowly age into annual depressions is a horrible way of celebrating our lives! Turning this annual celebration idea onto its ear and only celebrating Days Old is my idea. If someone else thought of it, we came up with it independently.

I'm thinking I should expand my days old page, to at least include a Reason, and perhaps the ability to spew out a slew of 500 days old dates.

perhaps buy daysold as a domain and advertise it that way. At least I should set up days.robnugen.com so I can quickly send people to the page. My homework for tonight. (after hanging out with Yumiko.)

Why celebrate days old

We should all be enjoying days instead of bemoaning years.

1. Every day is original and unique

2. Counting days is far more interesting that counting years

3. Celebrations happen in various seasons (*)

4. Party sizes vary according to the number of zeros in the age-count

5. Seem more humble by celebrating only every 500 days

6. Know who really cares (!)

(*) especially good for people whose birthdays are eclipsed by national holidays

(!) takes more effort to remember a celebration with inconsistent dates