Too Much Screen Time
Advice From Old Folks On How To Live Longer - 6 • A Slight Detour
Three Line Conversations
Too Much Screen Time
“Mama, will I be able to fly when I grow up?”
“Whatever gave you that idea?”
“Dad said not to tell you, but he lets me watch Disney+ on his phone.”
Life
Advice From Old Folks On How To Live Longer • 6
Belinda Treadwater — Age 84
I naively thought a book titled Super Useful Tips To Squeeze More Days Out Of Our Meager Human Lifespan would be a no-brainer to get published. Apparently, I was wrong. Perhaps super useful books with unique subject matter are no longer valued by traditional publishers.
Although I am saddened by this revelation, I still believe these tips are worth sharing for the betterment of humankind as a whole. In fact, I feel these tips may even benefit extraterrestrial life. As long as they aren’t bug-like creatures. In which case, tips like avoid flyswatters would be more appropriate.
I may pursue self-publishing. Experts say the odds of self-publishing success are slightly better than the Powerball Lottery. So, if I self-publish and buy a lottery ticket, I should double my odds at instant riches.
In the meantime, I will continue to share these useful tips here, one at a time, so you can savor each one. Allow them to soak in and become part of your consciousness. Then, incorporate them into your lifestyle.
Here is tip number six:
Don’t try to swim across the English Channel wearing chainmail.
Brilliant advice, Belinda. Thank you for that tip.
Story
A Slight Detour
Janice Hale was the Captain of the scout ship Hope. Their mission was to reach KELT-4Ab and determine its viability for Human habitation. Humans had nearly exhausted the resources of Earth, and colonization was essential to Human survival.
Hale woke to the sight of Carlton, the ship's AI robot, watching her.
“Report,” Hale said to Carlton.
“KELT-4Ab proved inhospitable to Human life. Strong toxic gasses poisoned the atmosphere. Landing would have been catastrophic. I re-routed the ship to the nearest promising exoplanet, Gliese 667 Cc. I have orbited the planet for one Gliese year, collecting and analyzing data.”
“What did you find?”
“Gliese 667 Cc orbits a Red Dwarf star. It is tidally locked. One hemisphere is in continual light and extreme heat, and the other is perpetually dark and cold. There is a habitable zone between the two extremes. However, the planet has an erratic orbit, causing extreme heat fluctuations. You will need to relocate as temperatures change. There is abundant liquid water, but no vegetation.”
“Alright. Wake the rest of the crew.”
“Unfortunately, the detour to Gliese 667 Cc took an additional 200 Earth years. The rest of the crew didn’t survive the extended stasis.”
“I’m the only one alive?! Why didn’t you wake us when we reached KELT-4Ab?” Hale said angrily.
“The crew was already in a weakened state due to the original stasis period. Waking them temporarily and then placing them in another stasis would have made the odds of survival to Gliese 667 Cc even worse. Leaving everyone in stasis was the best option.”
Hale rarely cried, but she felt the tears well up and couldn’t stop them. She hobbled to the flight deck and looked out the window.
“Water, rocks, and sand. At least I won’t die of thirst. Hunger is another story. Well, there is only one thing to do.”
“You need to rest and recover your strength,” Carlton said.
“No. I can’t sit around feeling sorry for myself. I need to do something.”
With great effort, Hale made her way to the cargo hold. There, she opened a container full of seeds.
“Let’s get gardening,” Hale said.
“I will gather the needed tools. You may want to open container 475JN2 also,” Carlton replied.
“What’s that for?” Hale asked
“Look and see.”
Hale opened the container and found fishing gear and dried bait.
“You think there might be fish?” Hale asked.
“Let’s find out,” Carlton replied.
They left the gardening supplies for the moment and took the fishing gear with them as they left the ship. The atmosphere was dry but breathable.
The two of them slowly walked to the nearest body of water. Hale took a pole and cast the line as far out as she could. Then she sat down. She thought about how her grandfather had taken her fishing as a child. As she was sitting there wishing she was a child again, she felt a bite on the line.
Happy Monday. Thanks for reading and responding. You make it fun.
Mark
Thanks for the advice, and I was just polishing up the chain mail!
Goin' fishin'. Cool. I wonder what is on the end of that line.... prey or predator?