Is it going
to rain or not? All day the clouds blow in; the clouds blow out, but no rain
falls. The weather forecaster’s stormy promises raise many questions. Should we
grill our dinner or play it safe and use the stove? Should we water the flowers and
vegetables, or wait for the rain? Sure, we get an occasional misting here and
there, but nothing like the downpours promised.
The weather
forecasts remind me of the dire warnings for predicted disasters. No one wants
a crisis, especially none like these:
The
predictions may continue for years. Researchers say “a big one” could occur
within the next thirty days or in the next thirty years. We’ve seen the cracked
tectonic plates, and heard the geologist’s testimonies. Experts are convinced the
big one is going to happen, but what about you? Are you concerned about catastrophic
events? What makes you believe one will occur?
When
do talcum powder and goldfish go together? Never! Several years ago I opened
our child’s bedroom door and discovered one little person pouring powder into
the gold fish bowl. What a cloudy mess!I never learned the reason for that
experiment, but the fish survived and lived to swim again. Have you ever
purchased a goldfish that expired the next day? Not ours. I had grown tired of changing
the stinky water in the huge snack bowl-turned-filterless-fishbowl. Week after
week I poured out the dirty water and poured in clean water and that little goldfish
lived on and on and on…. Our fish was a survivor, much like this girl:
She
identified the oncoming tsunami and survived it. It does pay to listen in
class. Not only did Tilly save herself, but her quick thinking saved her family
and several other vacationers. If you were to wear a T-shirt that read, “I survived
(blank), how would you fill-in the blank? What did you learned from the experience?
Are you frightened? Have you heard about the predictions for 2012?Some folks believe a non-technical Y2K kind of world-wide event will occur this year. If you remember Y2K, the transition from 1999 to 2000, caused quite a stir among companies and agencies. Businesses launched expensive efforts to ensure that computer systems continued to function properly with the new year’s arrival.IT experts feared computers would incorrectly interpret the switchover from ’99 to ’00 and wreak havoc with our financial investments, systems and operations. Nothing catastrophic happened back then, but now here we go again with new predictions for the coming year.
It’s a little different this time. According to certain people and the ancient Mayans, a change is on the agenda for 2012. Actually, before we attribute the scare to the Mayans, let’s review how they’re connected to the hype. It seems that a part of the Mayan culture’s calendar, which covers over five thousand years, ends at 2012. So, some people think that this ending signifies the end of time and our planet’s demise. Is there a leap in logic here? Has this ever happened to you? After working for long periods of time on a colossal project, at a certain point, you just want it to end. Here’s my take: The Mayans grew bored with calendar-making, they put an easier system in place and moved on to completing their pyramids, or some other fascinating project. Like kids with toys at Christmas, when the fun ends, it's time to move on. Apparently everyone has an opinion about 2012. Listen to a more serious comment on the 2012 hullabaloo:
I guess we’ll have to wait and see what actually happens this year. Maybe there won’t be a catastrophic earthquake or a planet crashing into earth, but I know someone will graduate, get married, find a job, start a family, start a business, travel or create a new invention. What are your public or personal predictions for 2012?
