A past recording comes to mind from the likes of Firesign Theatre. A roommate at University played this LP for me on our first introduction. It’s a line from an absurdist album called, ‘How Can You Be in Two Places at Once When You’re Not Anywhere at All.’ that has stuck in my mind. “And swim the English Channel?”
This was a big deal (swimming the English Channel) at one time. Canadian Marilyn Bell has done it. I was surprised to discover that folks are still trying to beat the record crossing (6hr 45min 25sec, in 2023).
Channeling creativity is a big thing for artists. Channeling spirits was once a big thing for séance leaders until magicians like Houdini and Randi debunked these psychic practitioners. These days, I like to channel my thoughts away from bad news by playing music from Youtube (an internet music channel) or doing a web search thru Wikipedia (a computer information channel not unlike a dictionary). Using a smart TV it has become easy to find out stuff by channel-surfing, even though it might be frowned upon as a waste of time.
Changing the channel on a television wasn’t always an easy thing for a couch potato like me, in the days before a remote control. At the end of a program the viewer had to get up, walk to the TV Set and turn the dial to a desired number. If the signal wasn’t coming in well, a few minutes adjusting the aerial was required. In my childhood there were only a few channels. With the invention of cable transmission, the multi-channel universe was available. Now with streaming, a person could never be without entertainment. Ah comfortably numb!
Yesterday, I channeled something in the nature of the film A Beautiful Mind. During sleep I saw clearly a host of numbers, geometry, and formulae that might create a map to the theory of everything. I had to get up and write it all down on a piece of paper before the vision passed. Naked, I worked on all-fours, on the floor, near a night light. With pencil and paper I feverishly scribbled, trying to be quiet in my excitement, lest I wake the sleepers in the house. So sure was I, that I had ‘heard’ a eureka moment, I sent my discovery to my local university. The Physics faculty, the Astronomy department, and the Mathematics college were contacted, yet not one representative even acknowledged my inspiration. I can’t get no respect!
People might think, from time to time, that my observations come from another dimension. It can be deflating when it seems I’m not being heard. At least my 97 year old special mom generally finds my revelations fascinating. She likes to be tuned in to these modern technology things that I share with her. I feel proud, like a teacher would, of a student, when she incorporates these ideas into useful language. For example, the other day she didn’t like the way a conversation was headed so she asked, “Can we change the channel?”
Catch My Drift? 