Time. Time is part of everything we do. The measurement of it is uniquely
human. A dog may experience time but it’s unlikely to be measured. Seasons
change and behavior runs in cycles but animals are blissfully unaware while
people are continually reminded of it.
What time is it? When does my show start? How old are you? How fast are
you going? What’s the ETA? Should I use second day delivery? When did I get
my last haircut? Is it dinnertime yet? What time will you be home? When does
the school year end? When is Happy Hour? When is that bill due? What year is
that car model? When does the hockey season begin? What quarter is this? Is
that the two minute warning? What was your time in the marathon? How long does
it take to cook a hard-boiled egg and how long before it cools?
Sometimes, it seems ‘like only yesterday’ since we’ve seen someone
while years have actually gone by. When we say ‘slow as molasses’, we’re
talking about time, not molasses. Being consistently late is unacceptable. But
it’s cool when you never appear to be in a hurry.
And most working people trade time for money... What’s the hourly wage?
Is there overtime pay? How many vacation days per year? When is the due date?
When is high tide? When was your last period? I’m sorry Officer but how fast
was I going? What is my pulse rate? How long does the music play during Final
Jeopardy?
The bottom line of time is that it can only be measured by itself. You
can’t see it or feel it but with altered perception, you can slow it down or
speed it up. You can’t escape it and if you try to, you are just wasting your
time. This is leap year... but real time will still pass at the same pace.
The first time I smoked pot, time seemed to stand still. It literally
shape-shifted for me and what felt like an hours-long ride home ended when I got
in the door and the clock said I was right on time. This was quite the
mystery. How can time slow down and pass at the same speed simultaneously?
It’s all about perception. Sanity is being able to distinguish between what we
perceive and what we’re expected to perceive.
My first awareness of time was probably when I knew it was dinnertime or
time to go to sleep or maybe it was Howdy Doody time. It took on a different
meaning when I started school and discovered the difference between the school
year and the summertime.
At this point in my life, approaching 70, time seems to be racing like a
runaway train on a downhill track, constantly accelerating with no station in
sight and with failing brakes that can’t be replaced. Seasons pass quickly, and
today becomes yesterday in the blink of an eye.
So... where is this going? Time slows down considerably when you are
waiting for the Federal government to decide whether to arrest you or not. Time
becomes the right to a speedy trial if it happens... and how your charges might
fit into the sentencing guidelines... and, if the worst happens, time served.
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