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Writer's pictureD Brent Dowlen

Time is Funny… but Constant


The race began the minute you were born. You will never have enough time and will spend the rest of your life wishing you had more. It seems to drag on when you are young, a day can seem like a year and as we age a day goes by like a blink of an eye. It has its own rules that make little sense to anyone, all we know for sure is that there is never enough time.


I went to high school in central Wyoming in a little town called Riverton. To this day I still love that place, I think it is because of my experiences in high school with some incredible friends, some of which I still cling to as my dearest friends over 20 years later. Wyoming is an interesting place to live; it is fascinating, beautiful, and deadly if you do not educate yourself about life there.


One of the more colorful facts about Wyoming is that there is a geographic portion of the state referred to as the Wyoming Wedgie. This area used to be able to be found with a quick Google search, but it appears to have faded in notoriety over time. While not as ominous as the Bermuda Triangle the Wedgie shares some of the same oddities including magnetic interference. More simply, radio signals of most frequencies tend to have issues there, you can be in some serious trouble if you break down in this area. CB radios and even your phone may have difficulty calling out for help and unless you are on the main interstate it can be hours before you see another car on many highways in Wyoming.



The most unique fact about the Wedgie is that time seems to work in it’s own way there. Time and distance seem set in stone, regardless of attempts to alter it. The travel time between Casper and Riverton is 2 hours at a lawful speed. Having friends in law enforcement there I became aware that the trip took 2 hours regardless of speed. Confirmed by both federal officers and state patrol I was absolutely blown away by this odd little notion. (Disclaimer: I do not endorse nor recommend testing this out on your own or breaking the law in any way.)


We have all experienced the sensation of time seeming to slow down when we are not enjoying what we are doing and likewise it goes by quickly when we are deeply invested in something. Does time in fact change? I doubt it, but it feels that way. Most likely you are familiar with a case of someone’s life being cut short prematurely. If you are not old enough to have experienced this yet, you will.


Time works in such strange ways. We have the most time when we are young and lack the knowledge, age, experience, and resources to capitalize on it. When we have all those things, we tend to have a greatly reduced amount of time to put them to use.



2020 has seemed like it has dragged on, talking to people I am quite positive that I am not the only one who feels this way. At the same time, as a father, I am all too aware of how fast this year is going by watching my little girls growing up much faster than I would prefer. Counting down days until Christmas (you do when you have children). Life just keeps happening despite 2020’s best efforts to drag us down.


No matter how you feel about 2020 going by with all of the insanity of viruses, politics, murder hornets, invasive Tegu’s and anything else this year has thrown out let me share with you some constants that time has provided.


1. Someone will be president and their powers will be limited by congress. We have had 45 presidents and very few have directly impacted your daily life. If you do not like the next one wait 4 years and be respectful of the Office. We have all had presidents we did not like, just do not be a monster because of it. Losing who you are over something you cannot control is about you, not them.


2. The current virus will likely become just another yearly illness that mostly affects the elderly with other health issues and compromised immune systems. No one has ever “cured” the common cold and this virus has this same base makeup which is why it is a “corona virus” so it will likely become part of our normal lives. We will adapt and continue on.


3. All but a handful of people will forget about murder hornets and they will become a bad internet pun except for people who have to deal with them to protect our food supplies. (Honey bees are essential for life.)



4. If you had not heard about Tegu’s, it was a vague story that went unnoticed by most. They are a carnivorous monitor lizard that is not normally found in the U.S. They found some in the Carolina’s. Watch your small mammals if you live in that area, if you own small dogs and cats pay attention. Small children should be watched always. Just like alligators and snakes they are something you can learn to live around.


5. The stock market will continue to go up and down.


6. Jobs will be different for some, but there will be work if you are willing to evolve. It will not be easy, you may have to find a new career path but you will find a way.


7. “Global warming” will stay in the news. People will continue to argue about it, and it will affect your life barely. The arguments will, the actual occurrence less so.


Most importantly, your life and what is most important will stay the same.


You need to take care of your health, you always needed to do this. (Most of us are not as healthy as we should be.) Provide for people you normally provide for emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually. Grow and develop mentally to improve yourself and your ability to do the things we mentioned before. Here at The Fallible Man these are things we encourage and believe in anyway.



The earth will make another pass around the sun unless God decides otherwise. You will get up and continue to live your life. You need to treat other people with kindness, respect and a little (or lot) of patience because we all need to continue to be decent human beings. Not for just the benefit of others, but in order not to lose who we are, only you can control that.


Be good to each other, time continues forward no matter how you perceive it. Time is irrelevant in this one regard. We must march on together.


Thanks,

The Fallible Man

Be better tomorrow because of what you do today!

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