Archive for April 2009
An imposing question by Jackk:
She Can do it Too.
What if?
What if we had no arms?
What if?
My girl friend Jackk asked how life would change if the human race had no arms. I don’t think it would change all too drastically. Humans would find a way to cope by walking on their feet, and developing very, very strong toes. They could learn to write, drive, put on clothes, and eventually even cuddle and hold “hands”, all with their feet. I think this is probably the most reasonable outcome, because I saw a medical show where someone was born with no hands. She did very well and was able to use her feet better than some people use their fingers. She could cook, drive, handle money, turn keys, and so on. One thing that would change would be the amount of physical games that would be altered do to the fact that they all require arm movements. They would become more geared towards the torso, head, and legs. I also think people would walk around barefoot all the time so they have full access to their toes.
Add a comment April 30, 2009
A scientific question by Mommy:
What if?
What if gravity stopped working?
What if?
My Mom asked a scientific, but also imaginative question. If gravity stopped working, that would be ultra bad news for almost everything on earth. Gravity, somehow, is caused by the rotation of the earth at just the right speed and tilt, and the sun, which pulls it into orbit. If gravity quit working, it might mean the earth got knocked off course, or the sun suddenly kicked the bucket, or any wild event that changes the delicate balance which keeps us alive. I think we would suddently get sucked off the planet like a giant vacuum got hungry and started munching on earth. Outer space would be full of suffocated bodies, animals, plants, floating, floating around like moon rocks. Or, if I want to create a more comical approach, if gravity quit, humans would be able to achieve all their fantasies of wishing they could fly, or jump really high, or run up walls. It would be quite entertaining, and we would weigh nothing compared to what we do now. Or, as a really weird evolutionary thought: Maybe if gravity quit just enough so everything on earth was able to fly easily, creation would continue in the air. Perhaps the next big step in evolution would be the first creatures who could live on the ground. Interesting.
Add a comment April 28, 2009
An explorative question by Andris:
What if?
What if I was living in Singapore right now?
What if?
A geographical and cultural question came from my fellow CIM-er, cellist Andris. She is from China, and pondered what it would be like if I, myself, were in Singapore right now. I think I’d be going through the hugest culture shock in my entire life, like a slap to the face. Sure, the food is great, but it is so overcrowded and poor in some areas. Food sellers have been known to replace the insides of certain Chinese treats with ground cardboard, making people ill. They eat absolutely everything over there, leaving no waste, but also a lingering sense of guilt if you are American. We just don’t eat dogs. They go to the bathroom in little holes instead of nice separate bathrooms. I would need weeks, even months, to be able to fully grasp this culture and begin to appreciate it. I would start to enjoy being immersed in a sea different from my own, learning speech and writing, and traditional crafts, such as origami. I would appreciate the beauty of exotic wilderness like nothing before I’ve ever seen, and the roar of city life. I think after the initial culture shock, I would attempt to fit in, even if the Chinese people bluntly stared at my blonde American physique. For, this is what Chinese immigrants go through when first immersing themselves in American culture, and when we stare, not too politely, because they might not speak English.
Add a comment April 28, 2009
A curious question by Sean:
What if?
What if I were a boy?
What if?
My friend Sean could not think of a single What-if question to give me, so he finally asked what life would be like if I, myself, were a boy. Funnily enough, I’ve wondered that all my life. I don’t think I’d be a very good boy, since all I want to do is sit around, draw, listen to sad songs, or watch sad movies, write, play music, eat, and sleep. The stereotypical boy in this society must be suave and cool, intelligent, good looking, well-built, and active. To be honest, if I were a boy, I think I’d behave the same way as I do now- emotional delicacy, nurturing capacity, intuition. I have no doubts whatsoever, that if I were a boy I would be gay. Interesting.
Add a comment April 28, 2009
An intelligent question by Aaron:
What if?
What if there were no ailments or diseases of any kind in the human population?
What if?
This is an interesting question by my fellow CIM-er, pianst Aaron. Humans, especially in more recent decades, have been completely dependent on new medicinal technologies. These days, it seems, medicine can cure or put in remission almost everything but death. I wonder how different life would be if no illnesses or diseases existed in the entire human population. For one, doctors would still exist, but would run around, freaking out about paper cuts and bruises. For another, the human kind would become simpering, weak creatures with no immunities, and practically no suffering. Because of this, joy wouldn’t be as heartfelt; love wouldn’t be as meaningful; the yin and yang of life would be erratic. This is because there is no true life on earth without death; there is no true unconditional love without realizing pain; there is no true joy without having suffered. These are just my thoughts, and mine alone.
Add a comment April 27, 2009
A compelling question by Leon:
What if?
What if giant flowers went around cutting off parts of people and giving them to other flowers to smell?
What if?
I just have to say that this is a perfect question that identifies the strange, dark trains of thought that go through my friend Leon’s head. This is a true question of role reversal. What if people grew out of the ground in little clumps, and smelled cheery, and had beautiful rainbow colored hair, and plants walked around on legs, pulled up people by their hair, and gave them to other plants to decorate homes and smell. People would get plucked up for the sensual pleasures of plants; but at the same time, people would discover joys in the small things in life, such as sun, loving breezes, tickling bumblebees, and gentle rainfall.
Add a comment April 27, 2009
A dark thought by Galen:
What if?
What if the ocean were our depository for trash and dead bodies?
What if?
This question was brought about again, by my favorite 12-year-old girl. She asks what the ocean would be like if we dumped tons and tons of trash bags and waste into the oceans instead of garbage fills. I suppose the oceans would become murky and goopy. There would be oil everywhere, contaminating all of the sea creatures with slick toxins. There would be soggy, mouldy, floating things that should never be seen floating in water, with dead black eyes that stare in hatred and judgement. Unfortunately for Galen’s question, we do pollute the water. And it’s not very pretty.
Add a comment April 25, 2009
An inciteful question from Donnie:
What if?
What if humans didn’t exist?
What if?
I received this question from a smart and fun worker at Quiznos. His question really blew me away, because the answer or possibilities seem unable for humans to comprehend. I think if humans did not exist, the world would be a jungle of effervescent and bubbly life, greenery, plants, scores and scores of animals. Brilliant birds, insects, sea monsters. There would be no pollution, no waste, no overpopulation, no tipping of the delicately balanced scale of harmony. Humans, as far as I can see, are natural destructors of the earth, and might have been sent here or made to slowly kill it.
Add a comment April 25, 2009
An unanswerable question from myself:
What if?
What if everyone on earth were deaf and blind?
What if?
What a mysterious question I enjoy pondering, time and again. Most people, if asked, would consider this scenario to be a complete horror story. I, on the other hand, consider it almost liberating. The society of today is based on visual and aural information, and leaves little room for other means of communication to survive. I would think that if humans were deaf and blind, they would find a way to communicate telepathically, or spiritually. There would be more peace, as most violence of today is sadly based on physical features. There would be more unconditional love, as unfortunately, people in today’s society tend to save their love for those who physically attract them. Just a thought.
Add a comment April 25, 2009
An imploring question from Galen:
What if?
What if we could only survive by eating giant, slimy slugs?
What if?
Another interesting question, this is, taken from the mind of a 12-year-old girl. There’s a quote that floats around the world, saying, “We are what we eat.” Could you imagine if we sustained ourselves by eating giant, slimy, iridescent slugs? I think we would become foul smelling, gasey, and sweaty, and perhaps start to grow bright green or orange skin hair. Thank goodness this isn’t the case, and the slug-eating is left to the birds and other lovers of devouring creepy-crawlies.
Add a comment April 25, 2009
