It's been years since I've been car sick. Not to the point of throwing up my lunch, just enough to be queasy. Then I realized, I don't ride in cars very much anymore. Living in upstate New York, you drive. And when I'm on the winding mountain roads, I'm usually the one driving.
What if the world moves to a driverless, everyone-is-a-rider kind of world? Will I get car sick all the time? I probably won't be here anymore, honestly. Even so, will there be more car sickness in that kind of world?
I like having control of the vehicle. How can I trust I'll get where I want without destroying something if a computer is driving? People use Waymo and assisted driving in many cities these days. More people, especially younger people, are more comfortable and trusting of the exact thing that scares the crap out of me.
I went to my now 10 year old niece's birthday dinner this afternoon. One of her gifts was hand sanitizer by a company called Touchland. They want to transform the world of self-care. I very much liked the bottle. It was about the size of a credit card and shaped like one, roughly half an inch thick. It fits perfectly in a bag and even has cases, like phone cases, for the dispenser. Apparently, many, if not all, students carry some form of sanitizing product on their person throughout the day. Obviously, these are post-COVID young people, so it makes sense. I never would have guessed something like this was popular.
I can't believe my niece is 10 years old. I can't believe my son is two and a half. Cliche but true, the world just starts screaming by you like an Indy car as you age. I'm only 48, but it feels like I blink and six months have passed.
It makes you want to appreciate every moment, even though you know you're going to miss so much. You try your best, but the world just won't let you catch every tiny moment. Too many slip through the glove. All you can do is try.
I will keep trying. You can count on that.