Now, It’s Just Crazy

2024-06-30 “Now, It’s Just Crazy” by Merritt

Merritt had learned a lot about 2024 over the last two days. One had been how cellular technology invented just when he finished college in 1983 had become smart phones and had utterly changed the way life existed. In that paradigm, he had learned about email and text messaging. 

He had also learned that a woman in 2024, if so inclined, was perfectly in her rights to text a man and ask him to—essentially—meet him for a date.

A woman from the dance club that he had met the night before had texted him: “Hey, meet me for coffee? There’s a shop called Ground4You near the club where we met.”

Merritt could not explain why, but he knew he had to go meet her. Just like he knew he had to go to the club the night before and had to talk to the woman. 

She was already there waiting when he arrived, and she stood up when he approached. “Hi… Well, I'm glad you came.”

“I felt like I had to come.” Merritt motioned to the seat and waited for her to sit down.

“I felt like I had to text you,” she said. “Something inside…”

“I know exactly how you feel. It’s been like that since…”

Suddenly Jenn’s face lit up. “Since… you arrived…”

Merritt suddenly knew that she knew something about his time shift. Her face lit up more. “Me too!”

“You too what?”

Jenn leaned forward, her face hardly able to contain her smile. “I’m not from 2024. I’m from 1997.”

Merritt just stared. He knew she was telling the truth, and her nodding seemed to suggest that she was understanding things about him as well, things not spoken, and hardly thought. Merritt felt like it was truly some metaphysical phenomenon, somehow connected to whatever caused him to skip ahead 40 years.

Merrit’s reply hardly conveyed all he was thinking: “1997?”

Jenn nodded. “You?”

“It was 1984 when I got in my car two days ago. And 2024 when I got out.”

They both sat silently for a long moment, then Jenn said. “Something has brought us together, to this place and time.”

Merritt nodded. “But what?”

Then Jenn smiled in a different way. “I think I’ll enjoy us finding out together.”

Out With Jenn

2024-06-29 “Out With Jenn” by Ailana Geven

It’s been a blast out here dancing with Jenn @timetravelerjenn1997 and Sasha. This club has an amazing view!

We’ve been having a great time. It’s been pretty typical of a dance club. Mingling. Dancing. The normal.

One interesting thing happened… A man named Merritt saw us getting some bottled water, and he approached. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking… A pick-up move, but it came off a lot differently.

“Excuse me,” he said to Jenn. “I saw you and… I felt like I had to come and… Well, I don’t know what. But… My name is Merritt Gray @merritt_gray . I’ve… Can I just ask you something? Do you know me?”

Jenn smiled, and looked at him very strangely. “I… don’t think I know you… Well, I could, maybe. I mean I could know you, but just don’t remember how I do.”

I thought they both seemed very confused. It was like they knew each other or something, but they couldn’t figure out how.

Merritt smiled. “I’ve had a really strange… couple days. To be honest, I don’t even know why I came here tonight, but… It was like I just had to come… for some reason… Sorry. I’m not a psycho. It’s just been a strange… couple days. Sorry to bother you.”

Jenn shook her head. “No, it’s not a bother. You can… hang out with us if you like.”

Merritt smiled. “I… Yeah… okay. For a little while. But I… think…”

He stopped and just shook his head.

Merritt danced with Jenn and me for a little while—he’s back there behind us in the black suit, by the way. He said he needed to get going, that maybe things would make more sense if he caught up on some sleep.

He seemed like a nice guy. Jenn seemed… Well, drawn to him, I suppose. She asked him to send her a text so she’d have his name and number. He acted like she had asked him to solve a linear algebra equation, but he finally fumbled his way to send her a text.

I happen to see his message messages page on the iPhone. Zero conversations. Like he cleared them all or something!

Jenn seemed happy, though and… well relieved, I guess.

So, yeah… that happened!

This Is Still Awkward

 2024-06-29 This Is Still Awkward Merrit

Well, I called my parents, expecting the worst. I was 24 in 1984. Dad was 50. Mom 47. It’s 2024. Do the math… 

Not to mention they might have moved or changed phone numbers. So this iPhone is a cell phone. Cell technology was released in 1983, and I had read about it. I have no doubt they never imagined it would turn into this!

Mom answered. “Merritt! You didn’t call yesterday… but I figured you were caught up in your little trip to Vancouever… You never did tell your dad and me why you felt so strongly that you had to go there.”

That she mentioned dad was a relief.

“Yeah, well… I just always wanted to see the Pacific Northwest, and visit Canada.” I said it, but I swear I wasn’t thinking that.

“I have great news!” Mom just went to the next thing on her mind, as was her way. “You left your iPad in the TV room, and I couldn’t help noticing that you got an email alert from that company in New York…”

I had no idea what she was talking about.

“…All  I saw was ‘Congratulations’ on the alert popup. Check your email and see! I bet you got the job!”

“Check my email… Sure.” I said it, but  I don’t know what it meant. “I’ll do that soon, how’s everything else?”

She went on to tell me a lot of things I didn’t understand, but she did say she was looking forward to having a party for dad’s 51st birthday. 

I thought about that after the call ended. I skipped ahead. They skipped ahead, too? Or did I… like in some scifi story… skip to some alternate universe… or some alternate timeline of my universe… I don’t know what to think.

I do know that for some reason, I feel compelled to get dressed up and go to a dance club tonight. I mean like I MUST go. It’s not a place I ever heard of. Just some highrise club by the harbor. And it’s like I MUST go. 

So that…

Well, now I need to go figure out what email is and how to check mine. And if I did get that job, there’s going to be a big problem. I studied engineering for the 1980’s. I… just don’t know.

Anyway, I’ll get going. Thanks for taking this crazy ride with me!

This Is Awkward

 2024-06-28 “This Is Awkward” by Merrit

My name is Merritt Gray. I was born in 1960 and pretty much had a cool life that was more or less normal. Little League… Pop Warner… School. Boy Scouts. In high school, I played second base for the baseball team and was a wide-receiver for the football team. I went to college on what we called, back then the five-year plan. That’s where you cram a 4 year bachelor’s degree into 60 months. (Do the math…) I got a degree in mechanical engineering from University of Georgia, moved to Atlanta, and started looking for a job. Then, things got strange. I had just bought a 1984 Toyota Celica Supra, and I decided to take a little day trip outside Atlanta. I headed north toward the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest. I didn’t have a detailed plan, but even if I did, it wouldn’t have mattered. I came around a curve in the road, and before I could do anything, I had driven into some kind of big green, glowing cloud. Then I was totally surrounded by green and yellow lights, flashing and flickering. I slammed on the breaks, and when I got out, nothing was familiar! And when I turned around, my car was different. I had, until that moment, never seen anything like it. So… That was three days ago. Somehow, I skipped ahead 40 years. And crossed North America.

I’m sitting here in a pizza cafe in Vancouver, British Columbia. My 2023 Honda Accord is parked outside. Beside some kind of electric car. When I was 16, my dad gave me a dime for the pay phone, in case I needed to call home, and told me not to spend it, but to keep it in my wallet for an emergency. For some reason, I went to find that dime; it was gone. But, in my pocket… well, anyone but me would know what it is. Apparently, when I made my little trip across the time ways, Steve Jobs and the gang from Apple invented the iPhone. I don’t know what’s happening to me, but this phone had Instagram on it, so I guess, if you want to, you can follow along as I try to figure it all out. Hope to see you soon.

Over The Months

2024-06-25  “Over The Months” by Jenn

Between April and June, after accepting the reality that I am a citizen of 2024, not 1997, I did quite a bit of… essentially just messing around.

I suppose you can say I was trying to embrace my new reality, a world filled with electronic gizmos and automation unheard of in 1997. The internet was an infant barely beyond being used by exclusively by the military and universities. Netscape was still a thing!

Now, the vast majority of the world carries Internet access around in their pockets!

I’ll try to briefly catch you up on several weeks of my coming to terms with being time-shifted to 2024.

I had some fun. Met some people. Did some things.

Again, I'll say that I was trying to get my head around the fact that I had skipped 27 years of time. Everywhere I looked, the world was a different place!

So I set out to get an idea what I was dealing with. I needed to ground myself, I suppose.

Whatever had time-shifted me had also time-shifted my banking information. It also might have multiplied a few times and added a zero to my savings, so, I was able to get by, even as lost as I felt.

There might have been a beach and some boats involved now and then.

One notable event was when I met Ailana Geven and she talked me into a trip to Egypt. 

It was a great trip in many ways and sealed what I think is a solid friendship. And, it was fun. Oh, and I might have learned a little, too.

We did some sightseeing… We even camped out near the Great Pyramid of Giza.

We also did some volunteer work there. Clean water is a problem, and we got involved in a project to help with the problem.

I had to get back to Canada, but the plan is, in a couple days, I’ll meet up with her again and we’ll have some fun. I have a feeling whatever happens will turn out to be interesting.

I suppose, when she gets here, there will be more to this adventure. Stick around and find out!