2025-06-19 “As For Money…” for Merritt (born 1960)

I’m out in Queens for a post-final visit with a NYC SysCo client we did some work for last quarter. Their new concern? Is the warehouse in shape for a future conversion to AI and robotics!

Which brings me to the topic I had in mind for today. Let me start with the end… because it starts with that mangle of merged memories that is so confusing.

If you’ve been around a while, you know that existing NOW are the versions of Emma, Hannah, Kent, and me who we are linked to 40 years ago in 1985. Some time back, they formed an LLC called Traveling Friends, and it manages investments and properties. When we went to visit them, they added us to the LLC.

Think about it. If someone in 1985 knew what 2025 would be like… their investments would be very profitable. So, Emma, Hannah, Kent and I really could quit our jobs. But we won’t…

So, I got a call on Friday from the Virginia Beach Merritt. “So, look at the portfolio. We just remembered something from 40 years ago.”

Here’s where it gets really confusing, but I’ll try to sum it up. 

A few weeks ago, I was looking at AI stocks. Nothing serious. Just looking. Emma, Kent, and I chatted about it. Emma laughed and got choked and that sort of made it a high point memory prominent enough to be noticed by the other versions of her. 

Okay… 40 years ago, the Virginia Beach versions of us lived in the Appalachians. Our memories are linked to THEM (the Virginia mountains group; they ALSO become 40 year old memories for the 2025 Virginia Beach versions.)

So, when Emma choked a few weeks ago, the Virginia mountains versions of us noticed. And our memories of the AI stocks merged with theirs. So, back in 2019, they invested.

But… since that hadn’t happened until the memories changed after Emma choked, the 2025 Virginia Beach versions didn’t remember it until they happened to be looking at the portfolio and saw the AI stocks that hadn’t been there before. THEN they remembered Emma choking. THEN they remembered investing back in 2019.

Let me just go through all that one more time in order of how it happened. Sort of.

A few weeks ago, we were looking at AI stocks. Emma choked laughing.

The next day (but 40 years ago) the Virginia mountains versions of us remembered the event. And, our look at the stocks.

Then, once AI stocks became a thing in 2019, they bought some which eventually became part of  the Traveling Friends LLC portfolio.

Now, since we hadn’t looked at stocks and since Emma hadn’t choked until a few weeks ago, those memories were NOT part of the Virginia Beach versions. Not until the day after it happened. As discussed before, those four versions of us are constantly having their past changed by what is happening to them 40 years earlier because the 1985 versions of them are linked to us, now. Their past is in constant flux. As we do things now, and the memories merge with them 40 years in the past, their past is changed.

Sometimes, very notably, as in the case of adding AI stocks to the portfolio.

So, Traveling Friends, LLC is benefiting from the phenomenon, but it makes life really challenging for the 2025 Virginia Beach versions of us. 

Yeah… it’s confusing!