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ventaMany years ago, I was chatting to someone at a folk festival.
A few years earlier, he'd been working as a security guard. He and his fellow-guard were chatting late at night about Fraggle Rock and they realised that they couldn't remember the name of the big furry monsters. They cudgelled their brains, but couldn't come up with the name.
They took a couple of deliveries and, as well as signing various bits of paper, they asked each of the drivers. None of them knew what the monsters in Fraggle Rock were called, either.
Shortly before the shift ended, one of them had cause to speak to the police. Being on good terms with their police liason person, they asked her too. She didn't know. She called across to her boss. He didn't know, either.
Half an hour later, they got a return call from the police. The big furry monsters in Fraggle Rock were called the Gorgs. How had this been found out? Simple. The Met had radio'd across all their cars which were out and about, and eventually someone knew.
This morning, before I'd even got out of bed, I discovered that I couldn't remember who Batfink's enemy was. I picked my phone up from the bedside table, looked at the Wikipedia page for Batfink. Hugo A-Go-Go.
I feel this is both fabulous, and slightly sad.
A few years earlier, he'd been working as a security guard. He and his fellow-guard were chatting late at night about Fraggle Rock and they realised that they couldn't remember the name of the big furry monsters. They cudgelled their brains, but couldn't come up with the name.
They took a couple of deliveries and, as well as signing various bits of paper, they asked each of the drivers. None of them knew what the monsters in Fraggle Rock were called, either.
Shortly before the shift ended, one of them had cause to speak to the police. Being on good terms with their police liason person, they asked her too. She didn't know. She called across to her boss. He didn't know, either.
Half an hour later, they got a return call from the police. The big furry monsters in Fraggle Rock were called the Gorgs. How had this been found out? Simple. The Met had radio'd across all their cars which were out and about, and eventually someone knew.
This morning, before I'd even got out of bed, I discovered that I couldn't remember who Batfink's enemy was. I picked my phone up from the bedside table, looked at the Wikipedia page for Batfink. Hugo A-Go-Go.
I feel this is both fabulous, and slightly sad.
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no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 12:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 12:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 01:32 pm (UTC)However, Wikipedia disease and endless link-following tend to be solitary delights whereas trying to remember something undocumented was formerly an inherently social occupation. I do slightly miss the conversations that used to follow as people tried to remember something. These days the only time I experience that is at our local pub quiz, where t'internet use is obviously banned.
no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 02:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 02:10 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 02:47 pm (UTC)(Also, I knew what the Gorgs were called, so I get to spoil everyone's fun anyway!)
no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 03:18 pm (UTC)Such as wasting even more time on the internet ;)
no subject
Date: 2012-07-27 03:28 pm (UTC)valuableknowledge about sending IP packets using xylophones! :-Pno subject
Date: 2012-07-27 03:38 pm (UTC)