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The Time Trust
Weblog Archives
November 2002
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2002-11-27: Whew! What a busy week! I've been working on this essay which I finally handed in tonight, and I've scarcely had any extra time left for other stuff, let alone my poor li'l weblog. The next few days will be a welcome break, I tell ya.
Good news: The weather's been wonderful over the last week. The rain stopped (except for a couple of sporadic showers), and it's been mostly sunny for the past several days. Very, very nice. But when the rain stopped I felt almost... lost. Like, what do I complain about now? 
The above is meant to be tongue-in-cheek, of course, but I am astonished how different everything looks when it's not raining cats and dogs. It's actually nice to go outside and go for a walk again. Driving at night is a pleasant activity once more rather than one filled with blinding fear of hitting something I didn't see in time.
Anyways...
I've been checking out some other sites which use the "Time Trust" or "Doc/Doctor/Dr. Quantum" name. For instance, this site, which is apparently a health-conscious food company called "Better Foods." I don't really get the connection between "Time Trust" and "Better Foods," but whatever.
"TTT" has been a shortened nickname for "The Time Trust" (though a few smart-alecks have pointed out that it should only be two Ts, as "The" shouldn't count), and I've found a few URLs using TTT (Copy-and-Paste the URLs into your browser to check any of them out): www.ttt.com (Test Technologists Team); www.ttt.org (Translation, Theory and Technology Homepage: This site is maintained by the Translation Research Group of Brigham Young University's Department of Linguistics. As the intentionally ambiguous name suggests, this website provides information about language theory and language technology, particularly relating to translation.); www.ttt.org.il (Teen-to-Teen: A virtual magazine written for and by teens. The articles, features and bulletin board deal with teen issues about making aliya); www.ttt.com.au (TTT FM: A radio station in Tasmania, Australia); ttt.esperanto.org (A site promoting the international language of lo -- er, I mean -- Esperanto); www.ttt.co.uk (TTT Moneycorp: Provides currency exchange and related services to the leisure and business traveller and wholesale currency services to the corporate market.) And I'm sure there are a lot more -- they're fairly common initials.
One thing I've been meaning to do for quite a while now (but have never really gotten around to it) is create a webpage dedicated to the group of fictional scientists from whom I derived the name of "The Time Trust"! I'm sure at least half of the people coming to this site come here in search of info on those guys, but end up finding nothing but my crappy site! Well, soon I hope to get off my butt and write an in-depth history of the Time Trust as well as bios of the individual scientists who made up its membership. The name, of course, is a variation on the "Brain Trust," a term which was popularised (and may have originated) in the 1930s with U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The Brain Trust was the group of close advisors to FDR during his time as Governor of New York state as well as his Presidential Administration, and its "membership" came from academic circles -- hence the name. The Time Trust, on the other hand, were a group of scientists in the field of time travel as seen in the JSA stories in All-Star Comics of the early 1940s. Roy Thomas gave them the name much, much later in his All-Star Squadron series which took place during the 1940s, and he included in its membership such other time travel-focussed scientists as Prof. Carter Nichols of Batman fame as well as Professor Zee and his assistant (and part-time super-villain and JSA foe) Per Degaton. That's the short version -- someday I'll get around to the long version.
In the words of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius (which is a good show, by the way): "Gotta blast!"
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-19: Did you get a chance to witness the "once in a generation" meteor shower on Monday night/Tuesday morning (November 18/19, 2002)? I didn't.  As much as I wanted to, the rain never once let up during the peak of the meteor shower here in good old rainy Vancouver.
This is what causes the so-called "Leonid" meteors to hit the earth, from a CBC page:
Every November, Earth passes through the debris field left by comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle. When particles of dust from this field collide with Earth’s atmosphere, they burn up on entry, creating an extremely bright light effect. Scientists say this year the shower will be particularly impressive because Earth is passing through not one, but two trails left by the comet. Scientists at NASA say there probably won't be another Leonid shower of this intensity for another century.
Another century? ANOTHER CENTURY?!!  I won't be alive in another century!!!  (This reminds me of the time I missed my chance to see Halley's Comet back in late '85/early '86, though I may actually live to see that comet pass by the Earth the next time.)
Ah well. Them's the breaks. On a more positive note for Vancouverites, the rain may be letting up by the end of the week. I certainly hope so. I've got social plans this weekend  -- plans that I'd hate to see dampened by typical November weather for Vancouver. But I guess a lot of rain is better than the snow the rest of Canada gets during the winter. That's one thing that I both like about Vancouver -- very little snow, if any in the winter -- and dislike, as I really miss having no snow at Christmas being the good ol' boy from the Prairies at heart as I am.  (Yeah, whatever...)
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-18: It's been raining a whole hell of a lot lately (yes, it's still raining  ). And I've also let a few days go by without updating my weblog.  Unfortunately I haven't had much computer time this weekend. I'm taking a History course in night school, and I've been immersing myself with it in a rather productive effort to remember what I'm reading. Although the instructor has never asked this of any of the students, I've been taking detailed notes on all my readings. Sure, it's making more work for myself than necessary, but it's paying off as my marks are showing.
History has always been one of my most favoured of subjects. I know a lot of people (including most of my friends, though not all of them) just shake their head when I tell them "I love History!" and ask me why. I think the reason it appeals so much to me is the same reason I love to read and watch great films. The "story" part of "History" is what enthralls me. I see History as this huge, all-encompassing novel which is impossible to ever finish reading, even if one had several lifetimes in which to do so. History textbooks are sort of like "CliffsNotes" -- they give you a broader picture and write in generalities, occasionally relating a memorable anecdote. Dig a little bit deeper into one particular area of History -- say, D-Day in World War II -- and you find several "sub-plots" in the "Chapter" or "Part" of World War II. Dig even deeper and you'll find the individual human remembrances written by those who took part in D-Day. History is one big novel, and I love it.
Of course, that being said, there are some epochs and places in History that I find more interesting than others, and the blame often lies in the way History has been presented. Canadian History, for instance, has generally been an absolute failure in its presentation. Nobody I know wants to learn Canadian History, and the only reason it's taught at all is because every Canadian student has to take it, and every schoolteacher in Canada has to take it at the college level in order to teach. And it's a real shame, too. A people or a nation who do not know their own history can hardly call themselves a people or nation. Canadians know more about American history than their own -- and that includes me.
I want it to change, though. Canadian History is actually quite fascinating when presented in an appealing and even entertaining way. The unfortunate thing is that this has rarely been done. One of the main themes that has driven Canada throughout the decades has been an effort to be different from its American sibling to the south. Americans excel at entertainment -- they have a talent for appealing to the masses -- and as Canadians shy away from the American-style sensationalism which has made their history so entertaining, the result is a dry text devoid of heroes, a rich culture all our own, or the cultural mythology that drives patriotism.
We need young men and women with fresh ideas and enthusiasm to take that dusty old Canadian History Book off the shelf and make the history of Canada fun to learn. We've excelled at mediocrity for so long and gotten into such a rut that way that many of our most gifted citizens have had no choice but to leave for the United States (especially Hollywood, where it seems like one can find more Canadian actors and comedians than in all of Canada) or Europe to make a mark for themselves. This has got to change if Canada is ever to survive as an independent nation. And a well-written Canadian History is one of the primary keys to begin this change.
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-14: Sooooo sleepy today.  There's something about Thursdays for me that just make me tired. The constant rain doesn't help much, either. From what the weather people have said, it looks like it'll remain wet throughout the weekend. *sigh*
Came across some interesting websites lately, one of them being a new one by a friend of mine. The legendary Disco Steve (heh), has created a HILARIOUS new "Bad Movie Review" site, Disco Steve's Casa de la Muerte. (The review for the Star Wars Holiday Special is not to be missed!) This is some good stuff, folks. Some very very very funny reviews of really really really BAD films. He watches these films so YOU DON'T HAVE TO! (Oh, the horror...!) 
I was checking out some other weblogs out there (make sure to stop by the Webrings & News page to browse through the blog webrings), and one of them -- Blogging with Dr. P... (which seems to be written by a guy from the UK) -- got me reading several of his November entries. As a Tolkien fan, one link he mentioned immediately caught my eye: The Middle-Earth Name Generator. Want to find out who you were in Middle-Earth? Use the generator to find out. I typed in "The Time Trust" and got the following response:
According to the Red Book of Westmarch, in Middle-earth, The Time Trust was a Hideous Beorning!
Elven Name Possibilities for The Time Trust -- The root name suitable for feminine and masculine is: Iarnar.
Another masculine version is: Iarnarion.
More feminine versions are: Iarnariel, Iarnarien, Iarnarwen.
Hobbit lad name for The Time Trust: Seredic from LongCleeve.
Hobbit lass name for The Time Trust: Adelard from LongCleeve.
Dwarven Name for The Time Trust: Bombur Halflingguard. This name is for both genders.
Orkish Name for The Time Trust: Ashluk the Cleaver. This name is for both genders.
I entered a lot of other names, of course, but I'll let you try it out for yourself.
Here's another one: They Fight Crime! He's a genetically engineered neurotic gangster gone bad. She's a psychotic wisecracking college professor with an incredible destiny. They fight crime! Click try again, and you'll get another randomly generated duo, like this one: He's a gun-slinging gay assassin in a wheelchair. She's a green-fingered junkie bodyguard with only herself to blame. They fight crime! 
What can I say? I'm easily amused... 
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-13: As per my last log entry, all this rain (yes, it's still continuing!) reminds me of a theory I once heard about Vancouverites, and why we're such a comparatively depressed bunch of people. It's the rain, you see. We get a lot of it.  It tends to colour our emotions and thought-processes. Makes us think a lot more in the way people tend to think on rainy days. This summer's been different though, of course, as there was a drought and we got many more sunny days than we usually get over the summer. And if I were to think of it, I do think this summer was a much better one for me personally than last year's. Well, that's about it. Kinda half-assed, I know, but I don't always have a lot to say. I should probably try to write these things when I have the most energy during the day, I guess... Ah, whaddaya gonna do?
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-12: Finally got a good night's sleep last night! Woo-hoo! Insomnia, you shall not have me! Well, at least today...
It's been a good day for me; I've been studying for a History night class I'm taking, and although it looked pretty dreary outside having still been raining almost non-stop for the last several days, the sun finally broke through the clouds and the rest of the afternoon has been sunny!  I never thought it would happen so quickly, especially since the weather forecast said the rain would continue without letting up.
I think the weather and the sun (or lack thereof) definitely has an effect on the way I feel physically. When it's rainy outside, I tend to be much sleepier in the mornings when I need to get up, but on sunny mornings I wake up with a much clearer head. I also seem to be a lot clumsier on rainy days than sunny days, and a lot more glum (when I was a teenager I used to revel in those dark feelings, but I grew up -- not everyone does). When the sun comes out, though, I immediately start to perk up and actually feel happier. I'm not sure whether or not this has anything to do with Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.), but I do find that when I get more sunlight I just feel healthier and happier. If only Vancouver didn't get so much damn rain...  (Yeah, yeah, I know... we need the rain after the drought this summer, but I still don't have to like it.  )
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-11: I typed out an unintentionally fairly lengthy weblog entry today, but I'm afraid I'm far too tired to make it make much sense -- perhaps I'll turn it into an article if I can find the time and energy to do so later on.
For now, though, I'll just give my thanks to all the soldiers who fought for my nation of Canada and its allies in World War I and World War II on this Remembrance Day (Veterans' Day in the U.S.). I'm sure they went to battle believing that they were safeguarding the world for good and that their children and grandchildren would never have to go to war again. That this proved not to be is something which I will always regret. 
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-10: Ever had to deal with difficult people on a regular basis? I do, unfortunately, and at certain times it's like anything and everything I say gets misinterpreted in the worst possible meaning. I basically have to "tip-toe" around them and watch my words carefully or they'll just snap!
A few years ago I was working as a landscape maintenance worker, and I was often assigned under a certain manager twice or three times a week. This guy believed himself to be the nicest guy in the world, I'm sure, and there were many times he felt like slacking off and, since there weren't any supervisors around, he had me slack off as well (if you know my work habits, though, I hate to do anything less than my best work, so this situation wasn't the ideal one for me). He would get really "buddy-buddy" with me at those times, and act as if he were my older brother or something. Unfortunately, this guy had the shortest temper of anyone I've ever met before (he had a major case of the "Short Man's Complex" -- some of you out there will know exactly what I mean -- and I don't mean to paint all short people like that... but you know who you are). If I handled one of the tools in the wrong way -- even slightly -- he would just snap and say something like, "What the hell do you think you're doing?!!" and come at me with both guns a'blazing.  Now, I've never been one who likes being baited like that, so instead of responding to him defensively, I just nodded and looked him directly in the eyes without backing down. Eventually he would realise how he sounded and "be my buddy" once again. But there was always the possibility that he would lose his cool at the drop of a hat. It was extremely stressful, and I never want to work with someone like that ever again.
I still know people sort of like that, of course -- everyone does -- and most times I just have to hold my tongue and just keep quiet instead of replying the same way they spoke to me in order to avoid a pointless argument. I like to think that I can get along with anyone, but I would rather avoid people like that. If only it were possible to avoid people like that always. The real world rarely acquiesces so easily, though. And no matter where you work or go to places where there are a lot of people (and, indeed, the internet... especially the internet ), you will encounter people like that -- those with little to no control over their anger -- and, unfortunately, you may have to deal with them on a regular basis. Self-control is the best way. Just like your momma used to say, "If you can't say something nice... don't say anything at all..." Too often, though, I take the bait, and each time I think to myself, "Never again." Whatever, eh?
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-09: So it's been raining for the last few days. It's not non-stop, but when you have to drive around and walk around in that stuff, it sure feels like it. It's actually good that we get a lot of rain here; there was a drought this summer, and from what I understand, Vancouver had only something like 10 to 20 days of water left in the reservoir before it went dry. It's strange, because if you're at all familiar with the weather in Greater Vancouver (very similar in general to Seattle and the US Pacific Northwest south of the border), you'll know that rain, rain and more rain is the usual weather pattern here. It's a temperate rainforest thing.
Anyways, I had to go out today (on a Saturday afternoon) in this awful rainy weather on a few errands that meant I had to drive fairly good distances between the various locations I went to. It wasn't fun, especially when my car started giving me problems (it's near-death, really -- I can't drive it for more than an hour and a half before the motor begins to die). And I ended up having to walk out in the rain for about half an hour to find one of the places I was looking for. 
On a more positive note, I finally found some time to finish writing a chapter for a fan-fiction round-robin story at one of the fanfic groups I belong to, one which I wrote while watching Saving Private Ryan on TV this evening. (I'm very impressed, by the way, that ABC presented the entire film uncut and unedited. I'm not pro-violence by any means, but it would be a real cheat and would lose much of its impact to edit out the graphic content from that film for the TV version.  ) But I really need to get back to writing my original stuff -- fan-fiction will never pay the bills. Sometimes my priorities get really out of whack.
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-08: I just stayed up all night (yet again) working on my webpage. Was it worth it? Depends on when you ask me. I'm sure in a few hours from now at work I'll have a different opinion than I do right now...
Anyways, I just finished setting up a nifty new section I'm calling "The Time Trust's Scribblings" for now. It's basically a catch-all for all the fan-fiction and RPG stories I've written in the past few years, as well as a place to put some articles I've written and plan to write. And the weblogs will be archived there at the end of every month so as not to overwhelm this poor little index page.  This is something I've been meaning to do for a LOOOOONG time now, and it sure feels good to finally have it up. Now all I need is some material to put in there.
This isn't just something I'm doing for me, y'understand. I'd love to get some articles on comics, sci-fi, history, literature, et cetera from you folks out there in cyberspace, too! I am now officially accepting submissions for a section of Scribblings I'm tentatively calling "Guest Voices" (though I might change the name down the road) which is entirely written by people other than me.
I know there are a lot of you out there who have something to say and few places to say it. Sure, you can post your thoughts on a message board, but once that topic is dead, my friend, it rarely gets seen again. And you've thought about setting up a webpage of your own, but it's too much bother to learn just to post a couple of articles. Well, here's a good place to post it, if it's basically "on topic" for this site. Once it's up there, it'll stay up there for people to peruse and read, read and peruse, until and unless you tell me to take it down. And if you have an on-topic article on your own webpage that you'd like to "mirror" here (thereby getting some exposure to your own site as well), then I'm more than willing to consider it. 'Course, management reserves the right to "be picky" and all that, but if what you have to say is worth listening to, and it's on-topic, I'd love to have it posted here.
Now I've really got to get to bed. Stop keeping me up, people!
Doc Quantum
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2002-11-07: Burnout...  Here's something you need to know in order to understand me: I'm an insomniac. And a "night person." When everyone else is getting tired and going to bed, I'm catching my second or third wind and coming up with my most creative stuff, whatever that happens to be at the time.
Well, eventually my body starts to rebel against not getting enough sleep at night (too often I go with only three or four hours of sleep at night and compensate with coffee), and I get these massive headaches and need to sleep in once in a while to catch up. During days like this (like today), I feel almost useless. I set myself on auto to get what needs to get done during the day, but I am totally spent as far as creativity goes. I love to write (and occasionally sketch or paint), but when I've got a pounding headache like right now, my writing is pure crap. It's frustrating, too, because I look to writing as my salvation from the 9-to-5 hell. But my novel and stories are coming along SOOOO SLOWLY right now. My RPG friends aren't too happy with me right now, either, because I haven't been participating with the things I need to write so they can do their thing. 
Where am I going with this? Not really anywhere, I'm afraid. Ignoring all the rules of article-writing, I'd prefer to keep this "weblog" thing very casual. These are my thoughts as I write them. I hope this personalisation helps those of you who regularly visit my webpage get to know me a bit better. And if you've gotten this far in my half-hearted little spiel -- thanks for listening... 
Doc Quantum
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