Mind Wandering
I Need A 48-Hour Day
So I Can Fit More Fun Into It
One of my friends just said to me this morning, “Time goes by so fast. I don’t even have the chance to comprehend my day.” I acknowledged, and we both sighed. Oooouuufffhhh.
I often think about the passing of time, and maybe struggle to find an end or a solution for the problem. Hmm, that is poorly said. My actual problem is that time seems to run much faster than it did when I was a kid.
The Age of Kids
When I remember and imagine myself as a child, I always recall the general feeling of relief and freedom. Before going to school, when I was seven years old, all I had to do was play. That was my job, and I was good at it. I did not even require a lot of people to do that. My imagination was rich enough, and I could easily entertain myself.
After I started school, life was not bad at all. I could even say it was better. I moved into the city, I made new friends, and I took up karate.
I never felt like I was leaving any time on the table. The days were full of activities and joy. Sure, there were days, especially during the summer breaks, when I would lose track of time. In no time at all, it would be 1 o’clock, lunch was ready, and I could hear the resounding voice of my grandma. Aaaaaaaaallllleeeeeeeeex!!! Oh man, that woman had a voice.
Usually, the answer and response would be pretty swift, but If I were really into what I was doing, sometimes you would hear an “I’ll be there in 5 minutes” reply back. 15–30 minutes later, I would arrive.
Other days were full of chores, and, like any ‘normal’ kid, the best part of those days happened at the end, when we would finish the work. The satisfaction was immense, but I just wanted to play a little longer. Of course, those days felt like they were never ended.
Our brain has a funny way of perceiving time. Why couldn’t it have been the other way around? I wish the tedious activities would go with a snap, and the fun ones would linger, linger, linger, and stay a bit more after that.
As a child, you never think about the passing of time, or, at least, I never did, not in the way I am thinking of it now.
Adulthood Period
Now, it all seems the same, but it feels very different. I am most likely not the only one feeling this way.
Time is our most valuable asset, and we have to spend it wisely. I have a hunch that time is susceptible to inflation. It feels like 24 hours today is not equal to 24 hours from 20 years ago. I always have to look into my pockets for some spare change.
An interesting Cambridge article by Adrian Bejan called “Why The Days Seem Shorter as We Get Older” offers a scientific view on the matter.
As it would seem, as we grow older, both the size and complexity of our neural networks tend to increase. This, along with physical aging, causes electrical signals to take longer to process (distance + resistance). Because of the longer than expected processing time, we cannot record any new visual frames while the old ones are still processing in the background.
Think of it as a video camera. When you were young, you were able to record at 30 fps and get every frame. Now, 20–30–40 years later, you can only register 15. I have exaggerated the actual gap for a better emphasis.
In effect, it does not only seem like time is speeding up, but we are also actually losing moments because we don’t have the latest generation of video cameras.
I need a fresh brain, please, 2022 model.
An intriguing theory. I like the fact that it offers a possible explanation of what I am observing in day-to-day activities. If you visit a psychologist, I am sure you will get other views on the subject.
The 48-Hour Day
If you want to do that, that’s great, but that’s not what this article is about. Some years ago, my current brain, had an unusual and impossible (for now) theory.
If you’ve read the title and read this far, it means something clicked in your brain as well. 48-hour days.
First, hear me out, we don’t have to change anything. Let’s sleep for the same 8 hours, go to work for the same 8 hours, and do all the other gritty little things around the house, other chores, and errands for the remaining 8.
You still have to eat 3 times a day, months are still 30 days in length. You still pay the same rent. All good things. Oh yeah, don’t forget that the day starts at 00:00:00 and ends at 47:59:59. A minor difference there, but you will get used to it.
Ok, now that you’re done with your first 24 hours, on to the next 24.
Got some side projects you want to do, go ahead. Maybe a road trip, sure. Get another 8 hours of sleep? The bed is just waiting for you. Hmm, 8 hours of sleep is a lot, reserve 4 for fooling around. :)
Are you exhausted? It doesn’t matter as there is have enough temporal space to do everything you want.
I think it would be kind of awesome. It might seem impossible now, but, who knows, somewhere, in a few hundred years or so, we might find a planet that has 48-hour days. For the colonists born there, that will be a simple planet rotation, and with one or two power naps along the day, they will breeze through it.
Will they feel the same and have enough time? There will probably be some guy like me that will want to double that, someone that wants a day to have 96-Earth hours, or if we were to be correct, 95.9377 hours.
Other Thoughts
I do wish for that day to exist, but for now, it is fun to imagine. Not all our ideas and dreams need to make sense to everybody. Not everything has to have a practical application. Your imagination is your tool, and it has to make you happy. It can give you comfort and act as an oasis of silence, freedom, and thought.
If you want something more practical, sort of, you can read my article about Fridays.
As for me, it’s 04:50 PM, so I still have 31 hours and 10 minutes out of my day. See you tomorrow.
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