Vichy Water – Author's Blog Just another WordPress weblog

Before Singularity and reading this fascinating blog, take 3:55 and please watch this YouTube video of your blog writer doing his first television reporting gig(and thanks):

my 1st tv reporter gig on YouTube video an absolute must watch!

 

INDEED PLEASE WATCH 4 minute video. comments welcomed/needed. I never held a microphone before.

Last week’s blog dealt mainly with the Singularity Summit in NYC; a meeting of 600 global scientists, technologists, business people, some boutique media and me, probably the only journalist from New Jersey covering this annual event that looks at the advancement of artificial intelligence and technology and how it will affect current 2011 denizens in the lurking future.

After several epiphanies and a great talk with Jason Silva from Current TV etc, I found a place for myself in the world of Singularity; a reason to believe; purposeful involvement; communication to bring the message of Singularity to high school and college kids and perhaps a few senior citizens. Getting to know me through my blog, you probably can sense my exuberance to share information that I believe in. I do believe. I do believe in Singularity. I don’t want a smart aleck computer in 15 years to clone itself into a smarter computer that passes us humans by. I certainly don’t want to spend my golden years in a mind matrix of field of dreams or on a self-imposed prune subsistence diet. I want to wait on line at a broccoli and cauliflower buffet and talk to real people about real sex and the NY or Jersey? Jets or Giants. I hate being confused in a world of total recall. Is it live or memorex? Does anyone remember that commercial?

On the day after the Summit, I took my unbridled enthusiasm, got on my horse that I rode through the Lincoln Tunnel on, and galloped into Monmouth County where I met with three honor high school students at a television studio. They were taping a segment on their amazing community service project. When I cornered two of them in a glass window room off camera, I introduced myself, told them I still play beer pong (a bonding commonality technique) and asked enthusiastically, “Did any of you ever hear about Singularity?” Of course the response was negative.

Three nights later, I was on a tennis court, with my regular doubles game. The other three players: a cardiologist, a dentist and an organic chemist who owns a lab( supplied dispersants to BP in the Gulf oil spill and as Hyman Roth said to Michael Corleone, “Your father and me. We made a fortune.”) and graduated with honors from Yale. Jennifer Cavalleri would’ve described him as, “A Yalie.”  I’m a hopeless movie romantic as well. In between tennis sets, I asked the triumvirate if they ever heard of Singularity. More negative responses. Undaunted, I stopped strange men and women on the street near where I live and asked the same question. No one ever heard. Hey, I was batting 1000%.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last Saturday I journeyed to Belmar, New Jersey to participate in Beach Sweeps; a New Jersey coastal environmental project, sponsored by Clean Ocean Action, where up to 8000 Jersey citizens gather at 70 sites to rid the beaches of unsightly and harmful debris. Fishes, whales, birds and other animals mistake litter for food. Even cigarette filters mimic fish and have been found in the stomachs of birds and larger fish, blocking and affecting digestion. Plastic litter takes hundreds of years to break down, so it threatens wildlife for decades. So why do I run to the beach to pick up litter? Well, if I’m living to 150 years which as you know, I always blog about (part of Singularity future) then I’m not even close to mid-life and therefore a ‘young’ thing to do. Of course, a significant amount of literary license and Sunday morning light-headedness, but is there relevance and intrinsic mystical quality to doing supposedly young things? Maybe teasing a few neo-cortex neuronal connections. Enough said. I was excited about being part of the sweep and I picked First Avenue Beach in Belmar because it’s a few hundred feet away from my spiritual jetty at the Shark River, where I’ve been communing and meditating since I was 10 years old and first heard the Everly Brothers sing ‘Bye Bye Love.’

YouTube Bye Bye Love:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFoIdxLBm_A

At the registration, Brian, a college student, gave me a white plastic bag for litter, a black bag for recyclables and a reporting form for documenting everything I recovered. “Brian, before I venture on the beach, quick question for you. Did you ever hear of Singularity?” “Excuse me, sir,” he was puzzled. “Never mind.”  As I slipped under the boardwalk of the members only ‘Belmar Fishing Club,’ I found my first plastic straw next to a plastic bottle cap. I mattered; this clean up was now relevant. Observations 14 minutes into clean up: There was no one close to my age present.  Groups of young kids, ostensibly organized by schools, were there to feel environmentalism. Of course I was heartened; I remember the first Earth Day in May 1970: I’ve never stopped caring and being aware. Slyly, I let the sand formations of a recent tractor incursion lead me to a group of five students from East Brunswick High School.

 

I explained my novelist and journalistic background, gave them a business card, asked for a photo op and finally after thanking them, “Oh one more thing, has anyone ever heard of Singularity?” Heads were in synchronistic lateral movement like precision dance swimmers in the Olympics with of course smiling blank stares in front of perfectly situated teeth; one girl still had braces. “Well let me quickly tell you. It’s your world to inherit. Singularity contemplates a computer birthing another computer that’s finally smarter than us. Think of all the scenarios.” Then I was gone with the cool autumn wind under unrealistic blue sky which even looked adulterated blue. Still batting 1000%.  A pair of dark blue men’s socks (no designer logo visible) were tied together, half buried in the sand.  A plastic fork got socks into the bag. Could it be, the last time I held a collection bag of any sort, I was asking geographical neighbors (they’re almost never friends), back in Newark while Eisenhower was president “Anything for Halloween?”

 

Aimlessly I wandered, still finding plastic straws, hoping to meet at least one senior citizen comrade. I remember comrade Nikita Kruschchev banging his shoe at the UN. Another group was near so I drifted to the left and introduced myself; a group from Biotechnology High School in Freehold. Same routine; no one knew Singularity and didn’t seem to worry about working for a computer in 20 years.  Still at 1000%.  My white bag was filling but no recyclables; maybe the species was learning. Off to the right was another group of kids, also from Biotechnology High, with two teachers. I slid over. Remarks were addressed to the teachers, kids listening. I hoped teachers would know about Singularity. Still 1000%. “It’s your future too. Here’s my card. Friend me on Facebook. A lot of information to share; it’s a brave new world.” Of course no friending or follow up. Still 1000%.

 

Frankly my dear (blog readers) it was time to leave the beach. On the boardwalk, near my car, a group of four Rider University students had just finished Beach Sweep. My son went to Rider. I asked about Singularity; no one knew but laughed when I said, “And I still play beer pong.” Still 1000%. Seven days and seven nights asking people about the future and no one knew. On Main Street Belmar there’s an old fashioned bakery; I thought about the long week past and teaching (promulgating) the Singularity awareness journey ahead. I don’t do windows, bottles of wine or beer, red meat or chemical aids when frustration blows in the wind. But I do voluminous chocolate and especially seven layer cakes. And I finished a  substantial helping(which had been protectively sealed) by the last traffic light close to my house.

 

Much too long to delve into now, but I’ve been drifting into the world of journalism, writing for  OUR TOWN newspaper and then through the magic of social networking became involved with a television production company looking into New Jersey programming. Who would’ve ever thought?  Hours after my Beach Sweep, I’m back at the Jersey shore, in Asbury Park for the Annual Zombie Walk. Imagine 5000 zombies, incredibly made-up, preparing to walk downtown Asbury in front of 15,000 spectators. Deep inhalation: it was great to be alive (therefore I wore no costume), absorbing, witnessing, immersing myself in pure ecstatic joy at being there; soon the television crews arrived, gave me a microphone and I’d love to say at this juncture, the rest is history. You can judge for yourselves; my first reporting experience (4 fun-filled minutes):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfFA-y115nc

Prediction about Zombie Walk: Maybe 40,000 people next year. Hyped media coverage (including little ole me) will bring many people for the first time. In my own micro-cosmic world, I’ve received enough comments about how most just didn’t know these events went on. And Asbury Park, you keep going and growing, on the merry-go-round of an amazing renaissance. I love this town.

 

Love and marriage go together like a horse and carriage. I love this Sinatra song too:

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRDBvKGc1fE

So I think on Monday, Earth’s population will hit exactly seven billion people. A few weeks back, I questioned a scientist on population, food, water, monopoly game boards, and the fact that French schools have banned American Heinz ketchup; Too much sugar, salt, and imports? Perhaps we’ll go to nine billion next time we count, he said and when I grimaced about poor mom earth supporting all that, he patted my shoulder, “Don’t worry. By the time the water tables dwindle, we’ll lose that extra two billion again.” Then I had strange vibes on my mind. “How about social change?” “You mean that in 1950, 33% of the adult population was single and now the figure is 50%.” Marriage today is an option not a necessity and we’ve got economic gender parity.

Then I looked at my own pre-disastered first marriage back in 1969. The night before the wedding, fiancé and me had a disagreement(a nicer word); she ran out of my house crying and mother appeared out of a saffron lit dining room; an almost vaporous figure with tears racing down each cheek. “Don’t marry this girl tomorrow. Mother’s know. Call up everybody right now and cancel. Give the gifts back. She’s all wrong for you.”

Psychology Today magazine taught me well. “Mah, my generation is getting divorced all over the place. So I want to get on with my life. It doesn’t make a difference who I marry tomorrow. It won’t last. So let me get the first over with as quickly as possible so I can get on with my life. Now do you understand?” “No, Calvin.”

 

 

 

The other day I asked my son (about the same age as I was back then), “Did you call that girl from last week?” “No Dad, I’m not looking to get married for a long time, so I didn’t call. No rush. Do you understand?” I thought about my mother back in 1969 and had to say, “No.” But I really do. I really do a lot of things. I love writing this blog and looking to find ways to eliminate the 1000% Singularity shaking of the heads sideways. A few hours ago I talked with amazingly progressive Mayor Jonathan Hornik of Marlboro,N,J. about finding ways to teach the youth of the town and beyond about Singularity and their future world.  “Just have to wait until after Election Day,” he said. I was back on the beach running around, glad to be alive, head swimming with ideas. I’m on the way to fulfillment and dreamy stuff. What a purist high to resolve a mission. And it absolutely even did not bother me to seven layer cake thoughts again when the mayor originally said, “What’s Singularity?” And I thought, still 1000%  but………………..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONTACT INFORMATION

website:  http://vichywater.net/

Facebook:  Cal Schwartz

Twitter:  Earthood

book trailer. hey its 65 seconds long

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qj2ko9gcC_M

 

IMPORTANT LINKS:

 

If on Facebook check out this NJ Discover site:

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000125711074

OR   www.njdiscover.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ARE you in search of another blog that is also outspoken, unique BUT refreshingly, topically unbridled which means uninhibited ????  Meet   LINDA CHORNEY:

http://lindachorney.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

Immortality Institute (which represents advocacy and research for unlimited lifespan)

http://www.imminst.org/

August 2011. Guest on Alicia Cramer Show (podcast) “Thin Healthy Happy” :

http://wausauhypnotherapy.podbean.com/2011/08/02/calvin-barry-schwartz-interview-on-living-life/