Free Will Isn't Free
I wish the band that appeared in my dream had been real. I don't remember much about their music, but they were a pretty obscure novelty band that mixed elements from real bands I liked, and I was listening to some material of theirs that had only been released on cassette. The volume was very uneven, sometimes really loud and other times really quiet, leading neighbors to complain. The main thing I remember is something where they were pretending they were some other band that played an odd combination of styles, like gospel mixed with something totally unlike gospel. This bit started at the end of one side and continued on the other, but they didn't realize the tape was running, so there was a bit of muttering before it actually started up. Within the context of the dream, there was something about John Linnell of They Might Be Giants having been in this group, but he only really contributed to one song. It made no sense, but I was really excited about hearing them.
In waking life, I went with bethje to the Ocean City (New Jersey) boardwalk on Tuesday evening, because she enjoys walking on boardwalks. We ended up walking the entire length both ways, for a total of five miles. One thing I do appreciate about that boardwalk is that they have a dollar store that sells bottles of soda for...well, I'm sure you can guess how much. We saw a lot of bunnies along the sides, eating flowers and beach grass.
Last night, I watched the most recent Futurama episode, which had Bender bemoaning the fact he didn't have free will. I guess it was sort of an in-joke, as real robots presumably wouldn't have free will, but the ones on the show are generally more capricious and willful than the humans. I mean, why would someone program a robot to cheat and steal? It's like when Bender cried because he lacked emotions. It was fun seeing the Robot Elders again, although I'm not sure why their planet was simply called the Robot Homeworld this time instead of Chapek 9. I forget exactly what the church Bender briefly joined was called, but I know it contained a reference to the technological singularity, which basically means machines achieving superhuman intelligence. Also, the Professor survived multiple blasts from a ray gun? It must not have been on a very high setting. The best part was the Swiveling Surprise Chair, but it was funny overall, if confusing.
In waking life, I went with bethje to the Ocean City (New Jersey) boardwalk on Tuesday evening, because she enjoys walking on boardwalks. We ended up walking the entire length both ways, for a total of five miles. One thing I do appreciate about that boardwalk is that they have a dollar store that sells bottles of soda for...well, I'm sure you can guess how much. We saw a lot of bunnies along the sides, eating flowers and beach grass.
Last night, I watched the most recent Futurama episode, which had Bender bemoaning the fact he didn't have free will. I guess it was sort of an in-joke, as real robots presumably wouldn't have free will, but the ones on the show are generally more capricious and willful than the humans. I mean, why would someone program a robot to cheat and steal? It's like when Bender cried because he lacked emotions. It was fun seeing the Robot Elders again, although I'm not sure why their planet was simply called the Robot Homeworld this time instead of Chapek 9. I forget exactly what the church Bender briefly joined was called, but I know it contained a reference to the technological singularity, which basically means machines achieving superhuman intelligence. Also, the Professor survived multiple blasts from a ray gun? It must not have been on a very high setting. The best part was the Swiveling Surprise Chair, but it was funny overall, if confusing.