So lately I have had a really hard time going to sleep, I just can't turn my brain off. I'm constantly thinking of all sorts of things; what I need to do tomorrow, what I did today, things that need to get done, and just general thoughts on life, love and the pursuit of happiness. So, there was no way I was going to be able to just not think of anything, so I decided to try to direct all my thoughts in one direction, something that so menial I couldn't help but fall asleep. So, I started to count.
It didn't really work because then I was faced with the age old dilemma . . . do I count in hippopatamus, mississippi, alligator or one-thousand? So, it got me wondering, who decided how long a second is? Who decided how long any time period is? Someone sat around and said, ok there are 60 seconds in a minute, and 60 minutes in an hour. So now I'm thinking what this guy had with the number 60? Was he 60 years old? Did he have 60 prize camels? 60 fantastic pairs of shoes to pay homage to? Why 60? And did he just decide how long a second is?
Now, here is my biggest confusion on the length of time a second is: If you count in hippopatamus that takes a little bit longer to say than one-thousand. So if you say one-one-thousand, two-one-thousand, then you're going to go faster than one-hippopatamus, two-hippopatamus. And yes, I did have to look up how to spell hippopatamus to make sure that I was spelling it right (I was/am). One-thousand has 3 syllables, while alligator and mississippi has 4, and hippopatamus is bringing up the rear at a whopping 5 syllables.
So, my question is this- how long is a second really? I mean, really? Is it a one-thousand, an alligator/mississippi or a hippopatumus?
DON'T WORRY! I won't leave you wondering, I wouldn't do that to you. With my handy stopwatch in er, hand I watched the seconds tick away and I tested and retested each one. And the resutls are these; Hippopatus is way too long, mississippi took longer than alligator which was also too long. In the end one-thousand was just right.
Ok, now you think I'm a crazy person, but it was more idle curiosity than an adament burning craze to discover. And maybe others are curious so I thought I would share.
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5 comments:
hehe, you're the bestest ever! Thank you for solving that mystery and I will never again count in hippopotami.
Me thinks someone has too much time on her hands. I thought she got an Iphone so she didn't have to try to come up with things to occupy her time.
You are one of the coolest!!!
Bre you make me smile:)
the sad thing is i have tested that theory myself. and i too discovered the one-thousand was the way to go... i love those sleepless nights..not really..anywho.. so you are still totally cute and crazy..thats awesome... never change bre..never ever...
Wow, you have too much time on your hands!! You know what I do when I can't sleep? Unisom or Tyleno PM, depending on how long I want to sleep. Try it, it helps. I have tried the counting thing before and I end up thinking about something else and lose track of how high I had counted. Well, 10:30 p.m. only 3 1/2 more hours of work to go then I will be popping one of those happy pills.
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