Chapter 27: Chaos and Confusion

Tuesday, September 5, 1961 8:30am

It was orientation day, first day of college. Despite the fact that the campus was considerably smaller than he remembered it when he visited with Sue Chen, it was still intimidating to a newcomer. He had taken his father’s advice and enrolled early, purchased his books, looked up his class assignments, and scouted out the territory to determine just how long it would take to get from one class to another. Now, with thousands of students milling around, he was glad he’d followed his father’s guidance. He could see the signs of confusion and concern on the many faces he passed as he went from class to class, making sure his enrolment was confirmed.

He was following in the footsteps of his father at UBC, except his father was in Engineering, and Jesse was in the Arts program. Arts was by far the largest of the faculties, but for now he was satisfied it would give him a start while he determined just what he wanted to concentrate on. He knew his whole way of thinking about his education had changed. Gone was journalism, but what would replace it? He had been given a vision of the future, but how to meld that with what he would learn at university? Thankfully, he had at least a year to make up his mind.

He knew from his study of history, looking back from a twenty-first century perspective, that a number of significant developments in the computer world happened in a very short period of time in the early-to-mid sixties. Fortran language used to develop programs was among them, along with more sophisticated and capable integrated circuitry. If he could get in on the ground floor of computer development, he could accurately predict what would “sell” in the future. To Jesse, that seemed like an opportunity if he could manage the technical understanding and contribute something to a company who might be involved in the business.

To accomplish that, it occurred to him that he would have to have a complete understanding of micro-circuitry and the mechanics of computers. All he knew was what he had seen of his father’s company’s computer: a Remington Rand Univac that required a fleet of girls punching holes in cards to create financial and sales reports. He knew now that particular process would be obsolete, probably sooner than later. The fact that a modern laptop or desktop computer held far more computing power than the Univac that took up a whole room and required a half dozen people to operate it, confirmed the direction the industry would take.

In addition, Jesse also remembered just how compressed the advance of computer technology was. One of the articles he read called it a “hockey stick” advance. The development curve started slowly along the blade, but then rose steeply after it reached the heel of the stick. And it happened over a very short period of time. One development led to another, which led to another, and so on. How long the handle of the stick was, no one knew.

Manufacturing in 2012 used computers to command robots to assemble automobiles along with other technically advanced processes. Automobiles themselves came with computers to do all sorts of functions like anti-lock braking, collision warning, fuel management, traction control, and many more. The manufacture of the computer’s motherboard or “brain” was equally sophisticated.

The more he thought about it, the more Jesse was convinced this was a direction he wanted to go. The only question was whether he was intelligent enough to become a part of what he knew would be a major industry. He decided to consult with his father.

“I’ve been thinking, Dad. I’ve been reading about computers and the way they are developing. I mean, they are getting smaller, and yet more powerful. It seems like almost every week there’s a new development with the computer and I’m wondering if I could get in on the ground floor with a computer company. I’ll need to know a lot about them, and I was wondering if electrical engineering like you studied would be the right way for me to go.”

“One day on campus and you’re already thinking about changing your major?” He’d obviously caught his father completely by surprise. “What happened to journalism?”

“I don’t think it’s got the same kind of future as computers. I mean, people are getting their information by radio and TV today, but in the future, they may be getting it from computers, according to the experts. They’re already talking about using telephone lines to send messages and information from one place to another. That would make the mail obsolete, wouldn’t it?”

His father smiled. “Well, it’s possible I suppose, but I don’t think I’ll see it in my lifetime. However, there’s no doubt that computers are the way of the future. I guess electrical engineering would be a good start, but to be honest, I really don’t know enough about them to say. You’d be better to contact a computer company and ask them what kind of education you’d need to be useful to them. I’m sure they would know what’s required.”

“Yeah. That sounds like a good way to go. I’ll do that. Thanks, Dad,” Jesse said with a nod and a smile.

Jesse found it easy to become frustrated with the slow and cumbersome methods of gathering information that existed in the mid-twentieth century. In his brief visit to the future, he had been spoiled by almost instant gratification when he was curious about something. And to begin with, he was curious about almost everything. Now, back where he had started, he would have to try to be patient as he sought the necessary answers to his questions.

Wednesday, September 27, 1961 12:05pm

Jesse had just settled in with his lunch tray and Popular Science magazine when he heard what he thought was a familiar voice.

“Do you mind if I share this table with you?”

He looked up and was frozen in shock. His eyes went wide, his face lost all its colour, and he was speechless. There in front of him was a vision from his past ... or more correctly, his future. There wasn’t a single doubt in his mind that the gorgeous young woman standing there was the reincarnation of Candice Tanner.

“Well ... is it okay?” she asked slightly miffed, still standing and holding her tray.

“Uh ... yeah ... sure,” he finally managed. “Sorry, you caught me by surprise,” he mumbled.

Jesse was still in shock. How could this be? Was he trapped in some time warp or something? He struggled to say something coherent. This wasn’t déjà vu, since he’d originally met her at the baseball game. But it was too similar for him not to be both stunned and baffled.

“Uh ... I’m Jesse ... Jesse Peterson,” he said, wondering if she would confirm his suspicion.

“Hi, I’m Candice Tanner. I’m first year. How about you?”

Another shock to the system. He was only just accepting that this woman was a double for Candice when she confirmed that was her name. What kind of strange world had he found himself in? Again, he was rendered speechless, not knowing if he could form a coherent answer. Finally, “Yeah ... I’m frosh too. Are you from around here?” he probed, wondering what other parallels there were.

“No ... Cranbrook. How about you?”

There it was. The confirmation that he was dealing with another dimension in a world he no longer understood. He summoned his control and answered.

“West Van. Local boy,” he managed, still reeling under the unbelievable circumstances.

“I’m living in a dorm temporarily. It’s not the greatest, but at least I’m not alone,” she told him.

“Oh ... yeah ... well, I come from home every day,” he said, almost stammering. “How do you mean ... temporarily?”

My brother has an apartment near here, but he’s about to go on rotation at the hospital. He’s an intern at the General.”

Another parallel might have completely put him off, but Jesse was beginning to get his wits about him. “So, you can move into his place?”

“Yes. I might have to share with him now and then, but it won’t be often. He has a second bedroom, so it’s going to work out fine for me.”

“Lucky you. I carpool with some other kids who come from my area. I guess I am lucky. Mom’s a good cook so I don’t have to eat this stuff every day,” he said, looking down at his lunch. He was forcing himself to have this conversation. His mind was reeling at the thought that this was happening to him. Were there more people besides Candice that he would discover in both worlds; now and the future?

She laughed. “I know what you mean. A couple of the girls have smuggled in a hot plate and we make some simple stuff like macaroni and cheese or spaghetti. We take turns cooking. But I can smell the stuff in the hallways and I’m sure someone is going to squeal on us sooner or later. We’re not supposed to cook anything in our rooms. Too dangerous, they said. I’ll be glad when I can move to David’s apartment.”

“Yeah,” Jesse nodded absently. “What you need is a microwave,” he said before realizing just what he’d revealed.

“What’s a microwave?” she asked.

“Oh ... it’s one of those new inventions scientists are working on. You can’t buy one yet. Apparently it zaps the food and stimulates the molecules and makes food hot or even cooks it. Real science fiction stuff, you know.”

Jesse was almost proud of himself for how he scrambled to cover his mistake. He was beginning to recover his equilibrium. He was going to have to be far more careful about things like that. He had no idea when the first microwave would come on the market, but it wasn’t in 1961.

Candice looked at the magazine and then back up at Jesse. “You must be real smart,” she said. “You read about this kind of stuff all the time, right?”

“Yeah ... I suppose,” he lied. “It is interesting ... you know ... thinking about the future.”

“My dad says we’re going to get a colour TV one of these days,” she announced.

“I bet it won’t be long before everyone has a colour TV,” Jesse offered. “After all, once you’ve seen one, why would you settle for black and white? I also heard someone is going to get a cable network going in Vancouver. That will eliminate roof aerials. Then they can go to work on making TV clearer ... you know ... like the movies.”

“Do you think about this stuff a lot?” she asked.

Jesse shrugged. “I guess so. Don’t we all think about what the future will be like? I know I wonder what kind of cars we’ll drive fifty years from now.”

“Hah!” she snapped. “My dad fixes cars and he says fifty years from now we won’t be needing cars. We’ll all have little helicopters to get around in.”

Jesse laughed. “I don’t think so,” he said with a big grin. “This world will be too crowed to let a bunch of people fly around all over the place, crashing into each other the way they do today. You mess up flying at a thousand feet and you’re toast,” he added.

She shrugged. “Maybe they’ll find a way to fix that too.”

“Maybe,” Jesse said, not wishing to get into an argument with her. He was still not quite able to reconcile how Candice in 2012 was here in 1961 as well. She couldn’t be in two places at once, could she? Then again, he was ... or so it seemed. This was just getting crazier. He had to find a way to deal with it. He forgot about the magazine while he thought about what to say next.

“Uhhm, Jesse, do you have a girlfriend?” she asked, usurping his about-to-be-asked question.

“No. Why?” he asked, looking at her carefully.

“Just curious. I don’t have a boyfriend, so maybe we can go on a date sometime ... if you’d like to,” she tried tentatively.

He looked at her long and hard before, “Are you serious?” This was too much like their first meeting at the ballpark.

Candice looked unsure, but said, “I guess. I’m new here ... like you ... and I don’t know anyone. You look like someone I could trust.”

“I am a teenage guy, so ... I guess I’m as trustworthy as the next guy,” he said. “My parents would shoot me if I wasn’t when I was with a girl.”

That brought about a giggle from Candice. “Yeah ... I bet they would, too. Sounds like your parents are something like mine. They’d shoot my brother if he messed up.”