Twice in the past week I have experience jamais vu. My dears, it's eerie.
La premiere foi: I was on a train to Erskineville to do some work with Michaelangelo Optica. I was chuffing* along, thinking my own thoughts, when I was startled by the recorded man saying "stand clear, doors closing" and I jumped out of the train, fearing at the same time that the station was Redfern and I was getting out a stop too early. Alighting, everything looked deeply unfamiliar - neither like Redfern nor like Erskineville. Instead of doing the sensible thing (looking for the station name) I followed the crowd up the stairs. I could feel my brain thinking, well, yes, the stairs are correct and at the top we'll see we are at Erskineville. And I was. But I only knew that by deductive reasoning. Though I came out into the street and saw the correct landmarks, I had the very strong feeling I wasn't in Erskineville at all. Even after an excellent cup of coffee at Cafe Sofia with M.Opt, the feeling I wasn't where I thought I was persisted for some time.
La deuxieme foi: I was walking up Pitt Street from Goulburn. I stopped into a second-hand bookshop and browsed works on World War I. When I stepped back out of the shop I had no idea where I was. You'd think that the emotion attached to this would be fear or panic. Instead, it was curiosity. I ascertained my location - I could see and rationalise certain landmarks, and could read and recognise street labels, yet I had never seen any of these things before. I kept walking up Pitt Street, sort of on faith really, as otherwise my option would have been to stand still. I kept waiting to "come to" and return to normal, but it was a good few minutes before I really knew where I was.
Fascinating.
*kids: trains used to go "choof choof choof". That was the sound of the steam, which drove the wheels. Now we have super-zoomy electric trains. So tell me why this is the road sign for 'train'.
**photo is of Dresden Bahnhof in Germany
16 comments:
A few years ago, I had the same thing happen when I was driving home. I actually had to call my wife to ask her where I was.
Actually, come to think of it, I was drunk at the time.
Never mind.
ah, mike mike mike mike mike.
It used to worry me when I'd get lost. Now I look at it as sightseeing.
Your in M. Night Shamaylan movies aren't you
chickie: Oh I love getting lost.
malach: I am.
That is fascinating. I had no idea there were two more Vus out there. Thanks!
BuzBi: How great is 'presque vu'? Now instead of saying 'Damnit, it's on the tip of my tongue', we can say 'Wow - presque vu. It's one of The Vus, you know'.
I just assume that I've switched into a parallel universe when that happens. And I also assume that the parallel universe is close enough to the previous one that I'll only notice subtle differences. And I further assume that the me in the parallel universe has also switched into another universe so that we won't accidentally run into ourselves. Because that might get confusing.
I have something similartojamais vue every morning.
Who the fuck did I screw last night & why am I at a bus station?
pheebs: I like the idea of dopplering Phoebes pinging through parallel universes.
cuntie: Yeah, what is it about stations?
I had that happen to me this morning but then I realized it's these damn multifocals that I'm running in.
So when we are drunk whilst wearing our new multifocals, we might get lost and wander onto the set of an M Night Shamaylan movie, which proves to be the gateway to a parallel universe. In a bus station. Screwed.
Does the parallel universe have George Bush in it, too?
yes, my colonel. She's Georgina Bush, a happy mute tea lady working for a charity.
Except for the fact that M Night Shamaylan is in control, that might be a good universe...
hmm, maybe we should put Bob Balaban in charge ...
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