From: Michael Andre-Driussi <mantis@sirius.com>
Subject: (urth) 5HC: Holy Calendar Reform, Batman!
Date: Wed, 29 Nov 2000 19:43:57 

Robert Borski, he quoted and wrote:

><2) Length of Annese year.  Is this clutching at straws yet?  JVM says VRT
>looks/is 16 (Terran) years old.  If "A Story" is autobiographical, then as
>Sandwalker is 13 (Annese) years old around the time when VRT is 16 (T)
>years old, then the Annese year is 1.23 Terran years . . . which equals
>10788.922 hours . . . divided by 402 Annese days . . . gives an Annese day
>of 26.838114 hours . . >
>
>This still seems too short for me. Look: Marsch talks of "too-long days and
>stretched nights," but if we take 26.84 as the length, at the equinox, this
>would only add about 85 minutes to each of the Earth standard twelve-hour
>halves, or about 7 minutes "extra" to each hour. I'm not sure this would be
>detectable, at least on a subjective basis, or where a visitor would feel
>compelled to make a journal entry about "too long" days and "stretched"
>nights.
>
>Victor looking 16, but being 13, may or may not be an example of how some
>abos seem to be able to control the appearance of their age (e.g., Cassilla
>is only 21, but "In the bright daylight [the junior officer] could see fine
>wrinkles near her eyes; the girl was aging.") An adolescent male might be
>more appealing to John Marsch for a number of reasons over a boyish version;
>hence the rather inhumi-like faceshift Victor may have implemented.

I agree that it gets very close to "too short for JM to feel the diff";
excellent point about the equinox (I hadn't even =thought= about seasonal
effects on daylight--duh!) and ugh, that shape-changing has the ability to
trump just about anything <g>.  And since I've done the work with a 30 hour
day, believe me, I'd just asume let it stand.

However, the 26.84 hour day has a certain allure relating to biological age
(i.e., Terran years as measured by human growth).


       30          26.84
     HOUR MODE   HOUR MODE
AGE  (T YEARS)   (T YEARS)  CHARACTER DETAILS

 7     9.63        8.61     Number Five's "world at 7"
12    16.5        13.53     Number Five's injections begin
13    17.88       16        Sandwalker's age
18    24.76       22.14     Number Five into prison
27    37          33.21     Number Five out of prison
80   110          98.4      Mary Blount's age (*)

(* oh my, is her name really Mary??  That whole abo thing, plus the space
tech "was one of us" thing, eek)

Well, that "33" jumps right out at me, I'll admit!  Hoy!  Number Five
released from prison.  I also like the age to be a bit closer to the given
number: for example, Sandwalker trying to be manly, everybody thinking he
is boyish, is easier at 16 than at 18 (then again, harsh living stunts
growth and onset of puberty, etc.).

OTOH, one thing that is really neat is that if VRT is 13 Annese years old
rather than 16 Annese years old, then

heh-heh,

VRT and Number Five were born in the same year!!  Which adds to that
particular pile of twin-ness.  And

Hoy!  Hoy!

JM/VRT, son of Mary (daughter of Sainte Anne) and something else from
somewhere else, who was imprisoned and perhaps died at the age of 33.33 on
. . . Sainte Croix?

me go lie down now

=mantis=



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