the Universe, by Kurt Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut, probably my favorite author, wrote this:

"To all my friends and relatives in Alcoholics Anonymous," I began, "I say that they were right to become intoxicated. Life without moments of intoxication is not worth 'a pitcher of spit,' as the felicitous saying goes. They simply chose what was for them a deadly poison on which to get drunk.

"Good examples of harmless toots are some of the things children do. They get smashed for hours on some strictly limited aspect of the Great Big Everything, the Universe, such as water or snow or mud or colors or rocks (throwing little ones, looking under big ones), or echoes or funny sounds from the voicebox or banging on a drum and so on. Only two people are involved: the child and the Universe. The child does a little something to the Universe, and the Great Big Everything does something funny or beautiful or sometimes disappointing or scary or even painful in return. The child teaches the Universe how to be a good playmate, to be nice instead of mean.

From "Fates Worse than Death" and "Bluebeard"

Paul McCartney = the Universe

Paul McCartney at coachella 2009 was probably the best show of my life. It had everything, and made me think a lot about the universe. Read on. I could not stop feeling that this was probably one of the most amazing things ever witnessed on planet earth, ever. The songs were so perfectly crafted, the jumbo-tron so big, the fireworks so bright.

All this, happening in the middle of the desert. An artifical oasis. We drove all day, knowing that hundreds of gallons of clean, fresh water had been shipped to the middle of the desert for us, grass grown on sand for us, tents, pools, tesla coils, flames.... unbelievable. We live like kings.

Between songs McCartney addressed the crowd: "hello coachella, california, usa, earth, solar system, galaxy, universe!" Try going through this in your head from where you are right now, picturing each step...i mean it, don't just read, try it...go slow, it's better that way I think... couch, house, berkeley, california, usa, earth, solar system, galaxy, universe. I stop being able to imagine it realistically somewhere between california and earth. It's impossible to really comprehend, how tiny we are relative to everything else. The known universe is so huge relative to the milky way galaxy, which is enormous relative to planet earth... and so on.

This thought process was even more incomprehensible in front of Paul McCartney. If this show, at this time, in this place, was as huge and amazing as it seemed to be... and I think it was...then how could I possibly imagine anything bigger. How insanely big is the earth, solar system, galaxy, universe? Think about it. Would the concert have blown my mind if I was watching it from another planet?

Which is more amazing, the existence of the universe, or the existence of life within it?