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-
- Hitch Hikers Guide To The Net
- Episode 3 - The Singularans
-
- (Arnold Lint and the crew of the Infinity are trying to decide what to do
- now that they are being faced by the deadly Singularans.)
-
- Xaphod: Oh wow, just when we got past the Flamers, we have to run into
- the 'Singles'. The Illogical drive won't work this time.
-
- Rod: No, and neither will evasive actions. They all talk that way!
-
- Gillian: What will we do then?
-
- Arnold Lint:I'll tell you . . . we're all going to die.
-
- Xaphod: Shut your cake-hole!
-
- Martin: I tried to tell you this trip would be a real downer, but
- would you listen?
-
- Rod: Quiet!
-
- Xaphod: I guess we should see what they want.
-
- (Xaphod switches on the two way video telecommunicator and RadaRange. The
- face of the Singularan captain appears on the screen. He is a normal
- human wearing a T-shirt which says: "Have you ever really listened to
- Manilow?" He is also sporting glow in the dark pants and 10 pounds of
- silver and gold chains around his neck.)
-
- Singularan: Hey, like I'm Dirk Thawtphull. We were cruising by and saw
- your node. Interested in some meaningful relationships, free
- from the moral depravity that otherwise infects the net.
-
-
- Xaphod: Well, I kind of like depravity.
-
- Rod: Yah, me too.
-
- Dirk: Wow, you'd love our S & M encounter group then, fershure!
-
- Arnold Lint:Your what?
-
- Dirk: S & M encounter group. We get together twice a week and
- exchange recipes and beatings.
-
- Arnold Lint:How could a group like that command such a strong node?
-
- Xaphod: Well, the sudden popularity of Jogging induced widespread
- adoption of the principles of Single-ism. The subsequent rise
- of the sport of 'Joggering' reduced the numbers of Singularans
- to normal size. It appears that they may be making a come back
- though.
-
- [The "Hitch Hikers Guide to the Net" defines 'Joggering' as a sport
- originated in Australia to combat the sudden drop in productivity caused
- by having everybody jogging. Australian champion Bruce Karnage describes
- the sport: "Well, there is a different way of catching both male and
- female joggers. If it's a male, you flush him out into the open with
- cigarette smoke, then chase him down in your 4 x 4 Land Rover. When he's
- tired, bump him with the fender to stun him momentarily. Then get out and
- with your driver pick him up by all fours and run him head-first into the
- side of the truck. If it's a female, bait a likely spot with designer
- jogging wear and then wait for a flock to arrive. When one becomes
- interested, sneak up behind her, very quietly. Then when you are about two
- feet away, and you can see the sun dancing on her richly tanned flesh
- caressing her well toned figure into a visual symphony of delight, split
- her skull with a handy two-by-four. It's a lovely sport!" The sport later
- became known as 'Walkmaning'.]
-
- Rod: We were on our way to Netrothea to pick up some ... uh ...
- fuel, yah that's it.
- Dirk: Well, we've got plenty of fuel, come on over and we'll let you
- have it.
-
- Xaphod: No, it's OK.
-
- Dirk: I insist!
-
- (The Singularan ship lets out a pink and purple polka-dot ray that engulfs
- the Infinity. Arnold Lint and company find themselves in a room on the
- Singularan ship. It is decorated right out off the floor of a K-Mart.
- K-Tel's "Feelings" album is playing "You light up my existence" in the
- background, on the ceiling is a gigantic mirror, and in one corner is a
- gigantic mood-bean-bag chair.)
-
- Gillian: How awful!
-
- Martin: Actually, I kind of like it, in a depressing sort of way.
-
- Rod: Quiet.
-
- Arnold Lint:Where are we.
-
- Dirk: You're aboard the Singularan vessel "Sincerity". You will
- remain here until you learn to develop meaningful
- relationships over the Net. Meaningful relationships based on
- honesty, truth, and having nothing to do with physical
- appearance. Relationships which will grow as you and your
- partner, or partners, share, or don't share, things you have,
- or don't have, in common. You will learn how to have every
- other sentence include the words 'special' or 'meaningful
- relationship'.
-
- Xaphod: If he says "meaningful relationship" once more I'll have to
- pray to the porcelain buddha.
-
- Rod: Sickening, isn't it.
-
- Dirk: Right, enough of this. Wait here and we'll start programming
- you for meaningful relationships.
-
- (Xaphod bends over a nearby table and vomits, the 12" CRT on his shoulder
- starts scrolling "Uuuggghhh")
-
- Gillian: What did you mean about "programming" us?
-
- Dirk: We'll have to make you compatible with the environment and
- take away all your inhibitions when discussing your personal
- life on the Net. You'll be subjected to countless sessions
- watching repeats of "The Dating Game", "The Newlywed Game",
- and "Celebrity Wife Swapping". And that's only Stage 1!
-
- [The "Hitch Hikers Guide to the Net" points out that the three old earth
- TV shows just mentioned were actually the basis for a huge
- inter-conglomerate stock monopolizing scheme started by The Phone Company.
- The questions asked on these shows were actually coded messages issued by
- The Phone Company to the conglomerates it was working with. These messages
- told the associated conglomerates about which stocks to buy based on
- information gained by The Phone Company by listening in on the phones of
- important companies. The client corporations paid The Phone Company 1
- million dollars for each such message. The seemingly idiotic contestants
- were, more often than not, government agents trying to break The Phone
- Company's code. Chuck Barris, the originator of the shows, was later found
- to be a financial genius, rivaled only by Howard Hughes.]
-
- Rod: We gotta get put of here!
-
- Xaphod: Yah.
-
- Rod: You know what really gets Singularans put off? Rudeness and
- crudeness!
-
- Arnold Lint:What?
-
- Rod: Rudeness, if we act real crude and rude, they'll beg us to
- leave!
-
- Xaphod: Great, let's try it!
-
- (Dirk returns with three gorgeous women and one well built female model
- android.)
-
- Rod: (To the first girl) Wow, look at that pair!
-
- Xaphod: (To the second girl) That's a lovely grab!
-
- Rod: (To the third girl) OK love, drop 'em!
-
- Martin: (To the female android) I wave my private parts toward
- approximate vector coordinates.
-
- Gillian: (To Dirk) Say Dirk, if you get some Saran-Wrap and chicken
- wire, I'll get the honey and the plunger.
-
- Dirk: Get out of here you disgusting filthly maladjusted perverts!
-
- (The three women and one android exit with great haste. The crew of the
- Infinity is beamed back to their node.)
-
- Dirk: Good riddens. Put on the flip side of "Feelings" and pass the
- cheese dip. It's their loss, for only we know what true
- meaningful relationships are. Only we know the feeling of
- wholeness that comes from showing, or not showing, what one
- feels, or doesn't feel, with someone special we care about. We
- aren't hung up on physical things, we are spiritualists. At
- least, that's what we tell everyone else.
-
- Xaphod: Right, now on to Netrothea, nothing can stop us now.
-
- ******************** End Of Part 3 ********************
-
- Will the crew of the Infinity reach Netrothea, or will Nothing stop them?
- For the answers to this, and other useless questions . . . Tune in next
- time . . . same Net-time . . . same Net-channel.
-
- danielle