The View from the Hermitage, Day 173

Like it or not, we find ourselves in a global pandemic. The last such pandemic was just over a century ago, in 1918. While there are certainly people alive now who were alive then--I have even read of a woman who suffered and recovered from both the Spanish flu and covid-19--most of us weren't. That makes this a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Granted, there could be another global pandemic, but given the 100-plus years between the last two, it's not overly likely.

Pondering this, I began to think of what my other once-in-a-lifetime experiences might be. Halley's Comet, also known as Comet Halley, appears every 75 to 76 years. The last time it was visible from our third rock from the sun was in 1986. Its next visit is projected to be in 2061. Did you see Comet Halley on its 1986 visit? I did, and since I probably won't be alive for its next visit, seeing it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. There are certainly people who will be able to say that they saw it twice, but for most of us, it's a one-and-done thing.

I go back and forth whether the arrival of a new millennium qualifies as a once-in-a-lifetime experience given how rarely it happens. The arrival of a new century, though, seems as if it would qualify. Some people, but not many, will live through the arrival of a new century twice, but it seems to me to qualify as another once-in-a-lifetime event. 

The husband suggested the 1969 lunar landing, which I had thought of and discarded. Why? Because there were more than one lunar landings, with more being planned, and the first lunar landing in 1969 was a one-shot deal that can't be repeated. That takes it out of the running at least for my list of once-in-a-lifetime experiences.

If you're from the US of A and around my age, do you remember how you heard about the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963? Given that the other U.S. presidential assassinations took place in 1865, 1881, and 1901, I'd say that a presidential assassination is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Obviously, that would not be true for someone born in 1855 who died in 1905, but for folks  alive now who were born before November 1963, I'd say an assassination counts. 

The question does arise if a once-in-a-lifetime event counts if you weren't old enough to remember the experience. Good question, and the answer I'll say is in the eyes of the beholder. Obviously, the ones I've thought of are ones I was there for and remember. Someone more elderly than I might want to count a British royal abdication in 1936. Given the length of Elizabeth II's reign (so far), a royal coronation could for some folks be once-in-a-lifetime. I expect it will be a while before another British monarch serves as long as Her Majesty has. 

Once I post this entry, I imagine that I will think of another one or two once-in-a-lifetime events I could have added. That's just the way things are these days. My mind wanders in one direction, sees a butterfly or something shiny, and is off in a new direction. As for once-in-a-day experiences, I have a pan of no-churn Persian saffron and pistachio ice cream in the freezer. I was late getting it made, so we may or may not be sampling it tonight. The recipe says to leave it in the freezer for 6 to 12 hours or until very firm. For now, here's what it looks like:

Tomorrow I'll let you know what it tastes like.