Day 37: Origin by Dan Brown – no spoilers

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 37: Origin by Dan Brown – no spoilers

Are you reading Dan Brown’s latest book ‘Origin’ yet? I picked up the book at the beginning of the week and the story is gripping right from the start.

While Dan Brown does an excellent job describing the scene, my curiosity got the better of me and I Googled a few of the things he described. For instance, the monastery in Montserrat, the Guggenheim Museum in Barcelona, the various artworks, a particular bridge in Budapest, a cathedral in the middle of nowhere, etc.

Of course, when I read on the subway, I can’t Google anything so then I have to make use of Post-it notes and stick them to particular pages of interest so I can Google this or that at a later time.

But speaking of the subway, it really isn’t a good idea for me to read ‘Origin’ on the train. I get so engrossed in the story that last week Friday I missed my stop. The first time I looked up I noticed that the train had stopped at Christie.

‘Christie?’ I thought, ‘I don’t pass a station called Christie. Christie is one stop after Spadina. Good grief I missed my stop!!!’ I quickly scrambled to my feet and got off the train.

On the streetcar, I didn’t fare much better. Even though the various stops are displayed on LED screens and a mechanical voice calls out the various stops, while reading I’m blind and deaf.

At one point I looked up though and saw the CN Tower. ‘That’s strange,’ I thought, ‘I never see the CN Tower.’ I glanced up at the LED screens and saw ‘Wellington Street’. Good grief, Wellington Street!!! I was way too far! If the next stop was Wellington Street that meant I had passed Queen and King Street without even noticing.

Damn Dan Brown, that was twice that ‘Origin’ got me into trouble and it wasn’t even 8:00 a.m. yet. And more trouble was just around the corner.

At lunchtime, I settled down on a comfortable couch in the company’s café and prepared for an hour of quiet reading. After what seemed like only 20 minutes or half an hour, Dave – a colleague – appeared at my side.

“Conny, are you coming back to your desk?” he asked.

“Sure,” I said, “when lunchtime is over.”

“Lunchtime was over 15 minutes ago,” he informed me.

When I checked my phone I noticed that it was indeed 1:15. Damn not again!

With currently 509 reviews on Amazon to date, the opinion of readers vary. 59% give ‘Origin’ a 5-star review, 15% give the book 4 stars, 11% 3 stars, 8% 2 stars, and 7% 1 star.

It’s safe to say that ‘Origin’ will receive a 5-star review from me. Any book that gets me into trouble three times in one day is worth nothing short of a top review.

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Is it really that simple

Voltaire once said, “I have chosen to be happy because it’s good for my health.” I wonder for how long he managed to keep up that resolution. Were things different in his lifetime? If Voltaire had lived today rather than in the 1700s would he perhaps also occasionally have lost his cool?

I think it’s strange, to begin with, choosing to be happy. Is there anyone who chooses to be unhappy? I imagine that most people get out of bed in the morning resolving to look, feel and do their best.

But no sooner does the day get started and life starts throwing stones at this resolve. There’s no hot water in the shower, a button is missing from a favorite shirt, the milk has gone sour … your good mood is being undermined and you haven’t even left the house.

On the road, there are more experiences to brush you up the wrong way: the highway is a parking lot, cars don’t indicate to turn left or right, or indicate for an ‘eventual turn’, or a car slides into your parking spot.

As the day progresses you get served more aggravation, from superiors, colleagues, and machinery. How are you doing with that “I have chosen to be happy because it’s good for my health” resolution?

I don’t have a car, so I don’t have to deal with highways and parking spaces, as a TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) user, I take the train, bus or streetcar. Not that that is without aggravation.

For instance …

Yesterday I was waiting in the Lawrence East station when I saw a youngster come out of the parole office across the street, walk up to the station and swan through the revolving barrier without paying.

This is the second time I’ve seen this happening. The first time an ex-inmate walked up to the ticket office and said that he’d come to see his parole officer but didn’t have any money for the train for the return journey. The TTC staff member asked him how he’d got to the parole office in the first place. “The same way,” he said. “They just let me through.” The staff member waved that he could proceed, without paying.

While that guy at least had the decency to ask if he could go through, the youngster I saw yesterday afternoon had no such manners. Without the slightest hesitation, he just walked in, indicating that this wasn’t the first time he was allowed on the train without paying.

Now that ticks me off. On average two million people take the TTC each day. The majority uses this form of transportation to get to and from work, but there are others who use the train for different reasons. Some are on their way to an interview, others have to go see a doctor, dentist or other medical professional. Others still have appointments at a hospital for life-saving treatment. All of these people, whether they are young or old, rich or poor, employed or unemployed, have to pay. But ex-inmates do not?!

If I was the kind of person to make resolutions, my “I have chosen to be happy because it’s good for my health” decision would go right out the window. I do not choose to be unhappy, nobody does, but life with all its complications and injustices just makes my blood boil.

What was that Mr. Voltaire …

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