The Last Man

[Wayne23]

August, 2163: We generally cruise around during the day, maybe go a few miles east or west, or a few miles north or south in the course of a day, and turn around and go back to the point of origin the next day.

Yesterday we went a few miles further east than normal when the alarms went off. The ship stops moving when that happens. I got up on deck as quickly as I could, which wasn’t all that quickly, because I was in the HC at the time, in the middle of a hike, and I saw something protruding out of the water off to starboard. It was fairly far from the ship. I got out my binoculars to get a better view and it looked like a rock formation.

This was the first time I’d seen anything natural protruding from the water since maybe a year after the 80 foot boat had gotten up higher than the glaciers- a long time ago.
I started heading the ship toward the protrusion. When we got about a 1/8 mile away alarms rang again and the ship stopped. That was as close as it was getting. The binoculars showed what was definitely a rock formation.

I got the proper equipment working and aimed it in that direction for analysis. It was definitely a rock formation, and it went as dep as the equipment could measure. So this was a mountain top. Which mountain, or how big a mountain? No way to know.

The big question is what did it mean. Was the water receding? It seemed impossible that the water would recede in any meaningful way. That sort of thing, at least historically, took millennia, if not far longer.

I consulted with my holoexperts, feeding them all the data I had. They concluded that this had to be Mount Everest, K 2, or a similarly tall mountain. It had probably always been sticking out of the water a little bit.

They found it exceedingly unlikely that any meaningful water receding had taken place.

Next: School, work, daily life

[Wayne23]

3/7: #8 seed Wisconsin, 13-15, 7-11, in the quarter finals. We beat them by 54 at our place.

3/8: 7-59. 20, 7 for Doqq, 18 for Few, 10, 12 for Wain. +12 TOs.

#5 seed Illinois, 14-15, 10-8, in the semis. We won by 20 there and they have 2 starters with minor injuries.

3/9: 73-51. 22, 17 for Doqq, 22 for Few, 12 each for Chub and Sims. +13 TOs.

#2 seed, #5 ranked Maryland, 25-7, 14-4 for the title. They won by 14 there, then we won by 6 here. It should be a battle.

3/10: 78-61 and the title. 37-19 at the half. We came to play! 15, 12, 2, 5, 2 for Chub, 14, 12, 4 for Doqq, 17 for Sims, 12, 7 for Wain, 9 each for Few and Lann, and great D. +13 RBs, +10 TOs.

3/12: 28-2, 16-2, #1, RPI #1. +20.6 PPG, +15.9 RBs, +7.7 TOs, #1 in all three categories.

#1 Overall. We play 12-19 Campbell. Is this our year?

3/16: 71-49. 18, 4, 5 for Sims, 15, 10 for Doqq, 10, 10 for Wain, 11, 7, 5 for Few. +13 RBs.

#9 seed Georgia Tech, 20-11, in round two. It’s an off year for them.

3/18: 72-59. 18, 17 for Chub, 17, 11 for Doqq, 17, 7 for Few. +13 RBs, +12 TOs.

#4 seed, #16 ranked Oregon, 23-9, in the Sweet Sixteen. They do lots of things well, and their SF can light it up.

3/23: 99-76. 59-28 at the half. 22, 12 for Doqq, 15, 13 for Chub, 28, 4, 3 for Few, 18 for Sims, 12 RBs for Wain. 52 RBs for +30!

#2 seed, #7 ranked Cincinnati, 32-3, in the Elite Eight. Their SG and SF get their points and they’re good with the ball. We think we have a big edge inside.

3/25: 90-71. 23, 10 for Chub, 20, 9 for Doqq, 13 RBs for Wain. +21 RBs.

#6 seed, #24 ranked LSU, 26-7, in the national semifinal game. On paper it’s a mismatch.

On the other side it’s #1 seed, #3 ranked UCLA, 32-4, vs. #2 seed, #5 ranked Memphis, 30-4.

4/1: 79-57. Up 20 at the half. 25 for Sims, 19 for Few. +12 TOs.

It’s #3 ranked UCLA, 33-4, for the title. We beat them by 12 here November. We dominated the boards and only their SF did much of anything. They have an outstanding Center. They’re pretty much a two man team but those two are very, very good. The SF is probably the best player in the country. We tried very hard to land him out of high school.

We’ve romped through the Dance, but this will be no romp!

4/3: 78-63! We led most of the way. The final was the biggest margin. 13, 17 for Chub, 21, 4, 4 for Few. Great D held them to 28.6%. +9 RBs. Their SF got 26 but we shut down their C.

National title #7 for me. No one else has ever won titles at three different schools. If the right opportunity comes up I’ll go for 4!

4/4: Awards: Kris Chub was Final Four MOP. I got national COY again, In the Big 10, Raa Doqq was Frosh OY, and made 1st team. Kris Chub made 2nd team.

4/9: Some great schools want me, Oklahoma, Kansas, Michigan, several other big time schools. We’re losing a lot of talent here.

I’m going to UConn. This will be another rebuilding job, but I think I can win titles there in time.

I fire the coaching staff and cut three players.

4/16: (Author’s Note: How did I play this game for a year when hiring assistants was such a huge issue! Hope it’s fixed in 2017.).

4/23: I ask for a facilities upgrade. No.

National championship season at Indiana; #7. Overall, I’m 923-191, .829.

Let’s see what we can do at UConn!

[Wayne23]

February, 2164: Six months of calm, normal living. It’s been wonderful.

Lacy is 11, and she knows more science and math than I do. She works with our holoexperts in higher math and physics for hours at a time and they tell me she is just soaring.

Amy, who just turned 7, is more artistic, although she’s interested in and good at math and science. But she loves to read, and loves the arts. She plays piano, and draws. Her artwork is pretty sophisticated for her age, and her holoteacher in art says she’s doing things that 12 and 13 year olds would find difficult.

We try to round out the kids’ education, but we also want them to be able to focus in on their passions.

My workload lessens all the time. I still walk the entire ship, all decks, every day, and go through the robots’ reports. I supervise and repairs that need doing on both the ship and the boat. But there is less hands on, and I’d say my necessary chores can now be done in about three hours. I spend another few hours with the kids, alone and together, every day. That time varies depending upon their interests, desires, and things like that. I now have several hours of free time. I spend it hiking, reading, writing, and getting back to lots of the HC programs I had to ignore for so long. I find myself going to the programs where I can watch and listener to some of the great singers and musicians in intimate settings, usually small clubs.

I’ve also reconnected with my three virtual girlfriends. The nice thing about them is that they are always there when I’m interested, it doesn’t matter how long it is between visits, and they remember only what we experience together. They are programmed with complex personalities and definite interests, though, so they are always interesting to be with.

I would not mind at all if things stayed as they are for a while- as long as possible, really.

Next: Six more months of calm

[Wayne23]

5/1: We buy national and international gold.

Preseason #22.

The weather here is about the best anywhere in the country. Seasons are pretty much gone everywhere. Here it’s 60s and 70s during the day, high 50s, low 60s at night, moderate rainfall- all year long. That was one of the reasons I came here.

6/5: Looking at a couple of players.

6/12: Missed out on both.

6/26: 6 scholarships. We’d like 4 bigs but we’ll see.

8/7: SF Jon Burr is #35 on the Norton list.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs, 2 SFs, 2 Cs.

9/18: Got 2, lost 2. Got an SF, #4, and a C, #6.

Going to the Las Vegas Winter Jam vs. South Florida. A few ranked teams but we’re rebuilding so not many.

9/25: Got 3, lost one. Got 2 PGs, #9 and #15, and a C, #31.

10/2: Still chasing a big,

1st day of practice. We’re very thin at guard.

11/6: Here’s the lineup:

Senior Jon Neal and junior Cal Joon start at guard, backed by junior Eric Hart.

Senior Jon Burr looks like our best player. He starts at SF.

Senior Jam Song and frosh Marc peer start inside. Frosh Jim Hodd and Ban Love back up inside.

We’re picked 4th in conf., and #20 overall in the latest polls. We’ll see.

[Wayne23]

August, 2164: Things have been calm for more than a year. I don’t ever remember that happening. It’s been great to live at a relaxed pace.

Lacy is using the space flight HC program a great deal. She gets way out there and observes black holes, supernovas, and all kinds of other things. It’s all simulation, of course, but by the time this program was put together we had learned a lot about these things, and had done fly bys of all of the planets and moons in our solar system. Powerful telescopes had given us a great deal of information about many objects that were far away, even light years away from our home planet. So there’s a lot to be learned by using this program. Lacy always brings the most knowledgeable holophysicists, astrophysicists, and cosmologists with her. This allows her to maximize the experience by asking questions and attempting to answer their questions.

Amy is doing more and more drawing and painting, and she allows herself to be guided and taught by our holoartists. She is learning new techniques and working in new media.

I’m writing a space opera type novel. I don’t like the space wars stuff. This is more about exploration, settling an earth like planet, and things like that. I’m about halfway through and I really like where it’s going.

Next: An end to the calm

[Wayne23]

11/20: 1-1. 2 point win at home, 3 point loss on the road in double OT. Tough loss. Our best player, SF Jon Burr, only played 17 minutes before fouling out.

12/4: 5-1, #16, RPI #1, which is too high. We beat #20 and #7, both at home. We’re getting our points outside more than in. Jim Hodd is going to start for Jam Song. Song and Jon Burr, who has not lived up to expectations, will share minutes backing up.

12/15: 7-2, #13, RPI #3.

Off to the Las Vegas Winter Jam. We’re the #2 seed and play #7 USF, 3-6.

12/16: 77-63. 17, 3, 8 for PG Cal Joon, 17, 5, 3 for PF Jim Hodd. Sub big man Jam Song had 15.

#6 seed Southern Miss, 8-0, in the semis. They’re very good inside.

12/17: 67-59. 8 guys scored between 6 and 11. Great D.

#2 ranked Indiana, 8-1, my former team, for the title. I really don’t think we’re ready for this tough a team.

12/18: I was right, 69-84. 22, 5, 4 for Joon. We didn’t play badly but they were a much better team.

12/25: We end the pre-conf. season at 10-3, #8, RPI #3. +4.2 PPG, +2.0 RBs, +1.4 TOs.

[Wayne23]

1/15/2061: 14-4, 4-1. Great start to conf. play. We lost at #3 Cincinnati. We’re #8, RPI #3.

1/29: 17-5, 7-2, #9, RPI #5. Alone in 2nd in conf., 2 back of 1st. +6.3 PPG, +4.6 RBs, +1.5 TOs. Our guards are our leading scorers. We’re doing better than I had expected as a team, but
I don’t see us as a contender for the title.

2/12: 20-6, 10-3. #9, RPI #6. Still alone in 2nd in conf.

2/26: We end the regular season 23-6, 13-3, #10, RPI #5. 2nd in conf. +6.9 PPG, +4.2 RBs, +1.4 TOs.

3/5: No one is leaving for the NBA draft. This is probably the last year it will happen.

[Wayne23]

3/9: #10 seed East Carolina, 12-16, 6-10, won in an upset in the play in. We play them in the quarter finals. We won by 22 here, then 28 there.

3/10: 69-55. 19 for Joon, 15, 10 with 5 blocks for Peer, 11, 10 for Hodd, 10, 6 for Burr. +17 RBs, +6 TOs.

#3 seed, #21 ranked Houston, 21-9, 11-5, in the semis. Beat them by 13 here, then 13 there. They have an excellent PG and a strong outside game.

3/11: 69-71. We blew a 15 point halftime lead. We shot 19-30 in the 1st half, 7-30 in the 2nd. The shots just wouldn’t drop. 11 2nd half TOs didn’t help. +10 RBs, but only +1 in the 2nd. We just fell apart.

3/12: 24-7, 13-3, #10, RPI #7. We should still get a good seed.

#2 West. I’m thrilled! We play 17-13 Anal Roberts.

3/17: 98-68. 53-31 at the half. We played as well as we have all season. 24, 7 for Song, 18, 8 for Hodd, 19 for Neal, 15, 4, 4 for Joon. +17 RBs, 10 TOs.

#7 seed Georgia Tech, 20-10, in round two. It’s a down year for them but they’re a good team. They score outside and have a very good C.

3/19: 74-62. 29 for Joon, 14, 6 for Neal, 10, 8, 4 for peer.

Thrilled to make the Sweet Sixteen in my first year here. We’ll play #3 seed, #12 ranked Kansas, 25-8. They can play.

3/24: 60-73. 23 TOs. That, more than anything, did us in. We played poor D, letting them shoot 47.9%. 14, 12, 5 for Peer.

4/3: #2 Duke beat LSU for the title. I thought my Indiana team would repeat but they went out in the national semifinal.

4/4: Awards: Marc Peer makes conf. 1st team. I get conf. COY. I thought Joon should have made 2nd team.

4/23: I ask for a facilities upgrade, but we have great facilities and a great budget.

26-8, Sweet Sixteen. Overall, I’m 949-199, .827.

Looking forward to a great season; lots of great recruits coming in and three starters returning.

[Wayne23]

February, 2165: I suppose to was too good to last. We experienced what was almost a tidal wave yesterday. An earthquake about 1000 miles away caused it. Our long range sensors gave us about a 45 minute warning.

The robots and I secured everything on both the ship and the boat, and I got the kids to what I hoped would be the safest place on the ship. Two robots were secured to the steering mechanisms of both the ship and the boat.

At that point there were about 10-15 minutes before we knew it would strike us, and they were as tense as at any time I can remember.

When the tidal wave hit it was extremely frightening. The boat almost capsized. It took on an enormous amount of water. But, in the end, the ship righted itself. There was a lot of bailing to be done, and done quickly, and a great deal of damage to the ship, but it is all able to be fixed. It will take some time.

The boat suffered even more damage, but it too survived- barely. It will take a lot fo time to get everything fixed on the boat.

My greater concern is Amy. She was terrified, and she had nightmares throughout last night. She wound up sleeping in my room, which helped some, but she woke a few times during the night, and I had to comfort her. I tried to explain that this was probably as violent an attack on the ship as was ever likely to happen, and that we had survived it, but fears are rarely eased by logic.

Lacy seems fine. She is studying the scientific aspects of tidal waves right now.

The kids are yet another year older. Lacy is 12, and Amy is 8. I will be 165 in May, and yes, I still look and feel like I’m in my mid 30s.

Next: Storms

[Wayne23]

5/1: The usual reports.

#14 preseason.

6/5: No one in the transfer pool.

6/26: 3 scholarships. We want 2 guards. Looking at 15.

8/7: SF Joe Gost is #21 on the Norton list.

8/21: We offer to 2 PGs and an SF.

9/18: Got 2, lost one. Got 2 PGs, #7, #20.

Going to the JAG Holiday vs. Miami of Ohio.

9/25: Got a C, #14. We should be finished with recruiting.

10/2: 1st day of practice.

11/6: Here’s the lineup:

Senior Cal Joon is back at the Point, and frosh Carl Mapp is at SG. Senior Eric Hart backs up.

Frosh Joe Gost is at SF.

Sophs Jim Hodd and Marc Peer start inside, as they did last year.

Juco junior Juan Jorr backs up inside.