If You Were a Time Traveler

[Black Syren]

Im curious, there is so much history here, so many intrests so I am asking a few simple questions. So if you were a time traveler...

1.) What period would you visit and why?

2.) What do you wish to see and do or accomplish..just remember that altering the past changes the future.

3.) Would you bring back something to remind you of your trip or several things and if so what would they be?

4.) Would you share your momentos with others or keep them private and explain your reason for doing either.

[Mad Matt]

Being as I grew up in SoCal, I was exposed to California history my entire life. Things having to do with the Gold Rush and the Spanish culture in early California would be neat to see. I'd also like to visit the East Coast circa 1775 to see the forming of the Marine Corps as directed by the Continental Congress. Let's see....the period when Shakespeare was alive, GAoP (of course), the Crusades. That's about it.

I wouldn't really want to "accomplish" anything. Much more just to be a first-hand witness.

I'm not sure that I'd bring back anything except for weapons of the period.

My weapons would have to be kept private. After all, who the hell would believe I time-traveled!

[Misson]

This morning I was just thinking about how little we know about dinosaurs, despite what we claim to know. I think I'd want to (very briefly) visit the Cretaceous period and see just what velociraptors looked like. Particularly how they were colored, how their skin hung on their frame and what their eyes looked like. The movies have given them cat/reptilian eyes, but we really don't know that they looked like that at all. All we know is that they had eyes. (Wouldn't it be odd if they looked mammalian?) We also don't know (or really have any reason to suppose) that they were tiger colored and striped.

I'd want to bring back a photo so's I could study it and repaint my velociraptor prop. I don't suppose there would be any reason whatsoever to share it wiht scientists and whatnot as no one would believe me, no matter how good my proof. I'd probably post the photo on my website with the prop, though, for comparison's sake. That would explain why I had painted it as I had, although I wouldn't say, "This is a photo from the Cretaceous period! Isn't that lovely? Hmm?")

However, there would probably still be ramifications and I imagine the photo would somehow set off a series of events that would create chaos, intrigue and double crosses unlike anything that has been seen previously, probably causing some innocent victim to go running ragged through hair raising scrapes and situations until he or she were able to set things right. It might possibly star Tom Cruise or Jude Law.

[Black Syren]

1.) What period would you visit and why?

I have always been fascinated with the Renissance period. I would step further back to the crusades, back to the time of Chivalry and intrigue, Castles!

2.) What do you wish to see and do or accomplish..just remember that altering the past changes the future.

So I would wish to meet Da Vinci, see the great masters at work, Tour the mighty cathedrals and learn to make bread the old fashioned way.

3.) Would you bring back something to remind you of your trip or several things and if so what would they be?

Clothing, weapons, pictures, books, letters.

4.) Would you share your momentos with others or keep them private and explain your reason for doing either.

Keep them private as well, Im no historian, but who would believe such authentic pieces? Im not even sure a historian would believe what was before his nose.

[Morgan Dreadlocke]

1.Picking just one would be hard. Would like to see everything from an execution around 33 AD, to examining an upper floor window from a grassy knoll. Why? Just because I could would be reason enough fer me.

2. Can't change history, but would try to fill in important blank spots.

3. Insight fer the future.

4. Only wi' those willin' ta listen.

Mission Lad, T'was done already. They called it "A Sound Of Thunder". Had Ben Kingsley in it. Stunk.

[Red Cat Jenny]

1) What period would I go to?

I would visit the GaOP naturally, though I'd study first and try a place/time where I am likely to survive the experience.

Also Renaissance yes! Knights and Castles and clandestine rides on horseback in the middle of the night and swordplay whoo!!!!

2) What would I like to see?

I would like to be there for the arguments, discussions and finally... signing of the Constitution.

and to have a long rambling conversation with Archimedes who invented machines well well ahead of their time. Maybe over some elderberry wine in a massive 24K gold goblet..wearing a robe, and a circlet..yeah cool.

3) Would I bring back something?

Letters, books that would be lost over time. Also a dagger.

4) Would I share mementos or keep them private?

I would share them for sure.

5) On the accomplish Q..I would have my portrait painted by a very famous artist, whom I would also charm, then dissapear back to the present where the subject of the portrait would forever remain an intriguing mystery and a mysterious story of lost affection of said artist and people would remark how much I look like a famous painting...

[Patrick Hand]

I'll have to think a bit more before I ansewer...... The GAoP sounds fun..... but there is a LOT wrong with the period also...... (stuff that isn't/ wasn't fun....)

But... the movie with Christopher Reaves.... "Somewhere in Time " (or something like that) was interesting...... such as when he wore an out of date suit...... it was the best he could find..... (I was about to type .... "at the time"..... )

Like I typed.... this is a topic that sounds fun... I just wanna put some more thought into it before I really post..........

[blackbonie]

id like to say i would go back hundreds of years, but as a woman i know that wouldnt be fun. i would go back to the 50s where women were also pretty free, life was simpler,styles were cute,music was good,the earth wasnt overpopulated. no i havent been there but i know people who have. lol

if i were a man i would go back to ancient rome.

[Zephaniah W Nash]

The first thing I would have to do is jaunt ahead to next week to get the Lotto numbers to finance my further trips...

After that:

The GAoP -- no particular event or happenings come to mind right now.

The Rennaisance -- ditto.

Got to see what actually happened at the OK Corral -- and the standoff between John Wesley Hardin and Hickok.

Those are off the top of my head -- I'm sure there would be many, many more places that occurred to me if I actually had the chance.

[Misson]

Mission Lad, T'was done already. They called it "A Sound Of Thunder". Had Ben Kingsley in it. Stunk.

Well, how do you like that? Perhaps if they had cast Cruise or Law, it would have been better. (Sorry I went back and unwittingly caused all that trouble. I just wanted to make my raptor more realistic.)

Several people have commented on how dangerous past periods would be to visit. (Which should give you greater appreciation for how good things are today, if nothing else.) If you were to go back and time and be killed, you would create a time paradox of sorts. The movies lightly dismiss this by suggesting that the person killed wouldn't be noticed, but even the smallest change in the past should alter the future, right? (Boy I miss our thread on time paradoxes...*sigh*)

Although I wonder...if time travel were possible, wouldn't paradoxes be impossible? We would all still travel in a straight line (from our perspective) and our actions would have to be figured into the equation. "What if you killed your father or mother before you were born?" you might ask. I think it would be impossible. Either that or you'd start an alternate time line the coexisted with the time line your were experiencing up to that point and continue on unaware that you had changed anything. (Like BTTF part 2.) Curious...we're sort of back to perception again, aren't we? Only now we've codified it and made perception an integral part of reality, in a way. Cool.

[LadyBarbossa]

Hmmm.. a rather deep thought provoker, Syren. :)

1.) What period would you visit and why?

Not so much as what period... but what people I would like to meet. George Washington is one person I have ALWAYS been fascinated with. He'd be one of the first ones to meet up with. Johann de Kalb would be another as he's fascinated me, too. A long story there.

I don't know where else I would go. Or who I would see.

Well, I suppose I would go back to visit Blackbeard as he fascinated me as a young girl. Still does.

2.) What do you wish to see and do or accomplish..just remember that altering the past changes the future.

American Rev War, obviously. Do or accomplish? Nothing in particular really.

True, that de Kalb and Blackbeard would die. No, I wouldn't warn them of that fact.

3.) Would you bring back something to remind you of your trip or several things and if so what would they be?

Possibly. Not sure what though.

4.) Would you share your momentos with others or keep them private and explain your reason for doing either.

I MAY share them with someone special and worthy of seeing them, and listening to my travels.

Otherwise, no... I most likely wouldn't let many know about them. They are, after all, priceless.

~Lady B

[Salty]

there are 2 distint time and places:

1. Japan: pre european contact.

2. watch and learn pottery techniques and thier culture

3. knowledge

4. probably end up showing into my pottery somehow, other then that to pass on what i learned carefully.

2(1.). Scotland and or Ireland between 900 AD and 1230BC.

2. again learn and live the culture

3. knowledge and a better understanding of Gaelic.

4. Believable or not there is no history until it is written or shared in some manner.

[blackbonie]

id like to say i would go back hundreds of years, but as a woman i know that wouldnt be fun. i would go back to the 50s where women were also pretty free, life was simpler,styles were cute,music was good,the earth wasnt overpopulated. no i havent been there but i know people who have. lol

oh yeah i would bring back lots of baseball cards and discreetly take lots of photos with my digi camera

[Patrick Hand]

and discreetly take lots of photos with my digi camera

But when you get back, none of the pictures come out.... digi cams wern't around then... so they wouldn't work........

Dang..... time travel takes some thought.......

An interisting asside... there was a movie Peggy Sue got married where one character went back in time to High School days (when "everything was sooo Important") I always thought ..... what if you could go back to when you were only 16.... but with everything you know now....... wot would you do? <maybe another thread for this one....>

[Black Syren]

Like I typed.... this is a topic that sounds fun...

Thanks Patrick, I do believe this is my first ever fun topic and I must say that everything I have been learning in Twill and just on the forums in general has made me think long and hard about this thread.

As for Digital cameras not working back then..If we travel to the past with technology from the future it should work I would think. Afterall the batteries would hold a charge, and Time Travel seemed to take mere seconds or so it seemed.

At least in the movies...

I think I may go back to Scotland, I would love to meet William Wallace and then to Wild West Texas and meet the James boys and the Doctor that rode with them. Both Wallace and the Doctor are in my family tree as relations.

[Skull pyrate Carter]

I'll tell you the first thing I would do, I'd be taking back bags and bags of salt to trade for gold...

[Matusalem]

Via my trusty Tardis, I'd have to return to Gallifrey from time to time.

[blackbonie]

and discreetly take lots of photos with my digi camera

But when you get back, none of the pictures come out.... digi cams wern't around then... so they wouldn't work........

i thought we just thinking in fun,and not scientifically.that makes it kinda boring. i like to think of it like the "back to the future" movies- not realistic,just fun

[Skull pyrate Carter]

just because digi cams didn't exist back then doesn't mean they couldn't...

[Patrick Hand]

OK... Then I'm taking my AK-47 with me just to be on the safe side.......

And a digi cam.....

And a lap top computer....

And an I pod....

And my cell phone so I can call back and tell everyone what a great time I'm having.......

[John Maddox Roberts]

Patrick has posited the "Peggy Sue Got Married" scenario - one I have pondered many times myself. Suppose I woke up one morning and it's November 1963 and I'm back in my home in Richardson, Texas, where I'm a 16-year-old high school junior. It's a few days before the Kennedy assassination and I'm less than 10 miles from Dealey Plaza. What would I do? Supposing I can get anyone in authority to listen to me (unlikely) maybe Kennedy cancels the trip to Dallas. But would that accomplish anything? If it was a big conspiracy as many think, then the conspirators would have gotten him a few days later in another town. But the bigger question is: Would you do it at all? We know that bad things happened after the JFK assassination. But we also know that the worst thing didn't happen: there was no nuclear exchange between the USA and the USSR. The Cold War ended without WW III. Would you want to risk changing that outcome? It's fun to ponder.

[capnwilliam]

I'd like to go to St. Helena, and reminisce with Napoleon.

I'd hope that his English is better than my French, which is non-existent!

Charles I of England, and Robert E. Lee, would also be favorites.

Capt. William

[Matusalem]

I've lived as much 1950's as I could ever want to....invested in vintage clothes, music, and even automobiles. I could supply Paramount Pitcures with enough stage props to do another "Pleasantville". I had the opportunity to see Elvis' first guitarist Scotty Moore play and, also be offered to play the bass for one of Elvis' ex-flame and rockabilly star Wanda Jackson (right when I broke my wrist).

I apololgize for anything that seems like self glorification, but then again, you are not much different than me.

Since I grew up in , Rhode Island, I would have been very curious to see the militia of Benjamin Church fight Metacomet in King Philip's War of 1676 (B&N now has a bestseller about the Mayflower, which tells all about it) . As a teenager, we used to party and get drunk & stoned in an obscure inlet called Mussachuck Creek in Touisset, which was famous for battles between the natives and the English settlers, complete with indian ghost stories and all. I went to high school with the descendants of said Church, and also Rhode island rum-runners/slave traders by the name of De Wolf. Both well-known names, so I'm not divulging private info. I'll leave it at that.

Again, I apoogize for any self-glorification, but it's just a subject I read up on.

[Christine]

1.) What period would you visit and why?

Even tho there's a lot of different times I'd like to see, I'd like to see what exactly happened during the time of Jesus Christ. No one knows for sure, it's all a guess, but I'd like to know what really happened.

2.) What do you wish to see and do or accomplish..just remember that altering the past changes the future.

All I'd want to see if all that's been said in the bible is true or if it's all BS!

3.) Would you bring back something to remind you of your trip or several things and if so what would they be?

I might bring something back, what that is, I dunno

4.) Would you share your momentos with others or keep them private and explain your reason for doing either.

It would be pointless, no one would believe me if what I find is true or not. I could have proof and people still might not believe me. Everyone is going to believe their own thing anyway, but at least I'd know the real truth

[Skull pyrate Carter]

cell phone wouldn't work, due to towers absence.