TRAVEL Guy
I love figures. Calculations. Percentages and ratios. My Dad taught me long division, vulgar fractions, and the joy of averages when I was a kid. All great for working out the statistics related to my obsession with speedway and football. He once told me that one of his proudest moments was me winning the School mathematics prize. I got my face in the local paper too along with about ten other swots, but I have learned to never knock a little fame!
Returning to my opening sentence I acknowledge that love is perhaps a tricky concept to place within the context of simple number crunching. On one hand, I could determine the number of lovers I have had, but could I accurately calculate the affect each person has had on me? I have two children. What nonsense would be served by trying to calculate who I loved more? Of course, I love them equally but on occasions, they both vie for being the most annoying and which is far easier to compute. Quantitative outcomes have a wonder of certainty, yet qualitative results have the warmth of emotion. Not to be daunted by the conflict between fact and ambiguity I decided to apply my love of mathematics to my other love: travel. The trigger to write this piece is, not surprisingly, the coronavirus pandemic which has effectively, for the time being at least,
