EPIC, People, 4 Activities, 7/31/17

4.0 The key activities of each Garden Community can be broken down into daily activities, celebrations and holidays.

4.1 Daily activities: The rhythm of the day governs much of the Epiccissians daily activities with more in the summer and less in the shorter days of winter. The day starts with the dawn twilight and the enjoyment of the first songs of the birds.

4.1.1 Each Epiccissian awakes to a fresh set of clothes that are appropriate for the anticipated activities of the day and were provided by a service bot during the night, when the previous days clothes were picked up for cleaning. The clothes of the Epiccissians are a mix of ancient Greek and Roman togas and the Polynesian paru, all of which are loose and comfortable.

4.1.2 The first activity of the day is personal meditation which ranges from 30 minutes to an hour. This is followed by a quietly moving out and into a small group to do a Tai Chi meditative exercise which takes about an hour.

4.1.3 Breakfast follows the meditation and exercise and can be enjoyed in small local groups or in the larger communal area. The Epiccissians are vegans and have two primary meals a day which may be supplemented by selected treats through out the day and evening. Each meal is customized to the individual based on their biometric readings to supply them with the optimum energy and nutrition for the days activities. While this might sound like a logistical nightmare the fact that all the Epiccissians are so similar in nature and nurture the differences in diets is minimal. But the biometric readings and the meals are EPIC’s first line of defense in spotting any potential illness or weakness.

4.1.4 After breakfast the rest of the day is consumed in the development of the body and the mind. Physical activities range from swimming, gymnastics, sports, boating plus virtual world adventure experiences. The mental activities include visiting favorite places around the world by telepresence or exploring in virtual reality. Every day there are several augmented reality experiences with holographic creations of important people in world history. Socrates can be holding a discussion in one part of the commons and Einstein explaining how he arrived at the theory of special relativity in another. The holograms are totally interactive and while not able to extend concepts developed by the individual, they do significantly augment the background information on how something was developed.

4.1.5 In addition to the physical and mental activities there is always time devoted to artist pursuits such as drawing, painting, sculpting, metal and wood working along with mastering a wide range of musical instruments from all corners of the world.

4.1.6 By late afternoon the Epiccissians retire to the baths for massages and to soak and discuss lessons learned during the day. After the baths and another change of clothes the Epiccissians gather for their second meal of the day.

4.1.7 After the second meal the Epiccissians entertain themselves through song and playing musical instruments until the early evening at which time they adjourn themselves to a sleeping area for the night. An individual sleeping area may be the same or different on any given series of nights. The usual course of events is that if a group of Epiccissians are involved in a conversation then they will find a common sleeping area so that in the morning they can continue on with the discussion.

4.1.8 For the Epiccissians sleeping is the most important activity of the day. During their deep sleep EPIC organizes and archives their experiences of the day, and bookmarks them with thumbnail icons so that the experiences can be easily retrieved, while the short term organic storage area of the brain is cleaned up. In the second part of the night during REM sleep the Epiccissian trained themselves to allow their minds to wander unconstrained by the cultural limitation of the awake state. This allows exploration of areas that are unknown even to EPIC and represents the final frontier of humanity.

4.2 Celebrations: Arrivals and departures are the primary reason for celebrations. There are ten of each during each annual cycle and they are spread evenly throughout the cycle.

4.2.1 The arrivals take place in the morning right after the morning meal. The arrival ceremony begins with the welcoming of the new arrival and the transfer of the name from the one who will depart in the evening. The mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother are all honored. This is followed by singing and music performed by the entire community.

4.2.2 The departures take place after the evening meal. The one who is departing honors their child or children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren as well as the new arrival for whom they are the God parent and namesake. Both arrivals and departures take place in the main performance area which has seating for the entire Garden Community and perfect acoustics. As the departure process begins the entire community participates in songs and music that resonates through out the community. The departure process is essentially the final upload of the organic mind into the Cloud. Right before the senses and mind are shut down there is a period where the Epiccissian exists in both states of the mortal and immortal world and the community briefly experiences the ecstasy of the immortal joining with the Cosmic Force. After the departure everyone returns to their sleeping area for personal meditation and a wonderful sleep. Service bots remove the organic transport and sensory system of the departed and add it to the recycling system.

4.3 Holidays: There are four holidays to celebrate the changing of the seasons during the solstice and equinox. The winter equinox is the most important celebration as it marks the time of the Singularity. The four holidays that make up the annual cycle are the only elements of time that is noted for the Epiccissians. And while each Epiccissian knows that they will have one hundred annual cycles this measurement is marked by the arrivals and departures in their maternal line of which they will experience five arrivals prior to their departure. Otherwise the concept of time as a measurement of events is irrelevant to the Epiccissians. Their past is the same as their future and both are the same as today.

4.3.1 The main way that holidays differ from other days is that the holiday provides a transition time for each season to focus on different areas of knowledge and accomplishment. During the short days of the fall and winter the emphasis is on the sciences of physics, inorganic chemistry and mathematics along with sculpture and music. During the longer days of spring and summer organic chemistry and biology receive more attention. Mathematics is a constant during the entire annual cycle. During the longer days physical activities account for more of the time. And like the birds of spring Epiccissian songs fill the air.