There’s a famous science fiction novel by the name of Dune written by Frank Herbert. The setting of this novel is the far distant future where travel between worlds and galaxies is facilitated by the use of a mysterious substance referred to as “spice”. The plot is straightforward enough, those that control “spice” control the universe. Actually, the plot is a lot more complicated than that but that’s the only part of it I’m concerned with here.

“Spice” is mined on only one planet which is mostly desert but there’s a huge catch. The planet is overrun with giant carnivorous worms. I’m not sure how they’re described in the novel because it’s been years since I read it but in the film version the worms are like 30 feet tall and many, many yards long. In a word, ginormous.

Bear with me cause I’m finally getting to the point of all this. The humans that live on the planet get a warning before the worms attack that they refer to as “worm sign”. I think it’s either a certain noise the worms make as they move through the sand or maybe it’s a visual cue regardless the humans take “worm sign” seriously and get the h*ll out of there.

Why am I telling you this? Cause I’m a bit of a geek and I regularly experience a similiar phenomenon in NYC except it’s a good thing not a giant carnivorous worm. In the city you never know exactly when a train is due to arrive at your station. They have schedules but no one knows them and the trains rarely follow them. You just have to wait on the platform and eventually one comes along. The thing is, you get a warning when your train is approaching. Not how you’d think by sight or sound but by feel.

It’s true! You feel a train approach long before you hear or even see it. Why? Because trains travel in tunnels and as they speed through the tunnels they push a huge wave of moving air in front of them that eventually reaches you as a gentle breeze while you stand on the subway platform. I call this event “train sign” hence the geeky comparison. The tricky part is determining from which direction the train is coming cause it might not be the way you’re headed so be wary of the fake out. I hate the fake out cause it just means more waiting for my train.

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