It’s Friday night, Modern Philosophers!
It was a long, tiring week, but on the drive home, I saw a giant rainbow spanning across the otherwise stormy sky. I’m going to say that’s a sign of good things to come.
So let’s stay positive as we head out to the Think Tank for our weekly gathering. Don’t forget to put on your Deep Thinking Toga because we’re really going to give our brains a workout tonight.
This week’s topic: If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Remember, this is a Philosophical Exercise, so feel free to think outside of the box. Don’t feel compelled to limit yourself to the Superpowers you normally find depicted in the pages of a comic book…
I’ve been watching a lot of Superhero flicks lately because Time Warner has given me free access to Epix for 3 months, and all they seem to show are movies starring The Avengers.
There are so many cool Superpowers out there, and who wouldn’t love to be able to fly, have super strength, or be able to encase himself in an awesome suit of armor?
The writer in me wants to create an intriguing, original Superpower, though. How about the ability to fold laundry with my mind? Or having a super metabolism that would allow me to eat anything I wanted? Maybe I could turn regular paper into crisp American currency of varying denominations?
The options are endless.
In the end, I think I’d want a Superpower that would solve problems in my life, not draw so much attention to myself that I would be forced to give up my privacy for a life dedicated to fighting crime, and make me pretty damn cool.
With those qualifications in mind, the Superpower that I would want to have is…
The ability to transport myself anywhere in the world simply by thinking about that place.
How awesome would that be, Modern Philosophers? No more worrying about driving in the snow. No more stress from Zombie Car’s constant woes. Who cares about the price of gas now? I could sleep in every day and zap myself to work just in time to clock in for the day. I’d be able to travel the world without worrying about the cost of airfare or passing through airport security. The next time I had a craving for New York pizza, I could put myself inside one of thousands of pizzerias in an instant. Why watch the Yankees on TV, when I could be at the game?
Most importantly, whenever I long to see The Girl Who Makes Me Weak in The Knees, I could just think about her and be by her side. How could any Superpower top that?
So what about you, Modern Philosophers? What’s your Superpower of choice?
I look forward to reading your comments, but that will have to wait until I’ve gone to visit some of the wonders of the world…the first one being The Girl Who Owns My Heart…
The Return of the Modern Philosopher 
I would like the super power of never having to sleep without getting tired, Austin. Think of everything I could catch up on with 24 hours a day to read, watch movies, listen to records, write, blog, work, shop, walk the dog, work out, socialize, you name it. And I promise I’d be quiet while all the people in my life without this super power got their eight hours of sleep.
By the way, I would love to be able to think and appear at that very place, but that super power was already taken.
The plain paper to currency suggestion you made was plenty alluring, too.
Great think tank this week!
That’s a very creative and intriguing answer. Do you think you’d miss dreaming, though, if you never slept?
That’s what day-dreaming is for, Austin.
Ah. That makes perfect sense. You’re so damn logical!
I like your idea! That would be wonderful in winter. No more snowy commutes. My super power would be to transform adults into children. Too many people I know are too serious and have forgotten what it’s like to be silly, have fun, and find any real joy in experiencing new things! I could just ZAP them into kids for a while, so they can remember what it’s like! I would start with myself.
I like that superhero. Time Travel meets Fountain of Youth. Such fun! 🙂
If I would have super powers I would like just a glimpse into the future.. Are we together? Are you cheating on your wife with someone else? Are you ok? Am I ok? Tonight I’d like a glimpse of the future….
I’m not sure. Are we together??? 🙂
Not we you and I silly. Well who knows what the future holds
🙂
If I could have a super power, it would be to have very sticky fingers. So maybe some money might stick to them instead of having to spend it on bills all the time.
And so you can climb buildings? Or is it just about the money? 🙂
The buildings part….not so sure, I am afraid of heights.
Ah. I understand…
To be able to walk into a room full of people who hate each other and have the entire place turn into a bastion of peace. Yes, the power I would want would be the power of love in its purest form, where the people who worry about things like “do I look fat in this dress” or “Am I going to get lucky with the girl drinking that rum and coke” begin to see the totality of life, to see past “eat or be eaten.”
Can you imagine what could be accomplished if we could move past greed, envy, hate, gluttony, and malice? If we could see past our own wants and desires? If…
You would surely win the Nobel Peace Prize if you had that Superpower. 🙂
Does “Beam me up Scottie,| give you any ideas? Yep. That’s for me. I recently spent hours in flight and hours killing time in airports fighting off humankind. Beam me up, please. Now.
So it sounds like we would have similar Superpowers. I just hope our Superhero outfits don’t look the same! 🙂
Ha ha. Don’t worry. My outfit will be shorter than yours.
~(*_*)~~
I was just rocking the tiny running shorts out on the streets of Brewer, so you never know… 🙂
Drat. Can’t you be more imaginative? That’s what I was going to wear.
That was under my running toga, of course. 🙂
This one is pretty lame, but I like it anyway. I would want to be able to transform into an animal any time I want. If I’m at the beach, I’ll become a dolphin so I can swim as far out there as I want, and leave all the humans behind. I’d like to be a black bear for a while so I can sleep through the winter and wake up thin. And there are moments during every staff meeting when I’d like to turn into a tiny mouse and just scurry out the door without being seen.
Pretty lame? Maybe my Superpower should be to not let comments like that upset me…
Oh, Jeez,no! I meant that my idea of a superpower was lame!
Sorry, Austin; I would never be that snarky!
Ah. Well that makes me feel better. Thanks for explaining. 🙂
Its weird that I never even thought of it as a criticism of your idea. Truth is that I see you as very much the “real” writer and me as the not particularly intriguing old lady. I couldn’t think of a really cool superpower, so I wrote something that I really do wish I could pull off!
I understand now. All is well. I have called back Gary the Gargoyle who was on his way to “visit” you… 🙂
My superpower would be to regulate the weather. Sending clouds to dry area of lands so that people have good crops. Making sure tornadoes only run on lands without houses and humans. Making sure nobody is too hot or too cold where they live. But without anyone knowing, I want to puzzle scientist in the process…
That sounds like fun. Sometimes, master criminals try to control the weather, so it would be nice to have a Superhero doing it instead!
I couldn’t decide between super cells that would repair any damage to my body, thus making me virtually immortal (I like the idea of demi-goddesshood), and the ability to thought-read (thus avoiding the need to second-guess what people really mean). At this point my significant other said telekinesis would be his choice, because he could then replicate all other super powers. That took the wind out of my sails. I called him a kill-joy and now we’re not talking. It’s all your fault. Actually, telekinesis wouldn’t replicate thought-reading, so I’ll go for that one.
Great answer. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
ability to eat unlimited carbs with no negative side effects, and invisibility option of course and happy you are off on this journey that is far overdue
I like your answer! 🙂
When I read this I was in the midst of a row with my husband about cleaning! I think a superpower to seal the lips of those who annoy would be cool. Or I could fly away to some exotic isle even cooler, especially if by the time I return the house is immaculate and my husband is all sweetness.
Thanks for the great answer! And for sharing this post on Twitter. I do appreciate it. May your application for these superpowers be granted… 🙂
I know I’m late to the party, Austin, but I love your Friday Night Think Tanks. I read them the way I watch television shows: Wait for a backlog to build up and then binge.
My superpower sounds banal or granola-crunching, but I wish I could turn carbon dioxide into fresh oxygen, and as a bonus, I wish I could desalinate salt water.
You are welcome to binge Think Tanks if you think your brain can process all the Deep Thoughts! 🙂
Those sound like great superpowers. I will do my best to keep the topics though provoking…
I would like to have a superpower that gave me the ability to solve problems . Any problems from world problems to individual problems .I think of the many things that could be accomplished. Pretty heady stuff ! 😉
Nice choice.