Tales From The Simulation: Part Five - There's Always the Sun

 

My latest encounter with the 'is the world a simulation' happened a few days ago. 

Like previous stories in this series, it was one of those coincidences where chance and randomness seem unlikely. The odds of it happening would be so high that most high street bookmakers would be happy to take a bet on it. For them, it would be money in the bank.

For me, it’s a good story, so here goes.

I had been writing about the summer of 1976, a time of record temperatures (until this year) in Britain. I was in search of a title, something that had a summer vibe to it. I started to think about songs about summer and the sun.

I have no idea why, but one song immediately popped into my mind — There’s Always the Sun, by an English rock band, The Stranglers. The band had been one of the bigger names in punk, new wave and rock/pop in the mid to late 1970s. Part of my rebellious youth, I suppose. It's not one of their songs that immediately springs to mind, but there it was.

There’s Always the Sun was a later offering from 1986, much more of an eighties sound, pop, almost synth. A pleasant rock-pop song that was a hit across Europe but only got to number 30 in the UK chart. Mind you, despite the title, it wasn’t released until October that year, the British summer long over.

I liked the song but hadn’t heard it in years, so I listened to it again on YouTube.

The title was ideal for what I was writing about, so I jotted it down and forgot about it.

The afternoon passed, and at around six in the early evening, I decided to go to the local co-op to pick up a loaf of bread. Upon entering the shop, I made my way to the bakery section. I picked up what I needed, but was taken aback by the sound of a song playing over the shop tannoy behind me.

It was ‘There’s Always the Sun.’

I had to laugh and shake my head at how unlikely that was. 

I don’t think I have ever heard it being played as background music in a shop before, certainly not the co-op. True, it was a hot day, summer taking hold, but that song is not one you would expect to hear, even on most summer playlists.

I made my way home, a walk of about five minutes — Five Minutes, which just happens to be another Stranglers song.

The simulation was having fun that day.

And the sun was out.

Photo by Willy Wong on Unsplash