I enjoyed writing the Miami Springs centennial song and wondered what life here would be like 100 years into the future. What types of local occurrences and lore will be relevant enough to add to a song for the 200th? I’ll be here in Spirit, but maybe not ‘in body’ so I’d like to explore the possibilities now.
There was a TV show called ‘The Jetsons’, a prime-time cartoon show from 1962, they showed us what life could be like in the future. The specter of flying cars has almost arrived and other predictions the Jetsons made have come true like video chat, virtual assistants, robotic vacuums and capsule endoscopy. What’s the future for Miami Springs in 100 years?
We went overboard with our Tree City designation so in 2126 all the paved streets in Miami Springs have been replaced by green space. Automobiles have fallen into disuse due to electric costs and the few remaining gas-powered vehicles have been relegated to museums for the young to gape at.
Since individual low-cost Nike flying boots have been available, residents quickly fly through town picking mangoes from the tops of trees and chasing the loud parrots which have now numbered into the thousands because PETA (Now a Federal Cabinet position) declared them a precious species.
In 100 years, because no one wants to ever leave Miami Springs, and since we’re pretty much built out, the invention of 2nd tier floating homes (celestial living units) was a good way for families to stay here for the children of our children’s children’s children. The new homes will ‘hover’ only a stone’s throw from the ground and utilize floating elevators for access. Airport noise was virtually eliminated by rows of trees along 36th Street which employ noise dampers in the branches.
The great, great, great, grandchildren of Max Milam have opened a futuristic version of their market. Their new slogan, “We Boldly Go Where No Supermarket Has Gone Before!”
When you enter, and according to how you feel that day based on a quick scan of the chip in your head, you’ll slip into a floating electronic easy chair and automatically be taken to the food aisles you need. Having been alerted by the computer brain in your fridge, the chair will stop at each item as you point to it with a small laser which will deduct the cost from that chip in your skull. The order will then be sent to robotic delivery. The chosen groceries will appear in your fridge before you fly home. They will all be eaten by your teenagers before you arrive.
In other parts of the world: The Moon has been re-named ‘Philadelphia’ by the parent company of Kraft-Heinz after the famous cream cheese of the 2,000’s. When digging, Moon colonists discovered Its interior wholly made of green cheese. They paid trillions for the rights although could do nothing about the rancid cheesy odor.
All wars will be determined by a game of Rochambeau (Rocks, Paper, Scissors) It will not be played by the South Park show rules. Defense funding, previously meant for arms development, will support Rochambeau dojos as children re-learn to use their hands for something other than a cell phone.
Space elevators will be used to transport visitors to the ‘Philadelphia’ for vacation. They prove to be 97% effective with only a 3 per cent death rate if the elevator door opens prematurely on the way. As Earth temperatures rise, the most valuable job will be in air conditioner repair. Commercial space travel will boom as frequent flyer miles zoom into the millions and although people could use those miles to travel to mars, no one wanted to go there.
PETA will add insects to the endangered list as livestock farming gives way to delicious lab grown alternatives.
Home health care is fully functional with Tele-Medicine replacing your doctor’s office. Tele-Dentistry never took off because when you self-medicated a little too much for an extraction, you forgot what you were doing and just fell asleep.
