By: Stephanie Reynolds
Let’s talk Tourism Physics…WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, I promise it’ll be painless.
First, let’s look at potential energy. Potential energy is a fancy physics term meaning energy that is stored — it isn’t doing anything. Think of a rubber band that is stretched but not released. Or a ball that is held up off the ground but not dropped yet. Or me when it’s a Saturday and I am snuggled on the couch and don’t want to go anywhere. Those things have energy inside (even if it doesn’t feel like it), but they aren’t using it.
Now let’s look at kinetic energy, which is another fancy physics term meaning energy that is moving. It is doing something. The rubber band is bouncing back into shape. The ball is falling to the ground. I actually got myself up off the couch and am hefting my pack (or my purse, which weighs about as much) to hit the trail. Those things are energy that is being (more or less) productive.
This brings me to Isaac Newton and his #1 smash (physics) hit, “The Law Of Inertia.” The lyrics go something like this: “An object at rest tends to stay at rest, and an object in motion tends to stay in motion.” Classic.
You still with me? Okay, so an object that is not moving AND is full of potential energy is just…sitting there. It’s doom scrolling in its little “cocoon of meh.” But it’s also not experiencing its best life, and it’s stressed out to boot. That stretched rubber band is not actually resting by being stretched, it’s just taut and “tired-wired.” That ball is just suspended waiting for its life to begin, neither bouncing nor resting. Just…waiting.
But the stretched rubber band, once it MOVES, returns to a more relaxed state. That ball, as soon as it BOUNCES and delights itself by landing and bouncing again, rolls to a resting stop in the sun-soaked grass.
And for me (and you too?), when I get off the couch and do fabulous things around the county, I end the day feeling more at rest and incredibly content (and probably full because if I was on the trail, I know I ate a ridiculous amount of gummies).
“Land the plane, Steph, where are you going with this metaphor?”
Ah, yes, ahem. My point is this: Ironically enough, doom scrolling is so much more exhausting than going to see a car show or listening to music in the night air or even going on a hike. It’s not rest, it’s restlessness, and this time of year there are so many things to do in Athens-Limestone County, so let’s take that fabulous potential energy in us for a spin!
A few ideas to get that potential-energy-filled-ball rolling: Good Friday On The Square, NAACP Good Friday Fish Fry, Cruise In On The Square, Spectrum Family Fun Fest, LCEDA’s Inaugural Sporting Clay Tournament, Taste of Athens-Limestone, LCMGA Spring Plant Sale, Fridays After Five, Merchants Alley Happy Hour Music, Cars On The Square, and even more. And that is just in April.
And of course, every Saturday in April is a historic walking tour in Athens! Meet here at my office at 10 a.m. (100 North Beaty St., the red brick building by the duck pond). It’s a free walking tour, and every Saturday is a different historic district. We won’t have the tour if there is thunder/lightning, but we will if it is just raining, so bring an umbrella!
The most exhausting part of getting the fullest kinetic out of your potential is putting on your shoes. After that it’s nothing but food, fun, and friends. So, mark your calendars, set your shoes by the couch, and put your phone in the car so you have to go out of the house to get it. Let’s make this our most fun spring ever!
By: Stephanie Reynolds, Athens-Limestone Tourism Association
