One subject of conversation with relatives last weekend was the year 2002, the only palindrome year in the century. More on the phenomenon in a followup email from my brother-in-law.
As the clock ticks over from 8:01PM on Wednesday, February 20th, 2002,
time will (for sixty seconds only) read in perfect symmetry. To be more
precise: 20:02, 20/02, 2002. It is an event which has only happened once
before, and is something which will never be repeated. The last occasion
that time read in such a symmetrical pattern was long before the days of the
digital watch (or the 24-hour clock): 10:01AM, on January 10, 1001. And
because the clock only goes up to 23.59, it is something that will never
happen again.
And this morning's coffee and conversation produced the following realization. There's a fine line between independence and stubborn determination. Discussion ranged on from that point.