Echo Valley

One thing about writing fiction makes sitting here worthwhile -- knowing which parts of the fictional tale are facts. I have friends in places I don't normally walk, simply because an average middle-class guy like me doesn't fit in very well. That's okay because some of my friends don't fit into average middle-class life, either.

So, too, some of my colleagues invent new technology that neither I nor they have any idea what to do with. Other colleagues put old-fashioned technology to use.

For instance, I received some information about a quiet meeting between high-valued humans who gathered recently. The information was not collected using bugs or hidden piezoelectric microphones. Instead, an associate of mine put the ear trumpet concept to use and reflected sound down a tube to a remote audio processor. He figured correctly that those in the security business are looking for metallic signatures or electronic signals, or windows that reflect vibrations such as conversations, not innocuous tubes connected to sound-reflective air vents/registers.

While security-minded professionals search the high-frequency airwaves and global Internet for data sent surreptitiously, they often forget the low-tech methods that colleagues of mine use to conduct business. It reminds me of the television show recently resurrected as a movie, Get Smart, with the Cone of Silence, a sight gag about espionage and defective products. The most innocent-looking, useless objects often have useful functions.

Now where did I put that information? It's in this pile of stuff on my desk... I'm sure of it!