I can still remember lying in my bed as a 12-year-old thinking about a book the teacher at school had talked to us about that day.
It was the George Orwell novel 1984 and I struggled to wonder what things would be like in that distant year...for it was only 1966.
Trying to go further down the track and try and imagine what the year 2000 might be like was out of the question.
Just too far away for a kid to try and envisage.
And so, 1984 came and went and the new millennium rolled through without the world's computers all shutting down as some predicted and here we are...2017.
The first 17 years of my life seem to have just edged along lazily but has it been that same length of time since the year of 2000 emerged?
I must have blinked.
So going by that concept of time 2037 could likely arrive by what will seem like the end of the weekend.
So then those of us who will be here to turn over the last calendar page of 2036...what will we be seeing?
For the past three nights John Campbell (having stepped into the TV1 studios after many years of TV3 attendance) and Nigel Latta have been peering into a crystal ball composed of public thoughts and opinions about life in 20 years' time.
They have been talking to people, in the studio who make up the aptly titled "The Futurists"panel and (as if to sum up the changing face of things like television) via interactive messaging.
Viewers have been touching base with the hosts live - sort of like talk-back radio but with a more complex series of subjects.
The subjects being time and space and changes...and how we want to see this place in 20 years...and what we are likely to see.
When everyone started getting excited about the rise of the robots during the first episode I got slightly rattled because robots take jobs and don't get paid to do those jobs, and therefore fail to inject their wages into ever-tightening economies.
Ever tightening because I get the feeling, and some people touched on it, fewer human beings are going to be working.
The one crucial thing about this series was the fact the producers left it to the public faces to make their predictions and take their stances.
Not a politician in sight.
That would have scuttled the series to be honest, because with an election fronting up in spring we really don't need any pre-voting day assurances and promises that all will be fine and dandy in years to come if (choose your party) gets into power.
So yep, we've crossed the future landscapes of technology, the environment, the economy and tonight it is the future of our lifestyles.
Then tomorrow, for episode five, it's a summary of it all.
Like trying to work out just how the Lions will go when the first test comes around, predicting how things will end up at the end of the next 20 years, rather than just a mere 80 minutes, is very challenging.
I'll get back to you in 2037...with any luck.
● What Next? TV1 at 8.30 tonight on TV1. Step aboard the Tardis with Nigel Latta and John Campbell at the controls and take a glimpse into what the future may hold for us all.
ON THE BOX
● James May's Cars of the People, Prime at 7.30pm Thursday: Apart from the online jaunts with his two former Top Gear colleagues James May is driving solo these days - his love of things automotive clearly undimmed.
The subject of this opening episode of the returning series is one that has long fascinated me because it effectively illustrates one of the most remarkable recoveries the world has seen.
Germany and Japan were hammered into submission during World War II yet when it came to eventually gaining a global stronghold in the motoring industry they kind of left the USA and Great Britain behind.
Pretty well ditto for most electrical appliances but here it's the post-war evolution of devices with wheels he takes a close look at.
● All Blacks vs Samoa, Sky Sport 1 from 7.20pm Friday: Okay, we've seen the Lions and made our critical observations and decisions so now it is time to see what Steve Hanson has been saying to our lads in the sheds for the past fortnight.
Basically this is the preparation event for the main event - the clash with the Lions who played with a remarkable staunchness against the Crusaders.
If they turn on that form against the AB's next weekend then (as they say in footy-land) she'll be all on.
But first, let's get through this entree unscathed because Samoa are not here for a weekend holiday...they'll give it their all.
