interstellartraveltowel

A lot of people ask me where I came up with the name for the website, ‘Don’t Forget a Towel‘. Most people assume it’s from the South Park episode with Towelie, where he coins the phrase “Don’t forget YOUR towel” and gets high all the time. Though, that episode is extremely funny, I wouldn’t want to base an entire blog around something I heard in South Park. (Sorry Trey and Matt)

No, the origins of the blog name come from Douglas Adam‘s seminal book, “A Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy.” If you’ve never read the book, well, I highly suggest you do. I won’t get too deep into the plot details, but more unto an incremental plot point. In the book our hero, Arthur Dent, gets throw into an adventure by his galaxy-hitchhiking best-friend, Ford Prefect. The #1 rule in traveling across the galaxy is to Always Bring a TOWEL!

A towel represents so many things to the hitchhiker. It’s a pillow, a blanket, dries you off after taking a shower, be used as a defensive weapon, and the list goes on. If you have to travel, ‘Don’t Forget a Towel.’ It’s that phrase that’s stood as a mantra for me starting and continuing the site. Life is a grand, geekly, adventure; and you better have your towel if you wanna make it out in this big galaxy!

It seems that the kids over at GOOGLE share in this mantra, as they are honoring the 61st birthday of the late Douglas Adams, with a new Google animation on their website. So, head on over to Google, read the book if you haven’t yet, and Don’t Forget a Towel on any adventures life takes you on today!

~Chaz