By: Nick Bergeman ~Staff Writer~

“So tell me, future boy, who’s president of the United States in 1985?”

“Ronald Reagan.”

“Ronald Reagan, the actor? Then who’s vice president, Jerry Lewis?”

When “Back to the Future” was released in 1985, writer Bob Gale had a bit of fun mocking how ridiculous someone in 1955 might find the world in 30 years, as exemplifed by above dialogue. “Back to the Future Part II,” released in 1989, took its own shots at predicting 30 years in the future based on the original 1985 film when Marty McFly travels to 2015 on a mission to “save his kids.” Today is October 21, 2015. Well, that also happens to be the day that Marty McFly reaches the future.

I know it’s just a movie, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t going to be on the lookout for Marty McFly today. I really love “Back to the Future.” Just about every news outlet with an entertainment division is publishing a list of what the movie got right or wrong about the future.

Save some time, here are the highlights:

No, cars still do not fly, and they also still do not look like glass-covered space ships, but we have drones. So maybe we’re getting there? Unfortunately, our shoes still do not tie themselves. Kids aren’t cruising around on hoverboards. The kids do not wear their pants with their pockets inside out — come on writers.

A shocking amount of technology responds to voice control, but not as much as in the movie. Sure, there may not be a “Jaws 19” coming out, but points to Bob Gale for getting sequel culture right. The Cubs may actually win the World Series, which I openly support, so stay tuned on that one. There’s a lot more, but I’m sure the Internet can pick up my slack.

Let’s think about something else for a second. Recently, I have been thinking a lot about the fact that my life has changed in so many ways that I never would have been able to predict in the last six months. I will spare you all the details because this article isn’t about me.

Predicting the future is not easy, and it is a lot easier to look at the way that things line up with the past. Marty McFly may not have believed that the President of the United States in 2015 would be an African American named Barack Hussein Obama, and he would not have been alone. Bob Gale and Bob Zemeckis could never have predicted 2015, just like we cannot predict 2045.

Despite that, if you are using “Future Day” to consider the ways that our world has and has not changed, you could be worse off. However, I recommend spending more time thinking about the ways that you’d like to see the world change in the next 30 years, if you’re that interested in taking the day for reflection.

However, I admit that I’m going to be spending my day thinking about time travel and Marty McFly. “Back to the Future” does not ask much of its audience. It’s the most pure entertainment at its best. Movies like this trilogy remind us that we need to have a little fun to go with the drama in our lives.

So, dress like it’s 1985, tell people to “make like a tree and get out of here,” maybe take your car up to 88 miles per hour in a safe place or pump Huey Lewis’s “The Power of Love” as you drive down the street.

Oh, and make sure you root for the Cubbies.