quasigeostrophy | Where was I...

1. When John F. Kennedy was shot (11/22/1963)
I was almost negative two years old. My parents had been married for over ten years, and my three siblings were already eight, seven, and five, but I wasn't even a consideration yet.

2. When Mt. St. Helens blew (5/18/1980)
At home in Indy. I don't remember what I was doing, but I remember watching a lot of the TV news coverage, astounded.

3. When the space shuttle Challenger exploded (1/28/1986)
I was literally in the shower. Jumped out as I was finishing to the phone ringing. My sister called me from work to let me know. I got dressed and had to go to work myself. I was working in the electronics department at Sears at the time, and all the TVs stayed on it all day.

4. When the 7.1 earthquake hit San Francisco (10/7/1989)
I was at work at Sears again. I remember sticking my head into the breakroom to see how the World Series was going, and seeing coverage of the earthquake instead.

5. When the Gulf War began (1/16/1991)
Once again, I was at work at Sears. I was doing data entry in the back office, and checked the breakroom TV throughout the evening, and continued to watch for quite some time after I got home.

6. When OJ Simpson was chased in his white Bronco (6/17/1994)

computerchix and I were in our apartment at the time. We saw it in progress, almost comical. Tried not to watch much of the inane coverage after the actual chase.

7. When the building in Oklahoma City was bombed (4/19/1995)
Getting ready to leave for my first trip to California for work, for an all-company meeting in Santa Clara.

computerchix was coming along for the "partying". It was to be my first commercial airline flight.

8. When Princess Di was killed (8/31/1997)

computerchix and I had just arrived, very late at night, in Las Vegas for my first (and her second) visit there.

9. When Bush was first announced President (11/7/2000)
At home, avoiding TV coverage of the election as much as possible.

10. When the 6.8 earthquake hit Nisqually, WA (2/28/2001)
I only vaguely recall this even happening.

11. When terrorists knocked over the World Trade Center (9/11/2001)
I was at work, in my office, reading my e-mail to start the day. One of my employees stuck his head in my office to tell me about the first plane hit, and we went upstairs where many who were there already were watching in the breakroom on our large HD projector. We got upstairs just in time to see the second plane hit. No work got done that day - we didn't even get any support calls. Some of my employees rigged up a TV in the cubicle area, so they could at least be at their desks in case the phones did ring. By the time I got home that night,

computerchix and I watched for a while longer on TV, before we just couldn't take it anymore. I was getting bad vibes about where this would lead, internally to the U.S. as well as externally, all that day.