by Matt Barr

Where was my thing

Ken, "borrowing from Wunderkraut, wants to know Where Were You, What Were You Doing And How Did You Feel When…:

You found out about 9/11: Driving to work in Chicago. They broke in to the regular 8:00 WLS newscast to talk about a plane having hit the World Trade Center. I hoped not many people but the pilot were hurt; they were talking about it at the time (you may also recall) as having been a small, possibly single engine plane, which suggested to me a spectacular suicide. They talked to someone with a view of the towers from his apartment/condo/whatever, and hung up. After a while they got word that the guy was calling back claiming another plane had hit the second tower. I and the hosts thought he was a crank, and I at least began to think he'd made up the first plane.

The start of the FIRST Gulf War - When we began combat operations: I was in college and drove from my apartment to the student newspaper office to work on something and probably to commiserate.

The Space Shuttle Challenger exploded: I was shoveling the porch. I was 15 and a punk but still very shocked.

The Space Shuttle Columbia broke up during re-entry: I learned about this from a newsfeed on the Internets, and thought it had to be a mistake, otherwise I would have heard about it elsewhere. But it was a Saturday morning, and we didn't have TV or radio on. (A New Media moment)

Reagan was shot: My sixth grade teacher told the class. I thought the President getting shot was awfully exciting. (I was a punk back then, too.)

John Lennon was shot: Learned about this on the Today show the morning after. Couldn't have cared less.

The Pope was shot: I don't remember this.

Berlin Wall came down: In college again, something to do with the newspaper office. It seemed surreal.

President Clinton was acquitted of impeachment: I don't remember. It wasn't as though he was going to be convicted, and I don't really think of this as a "where were you?" moment.

Election night 2000: Chicago, my wife and I hanging on the returns, despairing over Gore having won Florida, elated when they reversed course and called it for Bush, went to sleep thinking the good guys had won, woke up, Gore hadn't conceded and I remember thinking, "nobody is that lusty after power that they'd drag this on and on. Are they?"

Browse books from Amazon.com:
memes