Windows 95 included support for networking protocols like TCP/IP enabling dial-up internet access. My first novel, Kill Cue, came out in 1988. That first of three paperback books gave me a $9,000.00 advance. Windows 95 helped me teach Writing The Novel on America Online from 1993-2000.

Windows 95 moved away from the 16-bit architecture to a hybrid 16/32-bit model, which enabled better multitasking and support for 32-bit applications. The OS introduced support for long filenames (up to 255 characters), a significant improvement over the 8.3-character limit of MS-DOS.

This new GUI provided a "Start" button and menu for launching applications and accessing settings. Plug and Play automated the process of configuring hardware, making it easier to install and use devices like printers and sound cards without manually setting up jumpers and IRQ settings.

Windows 95 was an operating system released by Microsoft on August 24, 1995, that featured a redesigned graphical user interface (GUI). A major upgrade from its predecessors, it integrated MS-DOS and Windows into one product and introduced many core features still used in modern Windows versions.

Where were you in August 1995?

Broke and hurting, my mother Dee helped us get an apartment and we each got jobs two weeks later. Lori worked for a phone directory service. I was an editor at a Human Resources firm. Lori was still drinking and on Xanex. I was learning on my job. At 62, I was their oldest employee.

August 29, the storm weakened to a Category 3 before making landfall in Louisiana, and then a second time near the Louisiana-Mississippi border. However, in August 30, The storm surge overwhelmed New Orleans' levee system, causing catastrophic flooding that submerged 80% of the city.

Lori and I lived in Las Vegas from 2003 to 2005. I worked as a magician and Lori managed to gamble through her Middle School retirement funds. We had lost our car to the bank and left Las Vegas via an Amtrak Train for St. Petersburg, Florida. We spent a day in New Orleans two weeks before Katrina.

Hurricane Katrina impacted the Gulf Coast on August 29, 2005, when it made its main landfall in Louisiana as a Category 3 hurricane. The hurricane's storm developed and intensified as it moved across Florida and the Gulf of Mexico before its devastating impact in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Where were you in August 2005?

Stanford sleeping.

Baby Boomers Only: Where were you in July 1969? Your turn!

Foreign Object

July 24, 1969, The Apollo 11 crew splashed down in the Pacific Ocean. While I was at my desk in the public affairs office, one of our technicians was on the USS Hornet. The astronauts were retrieved by helicopter from their command module, and the capsule was then pulled onto the Hornet's deck.

In the late evening on July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong took his famous "one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind" onto the lunar surface. I watched it on a black and white TV in the Enlisted Club, the social center for enlisted personnel. I tried in vain to stay sober for the whole show.

On July 20, 1969, the Lunar Module, named Eagle, touched down on the moon's Sea of Tranquility. All the next day, our pilots when they came in for a landing would say “The Eagle Has Landed!” Cute pilots.

The Saturn V rocket carrying the Apollo 11 crew launched from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on July 16, 1969, at 9:32 a.m. EDT from Launch Complex 39A. I was riding in a bus with a microphone telling new recruits about where things were at Kingsville Naval Air Base.

I was in the US Navy, stationed at Kingsville, Texas. Our mission was to show pilots in the TA-4 Skyhawk (a two-seat, advanced jet trainer) how to land on aircraft carriers. Our fields were the same size as a carrier deck. That way a miss would not dunk the expensive plane in the water.

Man, first set foot on the moon on July 20, 1969, when Neil Armstrong became the first person to walk on the lunar surface during the Apollo 11 mission. Buzz Aldrin shortly followed him, while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit.

Baby Boomers Only: Where were you in July 1969?

Where were you on December 13, 2000? Your turn!

Dec 13, 2000, was the day Lori and I created an online company called Hollywood HQ on Amazon. We netted $1,500 the first month. At one point, there were more than 1,000 books all over our one-bedroom apartment. In our first three full-time months, we netted more than $5,000 in sales each month.

The dispute was ultimately settled by the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Bush v. Gore on December 12, 2000. This decision effectively ended the recount and secured the presidency for George W. Bush. Al Gore conceded the election to Bush on December 13, 2000, a month after the original election day.

Due to Florida's extremely narrow margin, an automatic machine recount was triggered. This was followed by a contentious series of manual recounts and court battles over "hanging chads" and "butterfly ballots".

On the night of the election (Nov 7), the results in Florida were too close to call. Al Gore initially conceded the election to George W. Bush but then retracted his concession as the Florida results became even closer.

The 2000 Presidential Election saw George W. Bush defeat Al Gore after a highly controversial recount, which primarily focused on the state of Florida, extended for weeks after Election Day.

Where were you on December 13, 2000?

Where were you in December 2000?

I was a Senior at Wooster High School in Wooster, Ohio. I did all our school dances, and I told everyone about the Beatles. I was selected by WWST RADIO to host the first appearance of their movie, A Hard Day’s Night. The moment I said “Beatles”, the packed theater erupted in screams.

The Beatles arrived in America on February 7, 1964, landing at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport for their first tour. Their arrival kicked off "Beatlemania" in the United States, which included their first live U.S. television performance on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Baby Boomers Only Where were you on February 7, 1964?

Lori and I had just moved from Florida to Reno, Nevada because of the Truckee River that runs through downtown. We moved into a room at the Ross Manor hotel on April 15 where we lived for about nine months.

The bombings prompted a significant emergency response and investigation. The event also fostered community support efforts like "Boston Strong" and led to increased security at the 2014 Boston Marathon.

The incident resulted in multiple deaths and injuries. A subsequent manhunt led to a shootout where Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed, and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was captured. In March 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's death penalty.

The Boston Marathon bombing occurred on April 15, 2013, near the race's finish line. The attack involved two homemade pressure cooker bombs and was carried out by brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

Where were you on April 15, 2013?