![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDDxfHvDW_2J-snUhZkAeq_wz6k_DAcSBAE1DaIKvM7hsBmkaTvnhDCG5agttI-xU5RnamRTLgJMfiNZFf7jQ_B8SjaVPtrPfU9YBHDicxAfO-fxcH-EYM-Xj86Osm_NMY5VeT/s320/wwnewyork.jpg)
Alas, though, my little bloggy has been far on the back burner to the Never Ending Research Project of Doom. It dawned on me the other day that I have been working on NERPoD in one form or another since my first year in graduate school in 1996. That is a long time. Let me put that in perspective for you:
When I started NERPoD, Bill Clinton had just been elected to his second term.
When I started NERPoD, nobody had ever heard of Monica Lewinsky or would have considered “Blue Dress” a punchline for a joke.
When I started NERPoD, the Nintendo 64 was cutting-edge entertainment technology.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsihgPCOVkG0IdgEYVVtYIAAmH6TYH8hLcvopHxUdZgOJS35b4nFfyoOTU1T9zdyE4GpuQTNh74w52hvnbUvrGlCwZ3CWoT4OoWPQSos3P1rzLiYey0uU1kMJy1J2130gSW2HS/s320/Nintendo_64.jpg)
When I started NERPoD, there was no such television show as CSI.
When I started NERPoD, there was only one television show with “Law & Order” in the title.
When I started NERPoD, George W. Bush was governor of Texas, a state that I swore to avoid for that and many other reasons.
When I started NERPoD, Motorola had just introduced the first ever “clamshell” cellular phone.
When I started NERPoD, TWA airlines was still flying planes.
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When I started NERPoD, McDonnell Douglas was still manufacturing planes.
When I started NERPoD, it was possible for people with a lot more money than me to take a concord plane.
When I started NERPoD, Barack Obama had never held an elected office.
When I started NERPoD, Woolworth’s stores still existed.
When I started NERPoD, George Lucas was known for his legacy of Star Wars rather than being known for trashing his legacy of Star Wars.
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When I started NERPoD, Princess Di was still alive.
When I started NERPoD, all the Heaven’s Gate cult followers were also still alive.
When I started NERPoD, they were still filming Titanic.
When I started NERPoD, the Macarena was all the rage.
When I started NERPoD, state “sodomy laws” were still considered Constitutional. Fourteen states, including Texas, still had them on the books until 2003.
When I started NERPoD, I had a completely full head of dark, luxurious hair that I never imagined would recede (I partially blame NERPoD).
When I started NERPoD, Exxon and Mobile were two different companies.
When I started NERPoD, gasoline cost $1.27/gallon.
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When I started NERPoD, the Department of Justice still filed antitrust lawsuits.
When I started NERPoD, you could still smoke in California bars and restaurants.
When I started NERPoD, singer George Michael had never been arrested.
When I started NERPoD, Charlton Heston had never been president of the NRA.
When I started NERPoD, there was no such thing as “Google.”
When I started NERPoD, it was not possible to clone mammals.
When I started NERPoD, Netscape was the internet browser that everybody used.
When I started NERPoD, I drove a Daihatsu – the best-built car that I will probably ever own. I miss that car.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigtNCrrTVoT1hhgq7wdZdiP9FxWcmsc-wJD7iZe1GpeRmA6wIZmt1ge6QSBxrsq86gPegLfjwofqBzm9rvllbMtYgsm43i6dfDO3L0b2COWXW2JTdRKnUA6xZqXB2zCFZyhmsO/s320/daihatsu-charade-gti.jpg)
When I started NERPoD, Tony Blair had never been Prime Minister of Britain.
When I started NERPoD, Jean Chrétien was the Prime Minister of Canada (Bonus points to non-Canadians who can name the current (evil) Prime Minister of Canada without an internet search).
When I started NERPoD, Rachel Ray had not yet launched her master plan to become our new imperial overlord.
When I started NERPoD, the only “reality” television show on the air was MTV’s The Real World.
When I started NERPoD, there was no such thing as a “euro.”
When I started NERPoD, I still used “Pine” to check my e-mail.
When I started NERPoD, my waist was three inches smaller.
When I started NERPoD, there was no such word as “blog.”