"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe..."

[Aristus]

How would you complete this soliloquy in order to tell people the things you’ve done in life?

Me: “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. The full moon over the Arabian desert. The Aurora Borealis in northern Alberta. I watched lightning storms on the Caribbean west of Jamaica…”

Your turn…

[True Dough]

1. I've read

Aristus's Friday Night Buzz, Ask Me Anything threads many times.

[Aristus]

2. That's quite an accomplishment!

[cilla4progress]

3. Ok, this is rather mundane ...

I once witnessed a drinking glass pushed across a tabletop that almost went over - leaned, and then righted itself! 😂

Oh, and I also saw Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, and Van Morrison live in concert at one event - back in the 80s (before modern day "festivals". )!

Also various amazing wildlife interactions - including my daughter rollerblading over a rattler!

Am I in? 🤣

[Aristus]

7. Totally!

Evidence of a life being well-lived…

[cilla4progress]

18. Haha!

[exoskeleton]

4. A Full Moon

from the top of the pyramid in Tulum.

[Aristus]

8. Extraordinary! Well done!

I’ve been to Tulum twice, but never got the opportunity to see the site by moonlight. Must have been breathtaking!

[sl8]

5. I'm pretty sure this is now required, so I may as well be the one:

2:39

Youtube / Movieclips

=========

Wikipedia: Tears in rain monologue

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tears_in_rain_monologue

======

Trivia - Rutger Hauer died in 2019, as did his character, Roy Blatty, in the film.

[Aristus]

9. Someone had to.

One of the most achingly beautiful moments in movie history.

[nocoincidences]

6. I've stood on Mount Belvedere in Moorea

and admired both gorgeous bays and their surroundings. I've lounged on a beach on a motu and then snorkled and watched two little fish building a nest by taking small stones in their mouth and spitting them outside the hole they were digging. But the magic times were watching people with brain injury slowly coming out of a coma and being there to help them understand what happened and to guide them in doing the things that were most beneficial to their healing brain.

[Aristus]

11. What incredible experiences.

Those must have been amazing.

[JMCKUSICK]

10. I've seen things you people wouldn't believe....

I've seen Greatness manifest in so many ways, in deed, in spirit, in the written word as well as the spoken. The part you wouldn't believe is that I've seen Greatness every time i sought to.

Great post, no pun intended.

[Aristus]

12. Thank you.

[Bo Zarts]

13. Blood red Aurora Borealis with a crescent moon and the Hale-Bopp comet in the sky together ..

All from the flight deck of a Boeing 737 as we broke out on top of an overcast at 25,000 feet after departing NYC’s La Guardia airport late one night bound for Buffalo. In fact, the Hale-Bopp comet was positioned just off the lower tip of the crescent moon.

I abhor non-essential PA announcements from the cockpit, especially during sleep time for the passengers. But I told the passengers about the phenomenal sight, and then I made turns (with permission from ATC) so that the peeps on both sides of the aircraft got spectacular views.

[Aristus]

16. That must have been a wondrous flight.

Thank you for thinking of your passengers, and their opportunity to see something so extraordinary.

[AllaN01Bear]

42. hear. hear. saw that when living w mom. ohm myyy

[Shellback Squid]

14. Flying fish skimming on the bow wake on a US warship, a completely empty Parthenon on a early Sunday morning

Filipino Negritos on the hunt and with their catch, I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate

last one was from the clip listed above, such a great scene

[imaginary girl]

15. A foster dog...

...who had never been to a park before realize the parking lot was just the beginning, and the trail just kept going ...

...who was almost euthanized for being "wired wrong" be given appropriate training and opportunities who has learned to shine...

And many more along the same theme!

[cilla4progress]

19. My heart!

[Aristus]

37. Mine, too.

I’m tearing up a little…

[GreenWave]

17. I heard the sound of a rattler when I took one step too many.

Reached aside with a stick and distracted it. Whew!

I heard the voice of Jesse Jackson picking up the torch when he orated, I AM SOMEBODY!

I heard the masses in South America remembering the dead US union workers who wanted a 40 hour work week on May 1st. (International Worker's day!)

[cilla4progress]

20. I, too, heard Jesse Jackson speak

I AM SOMEBODY in KCMO when I was a VISTA volunteer there in 1977-78!

Thanks for the reminder!

[samnsara]

29. i was a VISTA volunteer too!

..not there tho

[cilla4progress]

32. Interesting!

When?

[Mr.Bill]

21. I've seen Dealey Plaza in Dallas

from a window on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository, which is a museum now.

Dealey Plaza is much smaller than you think it is if you've never been there.

It wasn't a difficult shot.

[Skittles]

62. so you looked out the window before the museum was there?

I took my English brother to the 6th floor but we were not allowed very close to the window....

[Mr.Bill]

65. No, the museum was there.

The actual window area Oswald was at was boxed in glass so you couldn't get right up to it, but you could see out of it and you could get right up to the window next to it.

It's kind of weird being in a museum dedicated to objects and happenings that all happened or existed during your lifetime.

[Skittles]

67. I know what you mean

I was a child when it happened and I know people my age who remember the assassination but I honestly don't - I was living in England at the time so that may be a factor.

[cbabe]

22. I saw the underside of a

hot air ballon that nearly landed on my tent in the Arizona desert.

I woke up and stuck my head out when I heard someone call out: we can’t land here. There’s a tent here.

Also fire in the sky lightning storm the night before.

[Timeflyer]

23. The coral reef off FL's east coast, before bleaching.

[mitch96]

24. While sailing past New London Conn. having a nuclear sub do what looked like to me an emergency blow.

We first heard a strange "thrumming" noise coming from somewhere and then BOOM this huge rush of water and the bow of the sub comes up out of the water about a few hundred yards behind us.
Needless to say it scared the living shit out of us... but totally impressive. Them things are BIG!! ..
Another time I was flying a sail plane and all wrapped up in a thermal going up at about 100'/min.
I look up at the high wing and there is a hawk right off my wing tip.
I was impressed this master of the sky would share a thermal with me...Memorable!!
A long time ago in a far away land called memories...
m

[lark]

25. Being in the middle of a monarch migration, though probably others have done this too.

It was at Andrew Molera state park, right next to Big Sur not long after it opened. I knew nothing about it, thought I'd explore. As my friend and I got close to the grove of eucaluptus trees we noticed it looked strange. Walked in and stunning sight, all the trees were totally covered in monarchs. They were clinging to the slender leaves and some would get blown off, fly around, and reland. They were all around us, the air was sparkling orange, black and yellow with all the fluttering going on. When we held out our arms, some would alight on them for a second before flying off. It was magical!

[odins folly]

26. I've seen things...

I have seen the sun directly above at 2 AM, 750 miles north of the arctic circle
I have witnessed countless new foreign launches of satellites above the North Pole from the former Soviet Union and tracked them on radar
I witnessed the totally inappropriate comment from an AF Officer within an hour after the Iranian Air Bus shoot down over the Persian Gulf
I saw the gentleman with the briefcase handcuffed to his wrist on his way to the Pentagon after the tapes were pulled from the AWACS plane
I stood on a runway of a Colombian AF base watching the third of three cargo planes land before we set up the first drug tracking radar site in Columbia for Bush 1 drug war
I was driven to the Colombian version of the Pentagon in an armored Suburban similar to the ones in the movie Clear and Present Danger (the windows cannot roll down)
I located B52s through heavy radar jamming during the very last SAC bombing competition from a Nevada deployed radar site
I too have seen the Aurora Borealis; directly over my head in Iceland
I helped stand up TSA in Phoenix, and witnessed the direct aftermath of the liquid bomb intel from Europe and the UK

[Aristus]

38. Extraordinary.

I don’t have the words…

[odins folly]

47. Didn't seem so at the time

We move through history, unaware of our contributions; until a question is asked and we reply. Looking back, and somewhat even now, I never thought I was doing anything special or that my actions and the situations that brought about those actions would have been of any consequence in the grand scheme of things.

[Ligyron]

27. I've seen the location of a missing person in my mind.

Ending the horrible, nagging uncertainty and giving their loved ones closure.

Now if only I could see those Powerball numbers and end my economic uncertainty…

[samnsara]

28. I watched the sun rise from the south.....

...may 18 1980 when the ash cloud lifted in yakima washington

[Phoenix61]

30. I've seen the sunrise over Angkor Wat in Cambodia

and seen it set over Mount Agung in Bali from Gili Trawangan. I’ve been to where they filmed Lord of the Rings outside Queenstown, New Zealand and had a beer at the Green Dragon Inn in Hobbiton.

[Lochloosa]

31. 30 Grateful Dead shows.

Does that count?

[Aristus]

40. Most definitely!

I own about six or seven Jerry Garcia neckties. Neckties seem like an odd thing for Garcia to create and promote. But it’s how our two worlds met.

And I wear them with pride…

[Lochloosa]

46. I have 4. Considering his history with psychedelics, they are sedate.

[grumpyduck]

54. I have six or seven too.

Love them.

[JustinBulletin]

33. I remember November 25, 1963

I was wearing a dress and wool winter coat as I stood in the throngs of people dressed in their Sunday best standing on the curb of Constitution Avenue in the icy wind that fall day. I remembering the caisson bearing President Kennedy's casket passing by drawn by horses followed by Black Jack with the empty saddle and stirrups on his back. That was followed by the limousine carrying Jacqueline Kennedy with Caroline and John Jr. They passed by so closely I could see her face very clearly, and her beautiful countenance left me breathless. I was 14 years old then and I still have not seen another woman more stunning.

Once the funeral procession was past we hurried to drive back to my grandmother's house which is only two blocks from the entrance to Ft. Myer and Arlington National Cemetery. We got there in time to watch the graveside ceremony on TV, hear the 21 gun salute and the jets fly over the house in the missing man formation. I remembering hearing those 21 gun salutes nearly everyday during the Vietnam war signaling another life cut short.

[Aristus]

41. ...

[4TheArts]

34. Bikini Island after the bomb

Six months after the last A-bomb test a few of us Boy Scouts rode to Bikini from Kwajalein in the US Navy's sea going tugboat. It was our Good Deed merit badge effort, as we were accompanying the Seabees as they rescued a missionary's schooner where it had been grounded in the lagoon off the shore of the island.

[odins folly]

48. Yoinks!!!

[Srkdqltr]

35. I saw a young moose scare a cat out of a truck. In Alaska.

[ZoltarSpeaks]

36. Comet Bennett - 1970, from the dark skies of northern Wisconsin

I was 15 years old and only learned of it over the local radio station. Today Bennett is almost unknown, but have never seen another comet that even comes close to this in naked-eye brightness and sheer size. I remember at the time that I tried to get some others to wake up to see it (early morning) but they couldn't be bothered, so I just stood there taking it all in until the sun came up. Using my hand I estimated that the tail length spanned about 1/6 of the sky from horizon to horizon. When I recently looked it up I saw that the tail length was estimated at 25 to 30 degrees, which sounds about right. The tail was split for a period also, and it had some blue streaks. Apparently it is considered one of the "great" comets.

Something I'll never forget!

[sdfernando]

39. I have seen...

..and been on ships passing through the Panama Canal and was in awe at the engineering to make such a thing….

..I have seen glaciers calving in Alaska and watched the beauty of the Northern Lights do their dance….

…I have seen and shed tears at the Arizona memorial….so many names inscribed there.

…I have seen the majesty of our nation’s Capitol from the top of the Washington Monument….indeed I climbed the many steps, foregoing the elevator.

…I have looked down at the Arkansas river between the wooden beams on the Royal Gorge bridge.

…I have seen the beauty of Mexico from the top of the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan

…I have seen many wondrous things in my life, but the one that is tops in my heart was seeing the face of my Mother.

[AllaN01Bear]

43. i was on du when the great du hack happened as it happend.

got to crawl around the belly of a b52. sat in the prototype of the roar bart trains . saw the appolo space snapsule.
met lorren greene . also met the guy who played mcgarret on hawaii 50.

[Bristlecone]

44. I remember Halley's Comet visible in the Arizona sky

Every night for what seemed like a month. I’m sure lots of us remember it, but it’s something I will not forget.

And I saw Pete Rose’s 2999 and 3000th hits. Still have the tickets and program.

[LastDemocratInSC]

45. I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express.

[av8rdave]

49. A few things

I’ve rafted the Grand Canyon/Colorado River and its rapids for a week.
Piloted a jet supersonic
Climbed the Great Wall of China
Air refueled many aircraft over the Persian Gulf and Saudi Arabian desert
Flew aerobatics and close formation
Kissed the Blarney Stone
Saw the northern lights from the North Atlantic
Watched waterspouts over the Eastern Caribbean
Swam with sharks and barracudas in Palau
Marched in a massive protest in Quito (OK, it was the best way to get where I was going at the time)
Over-imbibed with a shuttle astronaut
Witnessed the births of my two children
Fell in love with an amazing woman

…and the journey isn’t over yet.

[Aristus]

50. Extraordinary!

[onethatcares]

63. I watched a pod of dolphins

as one gave birth to a pup and the rest taught it to swim. It was the only time my father was on one of my boats and the only time he ever saw something like that and he was a U.S. Navy man in WW2. The dolphin show lasted about an hour.

I also saw the notes played by Carlos Santana as they came off his guitar in Anchorage Alaska Sports Arena in colors of gold and blue.

[soldierant]

51. I have spent an hour in a student lounge with male Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard officers

(I being a female Marine Corps officer at the time, and all of us werein the same MBA program) and listend to them diss the clothing choices of a couple of others who were not present - one IIRC for invariable wearing a shirt and tie and the other for being the first to wear shorts [it was spring} - equal oportunity dissing, if you will.) And then another officer in the progream came in, clearly bursting with pride, and said breathlessly, "Fellows! You won't believe this! My kid just broke a Fisher Price toy!" whereupon he received hearty congratulations from the other men on being the father of a chlid so strong. I managed not to laugh or spit coffee, but for the life of me, I don't know how.

[BluesRunTheGame]

52. At an ancient petroglyph site in the middle of New Mexico...

…with a really cool woman that I’d met the day before and a new friend we met that evening we saw an obscure comet in the western sky. (He had a home made telescope) At the same time a UFO appeared in the same part of the sky. As it turned out our new friend knew something about the UFO but couldn’t talk about it. (White Sands Missile Range)

A year later I lived in an ‘off the grid’ cabin in Montana in a tiny obscure town with a handful of river rats, hippies, and rednecks. I had Grizzly Bears, Wolves, Elk, and Deer in the yard and on a good night I could see the Milky Way along with every other star in the sky. The Aurora Borealis made frequent appearances. Bald Eagles flew overhead so close I could hear their wings beat. The town was also a bit of a way station for adventurers and desperadoes. I met some really sketchy characters who claimed to be bounty hunters. I met a guy who was riding his bicycle from Barrow, Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. I met an old woman who was riding a horse from the Mexican border to the Canadian border. I got to know some folks who were likely involved in undercover intel.

At a crazy trucker bar in Portland, Oregon I struck up a conversation with a guy, who as it turned out had been a Sherpa in Nepal and had climbed Everest 9 times.

And there’s some other stuff that I can’t really talk about…

[Dear_Prudence]

53. Alone in a cave

I waited in a cave passage while my friends explored a side passage. Their voices faded away to nothing. My carbide lamp went out. I was all alone in total darkness with only the drip-drip-drip from the nearby wet cave formations. Magical. (P.S. I had my backup flashlights, candles, and matches, of course, so no worries.)

[sorcrow]

55. I've seen Russia from my window.

Actually, I saw the USSR from my window when I lived in Nemuro, Hokkaido, Japan. On the rare clear days, I could see the disputed Kurile Islands that lie off the coast of eastern Hokkaido.

I saw a spruce tree in the western Brooks Range in Alaska far beyond tree line, that was higher and farther north than any tree should be. There's no way to know, but I like to imagine that it was the northernmost tree in the world.

Best regards,
Sorghum Crow

[grumpyduck]

56. I can't begin to touch most of the above,

but I walked through the ET ride at Universal Orlando after closing time while working on a job to prep for the Osaka park. Creepy.

I went into the secure ward and the autopsy room at a mental hospital when working for an architectural firm, in addition to touring several jails.

I visited the original Mercury control room at Cape Canaveral while working on a museum project for NASA.

I visited Stonehenge before the fence went up.

[58Sunliner]

57. I was in downtown San Francisco on Market St when the quake struck.

Great gusts of dust pushed out from between the tall buildings as the street rocked. People ran into the center of the street watching to see if buildings were going to collapse. I've seen almost every inch of the California coast. I used to love driving the coastal highway on a full moon. I've seen magnificent storms in the mountains outside of Tucson, where we have huge roadrunners who perch in the trees at night. They remind me of small dinosaurs. I used to live in Paris and loved the city best at night or at dawn, I enjoyed the view of Notre-Dame across the river while walking the river bank. The lavender fields in bloom in the south of France. UFO's? I think I've seen them.

[LudwigPastorius]

58. I've played gigs you people wouldn't believe...

I've played on/in/at Arenas, Ballrooms, Barns, Bars, Saloons & Taverns, Boats, Brewpubs/Breweries, Casinos, Colleges & Universities, Recital Halls, Convention Halls, Country Clubs, Dance Studios, Day Care Centers, Discos, Department Stores, Elementary/Middle/High Schools, a Flatbed Truck in a Parking Lot, 90,000 Seat Stadiums, Gay Cabarets, Grocery Stores, a "Home for Unwed Mothers", Hospitals, Hotels, illegal After Hours Clubs, Jazz Clubs, Law Firms, Lesbian Biker Bars, Mental Institutions, Military Bases & Outposts, Museums, Offices, Outdoor Festivals, Presidential Libraries, Prisons, Private Clubs, Private Homes, Recording Studios, Restaurants, Retirement Homes, Swingers Clubs, Symphony Halls, Synagogues & Churches, TV & Radio Studios, and Wineries

[tazkcmo]

59. My grandmother

In a girdle and bra when I was 8.

[ZoltarSpeaks]

60. Lost oil pressure flying at about 5000 ft - had to fly back to the airport upside down

This was in an experimental aerobatic Pitts Special S1-T biplane that I built back in the early 80's. The lining of an oil hose had collapsed internally and obstructed the flow to the engine. Thankfully I had a fully inverted oil and fuel system, and rolling inverted restored the oil pressure and I was able to fly back to the airport about 5 miles away and roll upright at the last minute as I reduced power to land. Once I safely made it back into the airport traffic pattern my biggest concern was that someone would see the roll maneuver on final and report it, but this airport was uncontrolled and traffic was light.

An AD (Airworthiness Directive) had been issued on this brand of hose and I had replaced it earlier, but I suspect the vendor may have supplied me with the same afflicted hose as a replacement.

There were many unforgettable moments flying this plane. but this was the most attention-getting!

[enid602]

61. Travels

Flying from Buenos Aires to Santiago and seeing the snowy Cordillero de Los Andes.

Waking up en route to New Delhi, we were approaching Jaipur (the pink city) at dawn, and I saw a caravan of camels cross the Thar Desert, with the pink buildings in the distance. The desert hills still had morning shadows.

[calimary]

64. I've seen my own fingers gliding through Paul McCartney's hair.

I was with a small group that met the Beatles backstage when they played Las Vegas. After a brief visit between their two shows, we had to leave. I was at the end of the line as he escorted us out. At the last minute, being an ardent Paul fan, I got this crazy idea, one of those once-in-a-lifetime things that I figured would probably never happen again so I grabbed it. I turned and asked him if I could run my fingers through his hair. He said “sure, love,” and bent down. It was quick. I think I was 11 years old. With my left hand. (Hah! Ironic! He’s a southpaw.)

That was one risk I’ll always be glad I took.

[tavernier]

66. The famous people I've seen or met live and in person:

Bobby Kennedy (the original), Richard Nixon, Chuck Barry, The Platters, The Four Tops, Roger Miller (stoned out of his head, unable to stand on the stage), HRC, Nancy Pelosi (she blushed when I asked her why she looked younger than me despite ten year age difference), Obama, others that don’t stand out. But my favorite was John Lewis, giving a talk to a very small room of people, maybe a dozen, during a convention in Orlando. He talked about preaching to chickens, his very first congregation, and we were all crying from laughter. He actually glowed, and if anyone ever deserved sainthood, he would be my choice.

I’ve drank champagne at the top of the Eiffel Tower, seen The Mona Lisa at the Louvre, walked the magnificent Hermitage in St. Petersburg, shopped in Chinatown in San Francisco and New York, camped in a tent next to Mount Rushmore, kissed the Blarney Stone, and many more, but my most vivid memory was of the Statue of Liberty, from a ship arriving from Germany, as a four year old in pigtails and a beret.

[malthaussen]

68. "Donald Trump elected President."

Hell, even I still don't believe it.

-- Mal