I remember moving here shortly after the 2000 election.  No one mentioned politics until one day that I happened to ride an elevator with a casual acquaintance who asked, "Are you going to watch the inauguration tomorrow?"  That's certainly the last thing that I wanted to see.  "No."  "Why not?"  I looked at him.  I had been under the impression that most people didn't bother watching inaugurations, no matter how their vote was cast, but apparently this was unusual behavior to him.  "I'm not a Republican; I voted for the other guy."  The elevator door opened.  "You're not a Republican?  Really?"  I stepped out and looked over my shoulder as the doors shut, briefly witnessing one of the most surprised expressions that I had ever seen, like a squirrel in a power station.

As I watched the news coverage of the London attacks, I heard several reporters refer to the event as 7-7.  They weren't naming the full date, July 7, 2005; they simply called it 7-7 in exactly the same way as people now commonly refer to 9-11.

I wonder how long it will be before I hear the phrase "in this post-September-11th, post-July-7th world?"