5000 What?

You’re writing your autobiography. What’s your opening sentence?

“It all started in a little 5000 watt radio station in Fresno, California.”

That is of course a brilliant start to an autobiography, but it wouldn’t be mine. It actually comes from Ted Baxter, the pompous anchorman character on on The Mary Tyler Moore Show from the 1970s.

There are many great and memorable starts to books. “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times” also comes to mind. Again, not original and not really me.

In fact, I can’t think (on the spur of the moment, and even having had time in the shower and one cup of coffee) how to best answer this prompt. Anything I’ve come up with sounds incredibly limiting. “California Dreamin’” in nice, but doesn’t sum up the full scope of my life. Immaculate Misconceptions serves well for my memoir of life in Catholic School, but doesn’t apply beyond high school graduation. And several of the cool titles that I’ve made up (and recently found in a file) are great for other things, but as a summation of my life.

So I’ll keep working on determining that exact phrasing—and since I don’t feel that I’m quite finished, and have only began Act III, I’m not ready to install that capstone just yet.

I do want to say that Ted Baxter did have the greatest advice on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. In one episode he suggests adopting a positive attitude. I leave you with that clip.