28 years ago

Last time we said Birkat HaChamah, it was 1981. What happens in 28 years?

* Since 1981, there have been 10,227 sunrises - and just as many sunsets.

* At the beginning of 1981, it cost $0.15 to mail a letter. Now it costs $0.42, but email is free.

* In March of 1981, AIDS was first diagnosed in the United States. At the end of 2006, an estimated 1,106,400 people were living in the US with AIDS.

* In 1981, the Red Sox were 23 years away from winning the World Series, but only 5 years away from the 1986, Buckner-ball-through-his-legs disaster. The wait seemed endless...and sometimes hopeless.

* Sandra Day O'Conner became the first woman on the Supreme Court in 1981. Twelve years later, Ruth Bader Ginsberg joined her.

* In 1981, the US Agriculture Department tried to make ketchup a school lunch vegetable. What would our dining hall staff say about that?

* MTV debuted on August 1, 1981 and consequently, video killed the radio star.

Some thoughts for you....Were your parents married in 1981? Did they know each other? Had they even graduated high school? Speaking of high school....how many of your teachers were alive in 1981?