Left to my own devices

35 years ago today saw the debut of Star Trek: The Next Generation , or TNG , as we fans often refer to it. For a few years preceding its launch, I'd watched reruns of "the original series" on our CBS affiliate, Sunday evenings after the local news. It was, of course, the standard bearer - Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Uhura, etc. But, TNG is my favorite. It was the Star Trek of my generation (no pun intended), and I was a devout viewer during its seven year run.

Odd as it may sound, I remember where I was for every first episode of a new  Star Trek  TV series (well, most of them). It is unclear why they are so clearly emblazoned in my mind, like they were some sort of national event, but there you go. I was reminded of this minor bit of mental trivia while watching the premiere of the latest show in the franchise,  Star Trek Discovery . More on that later.