A Day to Remember

[rusty_armour]

As it's now officially the 100th anniversary of Titanic's sinking, I thought I'd share a post I wrote five years ago about a Titanic exhibit at the Ontario Science Centre -- for anyone who might be interested. I also plan to watch six hours of specials on History Television, which might be something I regret. Surprisingly, I haven't had any nightmares about Titanic yet, despite the various programs I've watched. I, uh, have a fear of drowning: something that has made itself apparent in my dreams over the years. Ironically, it was my mom who ended up having nightmares about Titanic after watching one documentary about the engineers who stayed behind to man the boilers. She was down there with them and the water kept coming in. It was an image that haunted her even when she was awake. When she told me this last weekend, I stared at her in surprise and said, "But that's something that would happen to me." Suffice it to say, my mom stopped watching anything about Titanic after that experience.

Comments

[crew4.livejournal.com]

The Titanic was always something I was entralled with when I was younger. I felt so sad for all those people! So when the James Cameron movie came out I ended up going to see it 4 times. To this day it's the only movie I've done that with.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Hey, crew4! :-) Yes, I can understand the enthrallment. I think I became interested in the disaster as soon as I hit my teens. I know I read A Night to Remember when I was about 13. And I guess the fascination never really went away. My mom and I were discussing it last weekend and came to the conclusion that people are drawn to the Titanic story because it's as if the ship was destined to sink. If the ship had been travelling a little faster or slower, it might have missed the iceberg altogether. Then, of course, if it hadn't tried to veer around it, then it might also have been okay as hitting the iceberg head on would have caused less damage. Oh, the ship might have still gone down, but it might have taken longer to sink, buying the passengers and crew more time.

[radiogaga80.livejournal.com]

The exhibit definitely sounds like a must-see! :)
Sadly, not much attention is given to the Titanic here (well, they do air the movie) but then the dutch are so nonchalant they don't give much attention to historic events in general. :(

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

The exhibit definitely sounds like a must-see! :)

I'm not sure if it's still something that is touring around the world. I would think those artifacts must be on display somewhere considering that it's the 100th anniversary.

Sadly, not much attention is given to the Titanic here (well, they do air the movie) but then the dutch are so nonchalant they don't give much attention to historic events in general. :(

I think Titanic gets a lot of attention here because of where it sank and the role Nova Scotia played in the disaster.

[radiogaga80.livejournal.com]

think Titanic gets a lot of attention here because of where it sank and the role Nova Scotia played in the disaster.
That's a very good point. From what I heard, there were only 3 dutch people on board.Also, on a dutch news forum, many people seem to comment that there were more and bigger disasters at sea that aren't commemorated at all. I can see their point but I also see why Titanic stands out from those other disasters.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Oh, I totally see their point. While I can understand why Titanic stands out, I think it's a shame that it does eclipse other disasters. For example, the Empress of Ireland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Empress_of_Ireland) sank in the St. Lawrence River two years after Titanic. It only took about 14 minutes to go down and 1,012 people died. However, hardly anyone knows about it, even though it was the worst disaster in Canadian maritime history.

[jackycomelately.livejournal.com]

It's a shame my stepmother isn't on-line. I would love to link her to that awesome post! I've given her all sorts of Titanic documentaries over the years. Like you and E she is super into it. I've ummm never watched "the" movie myself. I understand it ends badly :) On the other hand I would probably enjoy the exhibit (it sound awesome) and the nonfiction sources.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

It's a shame my stepmother isn't on-line. I would love to link her to that awesome post!

Ah! Thank you! :-) I don't know if it would be worth printing it out. I'm guessing it wouldn't be quite the same.

I've given her all sorts of Titanic documentaries over the years. Like you and E she is super into it.

I was actually checking out Titanic documentaries on Amazon yesterday as I was looking for ideas for my dad's birthday. There were definitely some contenders. I saw at least a few that had been made in the last couple of years.

I've ummm never watched "the" movie myself. I understand it ends badly :)

I saw it when it was released, but I haven't watched it since. Just the idea of watching it again seems exhausting. *g* To be honest, I've never come across a dramatization of the tragedy that I've loved. I'd rather watch a documentary on the subject any day. I just finished watching one on Belfast's role in the construction of Titanic. Last night, I saw a great National Geographic documentary on the real story of Robert Ballard's discovery of Titanic. His expedition was funded by the US Navy -- and he was only given the okay to search for Titanic after locating two nuclear subs that went missing in the sixties. As the Cold War was still going on in '85, all of this was kept top secret.

On the other hand I would probably enjoy the exhibit (it sound awesome) and the nonfiction sources.

The exhibit was definitely something to see and there are a lot of great nonfiction sources on the disaster.

[njc2007.livejournal.com]

I guess you know whence you got your propensity for nightmares.

You are definitely not alone. I can't watch images from 9/11. Around that time I had a lot of bad things happen in my life and 9/11 images trigger my PTSD symptoms to return.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

I guess you know whence you got your propensity for nightmares.

Yeah, I guess so, though I'm happy to say that I haven't had one in quite a while. My poor mom actually had a night terror episode when she was pregnant with me, which doesn't surprise me somehow... *g*

You are definitely not alone. I can't watch images from 9/11. Around that time I had a lot of bad things happen in my life and 9/11 images trigger my PTSD symptoms to return.

I'm sorry to hear that. I usually try to avoid images from 9/11 because I remember that day all too well and it upsets me. I never had any PTSD symptoms, but I remember feeling nervous for days afterwards whenever I heard a plane. Hell, I still get nervous if a plane looks like it's flying too low. In any case, I can understand why 9/11 images would trigger PTSD symptoms for you considering all the bad things that were going on in your life at the time. I hope that you've been able to avoid these triggers for the most part and haven't had to suffer too much with PTSD symptoms.

[alysscarlet.livejournal.com]

We've had absolutely masses of Titanic stuff over the last few days. I hope you're enjoying all your History Specials. I've got 'A Night To Remember' recorded to re-watch tonight. Last night G and I stayed awake listening to the BBC Radio 2 programme 'Titanic - Minute By Minute' til 2.30am which was very moving. I recommend it: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fq7lb

(Although of course the sinking was 2.20am ship's time, not UK time, so it wasn't exactly the same time, but the sentiment was the same). And it has Billy Bragg singing about an iceberg!

I also have rather a fear of drowning. I remarked to G last night that I'd rather freeze to death in the sea than drown.

[radiogaga80.livejournal.com]

Ow, I saw that musical special last night (and had a fangirly moment when Colin Morgan read survivors' letters on stage *blush*). I saw bits of "A Night To Remember" - it aired on Belgian tv this afternoon and after it finished, it started on BBC. Thought the movie was more moving than the James Cameron movie.

[alysscarlet.livejournal.com]

It was the first time I had heard Colin Morgan speak with his proper NI accent - very nice! I wasn't hugely thrilled by the whole evening though, I felt a lot of the music was out of place.

I agree that 'A Night To Remember' is more moving than 'Titanic'. I think I'll watch it now. :-)

[radiogaga80.livejournal.com]

I was flicking channels and when it popped up, it was the two violinists playing Nearer My God to Thee (I think) which was very moving. But shortly after Joss Stone appeared and I thought "WTH is she doing there?!" and that's when I turned it off.

[alysscarlet.livejournal.com]

Yes, that was pretty much my reaction! They also had Brian Ferry at the beginning. Bzuh?

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

We've had absolutely masses of Titanic stuff over the last few days. I hope you're enjoying all your History Specials.

It's great that you've been able to watch so many programs on Titanic. I've really been enjoying the History specials so far. At the moment, I'm watching one about an expedition that is trying to scan the entire wreck and provide images that have never been seen before.

I've got 'A Night To Remember' recorded to re-watch tonight.

I'm not sure if anyone is broadcasting it over here. I should check as I haven't seen it in years. They have included clips from the film in some of the documentaries I've been watching.

Last night G and I stayed awake listening to the BBC Radio 2 programme 'Titanic - Minute By Minute' til 2.30am which was very moving. I recommend it: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01fq7lb

Oh, that must have been fabulous! I'll try to listen to that before it expires! Thank you very much for sharing the link! :-)

(Although of course the sinking was 2.20am ship's time, not UK time, so it wasn't exactly the same time, but the sentiment was the same).

I suppose it could have been broadcast five hours earlier to try to get the exact time, but it wouldn't feel the same. I think it had to be broadcast in the early morning hours to recreate what it must have been like when Titanic hit the iceberg.

And it has Billy Bragg singing about an iceberg!

Okay, that's something I have to hear. *g*

I also have rather a fear of drowning. I remarked to G last night that I'd rather freeze to death in the sea than drown.

I'm with you there. Freezing to death would be horrible, but I'd rather die of hypothermia than drown.

[tazzles.livejournal.com]

I hope that you made it through unscathed. I watched one documentary that stated that it wouldn't have sunk so quickly if they'd use better quality rivets. Kinda depressing really.
Fingers crossed that you have no drowning dreams.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

I hope that you made it through unscathed.

Yes. Surprisingly, I did. I think I may have seen some people in Edwardian dress in my dreams last night, but it's all pretty fuzzy. As I didn't wake up in a panic, I obviously wasn't having a nightmare.

I watched one documentary that stated that it wouldn't have sunk so quickly if they'd use better quality rivets. Kinda depressing really.

Actually, I watched a documentary (from this year) that disproved the theory about the rivets. They took 100-year-old iron and constructed rivets in the same style as the ones from Titanic. Then they set about testing how much stress they could take and if they would fly off the steel. The rivets held even when the steel was bending. They've also found proof from the wreck itself (using scans) that the rivets weren't the problem. In fact, the experts agreed by the end of the documentary that Titanic was a strong ship. However, it (like just about any other ship in the same circumstances) couldn't hit an iceberg the way it did and not sustain serious damage.

Fingers crossed that you have no drowning dreams.

So far so good! :-) I haven't had a drowning dream in a long time, so I'm hoping that trend will continue.

[funkyinfishnet.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Sorry to hear about your nightmares. I suffered regularly from them until I was 18. I know that terrible fear well. May your sleep and dreams be ever peaceful, my dear xoxo

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Thank you! That's very kind of you! :-) To be honest, I haven't had a nightmare in a very long time. I'm not even sure when I last had a dream about drowning, so I really have nothing to complain about. And I slept absolutely fine last night, so I was worrying for nothing. *g*

I'm sorry you suffered regularly from nightmares until you were 18. I wonder if it had to do with puperty and/or hormones (e.g. changes to your body as you grew). I think my most intense series of drowning dreams were during one exam period in university. I would have been older than 18, but I suppose it could have been hormones combined with stress.