My experience

[Lone Gunman]

This was probably 1999, I was working part-time in a lowly underling role at the Detroit Free Press.

It was 7 at night, in winter. As I approached the building (the side that faces Fort st. for those who know what I'm talking about) I witnessed four or five Green-ish white large fire balls flying in formation down the street.

I couldn't get over the fact there was no noise accompanying it. It was like a fireworks display but silent. The balls flew parallel to the street, eastward, I believe. It was like time just froze. Luckily there was another witness, a metro reporter standing on the steps smoking. He kept yelling What the f*ck is that?!" over and over -- normally annoying, but it helped ground me in the moment.

All told, the sighting lasted a good 7-8 full seconds. Once the balls went past some buildings out of sight, the other reporter said he was going to call the FAA and get some answers. Like an idiot, I didn't get his name. I tried to tell people in the sports dept. that I think I just saw a UFO, no one would really listen. Hell, I wasn't even processing what I just saw.

That night, Chanel 4's weather guy came on and said there were sightings downtown of "meteor showers". There was no writeup the next day in the paper. But that night/early morning when I got home, I saw it had already been reported on the net. I went on to Sightings' website (now known as Rense) and the greenish white fireballs had been seen as high as northern Ontario through Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee.

Then what was weird, was the effect it had on me. I had always found the UFO mystery intoxicating. Since I was little and watched "In Search Of" to college in the mid 90s when I discovered Coast to Coast. I had read many books and had a big collection. BUT, after the sighting, I lost interest immediately. I didn't pick up a book, or read a thing. I went from listening to Coast every night, to sparingly, if at all.

It was only until about 5 years ago that I rediscovered my interest through a good friend who was in the discovering phase and rekindled my interest. It's a weird thing to research and listen to programs regarding the UFO mystery then be confronted with the reality. I guess I just lost the taste afterwards.

It's an experience I'm haunted by. I wish I would have printed out the sightings, I wish I would have gotten to know that other reporter, I wish I would have even saved the date. It's like a wave of sudden disinterest washed over me at the time. The thing that really sucks is I wonder why, then I wonder if I'm overthinking it.

[mikec]

Really interesting. Huge thanks...

One question:
How old are you? I'm trying to make sense out of some ongoing patterns.

Also - there are more reports from michigan on this thread.

peace,
M!

[Lone Gunman]

Thanks Mike.

I'm 34 and based on the time of the incident in 1999 or 2000, I was 25 or 26 then.

It's weird, I've always watched the skies and thought if I'd see one, I'd see a triangle, disc, rows of lights. This very nearly could have been considered celestial but -- I'm sorry meteor showers don't fly in formation in huge fireballs across four states and a Canadian Province.