PUSHED around and being no match for my tall peers, I was forced to stand on tip-toe as I tried to take photographs of Senator John Kerry, the Democratic presidential candidate who is in a deadlock with current US President George WBush.
I was less than a metre away from Mr Kerry, the one man who has a chance of defeating Mr Bush. And I was holding a camera worth US$4,500. That was the first time I had taken shots for the university newspaper.
I had received a call earlier in the day from a Kerry campaign spokesperson, telling me that the senator was going to arrive at the Philadelphia airport in two hours. Making a split-second decision, I told him that I would be there.
The next problem was trying to find a photographer; a story about Mr Kerry arriving with no picture would be rather boring. I made numerous calls, but to no avail. All the photographers were in class.
With the clock ticking, I asked one of the administrative staff to give me
a five-minute crash course in photography. Then, I rushed to the airport to welcome Mr Kerry.
But in a rush I forgot to bring any form of identification, and I soon realised the difficulty in persuading a member of the secret service to let me onto the airport tarmac. Eventually, I got in, with the Kerry campaign spokesperson vouching for my identity. And Mr Kerry hadn't even arrived yet.