No it wasn’t a waste

I remember where I was but not the date. I was listing to the radio channel surfing and stopped on an NPR station I think. They were talking to a civil war reenactor and part of that conversation is sticking with me. He talked about a meeting with the NAAPC and how it turned into a shouting match. I can’t even remember his reason for the visit or meeting. What stuck with me was how his voice sounds as he said he failed but never said it was a waste.