In everyone's life there are defining moments in history. Obviously 9/11 will be remembered by everyone alive at that time that has a rational cognitive function (babies may not...).
Similar to when President Kennedy was shot, but more world-altering, I'll bet we all remember where we were and what we were doing when the terrorists started their attack on our liberty and freedom and the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
This thread exists so we can relate our brief stories and rememberances...
God Bless the USA!
I had just flown back from Vail Colorado the day before (9/10/01) and had taken the kids to school. I got out of my Durango in the driveway and my neighbor told me a plane had just hit the Twin Towers. I ran inside and turned on the tube, and saw the second plane hit Tower 2 live. I was fixated for the rest of the day. I did, however pull myself away long enough to go pull lots of cash out of the bank, before they put the freezes in. I figured this was the beginning of the end and I wanted to be able to pay my employees if the computer and banking systems shut down. Fortunately, due to the tireless efforts of so many Men and Women we came through that tragedy, and we now fight a battle for our lives and our way of life.
I'm looking forward to reading everyone's recollections...
I had just gotten to work, when one of the neighbors from a travel agency came over and told me a plane crashed into tower 2.
I was waiting on the punch line. One never came.
So then I expected a small biplane or something with a medical issue like an older pilot had a heart attack or something.
Then I turned on the TV in my office. At that moment, I sent everyone home. I knew right then the day was lost. Spent the rest of the day getting more and more angry at the TV
I was on my way to see a new client and give them the particulars on my company.
I was listening to the Howard Stern show and couldn't believe what he was saying.
When I finally got to my client, one of the salespeople had brought in a TV and we just watched the coverage.
At times, we tried to mumble our way through a half assed meeting but when that first tower crumbled, all was lost. We just watched that for a while until I finally left and went home, glued to the TV.
It was a very surreal time for everyone, and I couldn't stop thinking about all the people who were actually there experiencing it first hand.
I'm still a little bit confused about how the person ultimately responsible has not been held accountable. That's not a slight at the efforts, but there has to be some way to get to that degenerate SOB.
That morning, I had been let go from Lucent Technologies four weeks before, here in North Andover. Was at home and the wife called asking me to turn on the TV. I watched the second plane fly into the Tower 2. I still was able to access the network at Lucent and opened a VPN to 4 different camera feeds. (my job was at Lucent Digital Video, we had a satellite farm on the roof for pulling down streams from the birds)
I was watching one feed from one of the news Helos, two from live cams located on buildings in the area, and the last one from a feed that CBS had set up on a tripod on a truck.
I watched the feed from the cam directly, not what the broadcaster showed. When they pulled away of showing the ones falling out of the buildings, the cams were still panning the folks falling. I watched live as each person dropped, and could see the way the hair waved in the wind, as they dropped. How their clothing flapped as the wind currents whipped at them during the drop, While the view was too far to get as far as facial expressions, You could see the arms and legs moving in the wind trying to claw at something to grasp, however futile.
After about 10 minutes, I had an IM from the security IT depart asking how I accessed. They had been watching the draw on the network, and saw that my name had been activated. I had the entire department watching 'over my shoulder'.
I pulled two of the vid feeds off and started my 'easter egg hunt' for any other cams feeds. The next two were from Fox and NBC, they were in a live still about one block from each other. Both held the twin towers as they burned. You could see people in the broken windows, looking for answers.
I kept these views in my head since then. I visit these clips at night after a bad accident from a drunck driver, or when someone caused his own misfortune, and I ask why can't lives be changed? Here you have folks bent on destroying themselves, and we had nieghbors stuck in a place that we could do nothing to help.
May God bring them a peaceful place.
May American Burn the bastards that did this. Since you want to F**k with us? We may have disagreements with each other over politics, but we are going to cement your life into a living hell.
I was sitting in my office working, and my secretary knocked on my door; came in; and said "Michael, a plane just flew into a trade tower in New York", and then walked out...she was completely distraught and I knew this was not a joke.
No TV at work, so I put on the radio and listended for the next 2 days nonstop. Such a sad day. When I got home that night I watched the planes flying into the towers, it brought tears to my eyes and my girlfried at the time could not stop crying.
I offer my sympathies to the folks who have been affected by this trajedy...and yes indeed...God bless the USA
I was at work....I heard something about how a plane had hit a building in NY...I thought...ok...a small plane hit a building...sad but I never gave it a second thought....then...I walked in my father-in-laws office....he said nothing...staring at the TV (he knew this was no accident)....I turned and looked at the small TV he had on...I saw it...I was in shock the rest of the day as what was going on sunk in. We watched TV and listened to the radio all day as we tried to finish the work day.
I was at work, and my husband DCVenom was at home watching our son who had an ear infection. I would usually be the one staying home, but for some reason he decided to stay home. He works in the Pentagon, where the plane hit is where he would walk thru in the mornings, that area was his first job in the Pentagon. So thank God , Spiro had an earache. My husband could of been one of the victims. He did lose a lot of friends and ex-coworkers. It was a truly a sad day, but I was so glad he was home. All of our friend and relatives were calling us at home, they were all frantic thinking he was there.
I was in here and on the computer when my wife walks in and tells me that a plane hit one of the twin towers. I started watching TV and couldn't believe it when the second one hit. I watched for another 30 minutes and went to work where the TV was already on. I got there just in time to see the first building collapse and then the second. Numb from the shock I plodded through the day. Then... ANGER!
We had two customers in that building. Rest in peace.
I was at home sound asleep. My phone rang and it was my mom telling me to turn on the Television and watch what had just happened. I still can remember the shock, disbelief and anger. My thoughts and prayers go out to the Victims and Families impacted by the tragedy on 9-11-2001 and the brave men and women serving our country in our Armed Forces
I was unemployed and asleep when my girlfriend called. As others said, I thought it was probably some small private plane that clipped the building. I hung up and was going back to sleep. Then my mom called and gave me a better picture of what happened. I turned on the TV and a few moments later I saw the second plane hit. I dont think I've ever been so speechless in my life. I simply could not believe that had just happened!
I was glued to the set for the next few days. With each day that passed, my anger mounted! To this day I am still in disbelief at what I saw that day. To all those people that question what are President is doing, I just wish they would see it as preventive maintenance. Would you like to see another 2000+ people die again here at home?
Before Smackie Gal, I dated a gal for 5 years that was, at the time, an American Airlines flight attendant based out of JFK. That's when I started going through my first treatments and had just moved back to Texas after selling my place in Tribeca. I was on the phone for a day and a half trying to find her, but thankfully she was safe. Many of the folks in our neighborhood were not so lucky.
My hatred of Arabs & Islam peaked and has only slightly subsided from those highs.
I was at work, Jenn called me and said a plane had hit the WTC. I was thinking small craft. CNN was bogged down, and no one thought much of it at first. Then, when we saw the first pics of the plane hitting, we pulled out a radio and began to listen.
The rest of that morning was not much more than listing on the radio and searching for info from any website that worked. our WAN links lit up like a christmas tree that day. I remember when they said the second tower had fallen.
I had to tell my father what happened.
And to think, I would have been in that part of the pentagon if I was still in active duety USMC
9/11 @ Approximately 0300 I wake up from a nightmare..... My wife asked me whats wrong. We have this thing that if either of us has bad dreams we tell the other so it won't happen (bad theory). I told her that I just dreamed that we were at war. And it was here in the US. My dream consisted of myself patrolling the ohio river with many armed guards. We were on a high threat level and were cruising, basically patrolling, in my own back yard. We both laughed at it a little and went back to sleep.
9/11 @ approximately 1200 I had already been activated and met with 28 crew members. We immediatly dispursed all LE boats and began launching back up craft. We then started to disperse armed patrol boats to patrol the water intakes, the locks and the power plants. There were no planes in the sky and we were discussing the probability of a war. Barges were stoppe and boarded. Red flags were searched.
I took delivery of my Viper on the 7th. On the 11th, I was at home, finishing up some contracts when my wife called from the Hospital (she's a physician) and told me to turn on the TV. I guess it was in between the first plane and the second. I simply could not believe my eyes. It really hit me when I turned and looked out my living room window and could see the huge plum of smoke rising from the tower. Something clicked and I dashed down the elevator and ran (I was sore as hell the next day) the 5 blocks to where my daughter (then 1.5 y/o) was playing in the park. Funny, but when I saw her playing with her friends I realized that there was nothing I could do. I grabbed her and hugged her. She looked at me a bit puzzled. No one in the park knew of what was going on. All the kids were playing and the nannies were running around after them. It was surrealistic to know what was going on downtown and to see this play area filled with running, screaming, happy kids. I had to calm myself down to tell everyone what was going on. A few others there were getting the info on their cells phones but much of the cell phone infrastructure in NYC was interrupted. After a few minutes I realized that my daughter was just as safe there in the park (maybe more so) as she would be in our coop apartment building which is right on the East River.
I told them to stay for a while and them come home.
I then walked to buy some food and grab some $ from the cash machine. People were walking with radios and stores had TVs on. By the time I got home, there was a lot of panic in the streets. I recall that I could already smell the event (literally) as the smoke drifted north up Manhattan Island. Then I, like 200 million other Americans, stayed glued to the TV while my wife was gearing up for the thousands of injuries that never arrived at the Hospital.
Lost 2 good friends...with children! I still can't dwell on any thought of their kids. Too close to home.
