September 11 - Remembered! What were you doing?

[lainiefig]

When everything first started happening, I was driving to work, but I was listening to a music tape, so I didn't hear about it. I went into the building where I worked in downtown Houston and saw people standing around the TVs in the lobby watching but I was jet-lagged and tired and didn't pay any attention. (I had just arrived back from a trip to Amsterdam the day before.) Then it wasn't until later while we were sitting at our desks working that someone came in our office and told us what was happening. The whole office was in a panic (as were the people on TV and radio). We didn't know if they might hit Houston since it's a big city and also center of the U.S. oil industry (not to mention NASA nearby). So everyone scrambled to leave downtown and it took me 2 hours to get home (it would normally take me about a half hour).

The scary thing for me was that my husband was still in Amsterdam and of course all anyone wanted was to be home safe with loved ones. He was scheduled to come back that Friday and managed to only be one day late.

I didn't personally know anyone who died, only heard about friends of friends, but it was such a pivotal day in my life. I guess the whole world changed for all of us, but of course so much more for those who lost loved ones. Now I live in a suburb of NYC and my husband works in Manhattan in an office building right next to Ground Zero. If it weren't for the kids and the cost of housing and schooling in NYC, we would love to live there and I would be so proud to be a New Yorker. I'm quite happy even to live just 20 miles up river from such an amazing place. But of course, we can't forget the other events in D.C. and Pennsylvania as well (not to mention the casualties of war since).

[font face="comic sans ms" font color=teal font size=+1]***Lainie***

http://web.mac.com/lainiefig/iWeb/Si.../Exercise.html

"The worst loneliness is to not be comfortable with yourself." -- Mark Twain[/font]

[jharris35]

I was pulling into work when the announcement came on the radio that the first plane hit tower. Close to 9am. I guess I was a little a naive because at first I thought it was some horrible accident, then my dh who was on the golf course called to tell me about the second tower I was in disbelief.

[jonahnah]

I heard about it in a CVS drugstore; an employee had a group of people around him and he was telling everyone that full size planes hit the WTC. I drove home, listening to the radio, talking to my husband on the car phone, telling him that all air traffic had been suspended. While I was on the phone, the announcer said the first tower fell and I started sobbing. We live an hour north of NYC so a lot of people in my town commute there. Trains were shut down or delayed and traffic couldn't get in or out of the city. Parents couldn't get home. Total chaos.

The schools here were wonderful. They kept the kids late and at least one teacher was on every school bus to walk each child to their door to make sure there was an adult in the house--even the high school kids. Both of my children have friends whose fathers were killed in the twin towers. One of my friends lost her BIL. Another friend's husband was supposed to have a 9:00 job interview that day in one of the towers. He decided to cancel it the day before.

I was glued to the TV the entire day. I had my daughter watch with me for little while (she was only 6 yo then) and I remember telling her that she would remember that day for the rest of her life.
Remember the people they showed walking, completely covered with ash and dust? All those office papers flying around that were once so important, suddenly meaningless? Those heartbreaking "Have you seen..." flyers?

The amazing thing is that because it was the first day of school in NYC, many people were late getting to work because they took their kids to school. Thousands more could have died had it been a day earlier or later, or even just an hour later. What a horrible, horrible day.

Jonahnah
Chocolate IS the answer, regardless of the question.

[Stephanie0523]

I was six months pregnant with my first child and working in a media relations department at a university. We were gathered in a co-worker's office watching it unfold on the television. I kept wondering what kind of world was I bringing this child into. I wondered if he'd ever feel as safe as I felt growing up. And I hoped I'd always be able to make him feel safe no matter what. It's amazing how one event can change people's lives forever...

[tneah]

My DH and I were drinking coffee watching FOX news. I saw the first plane hit and said something like "Is that pilot drunk?' And then the second plane, and the other news from the Pentagon and PA. We stumbled into work and sat in front of the TV the rest of the day. I called my dad and told him I loved him. It was horrific. Even remembering brings on the tears and my prayers go out to all of us today.

[dlavie]

I was substitute teaching, covering English Grammar, use of a comma.

The principal mad a PA announcement. We never got back to the lesson. We watched CNN and had group discussion in that class and for the rest of the day. The school district handled the disaster well. We continued school that week, had counselors for anyone that needed them.

[lederr]

I was in graduate school at the time and had stayed up late studying the night before. So, I took the opportunity to sleep in. I did some stuff around the house then got changed to go work out but wated to call the Gap first because I had seen a pair of jeans that I wanted in another store but they didn't have my size. So, I called the Gap and was asking about the jeans. The sales clerk said they had them in my size and I asked her if she could hold them for me. She replied that with what had just happened she didn't think the store would be very busy. I had NO idea what she was talking about and asked her. She told me. Whoa. I immediately hung up the phone and watched the news coverage.

No, I never got the jeans. I am sure when I first called and was asking about them, she thought I was a moron!

[Tess_ATL]

I had taken the day off work. DH and I were renovating our house so we were meeting with the kitchen contractor that day. I remember getting a call on my cell phone that morning from my friend at work who told me to turn on the TV. It was so surreal. We were so busy with the house that it didn't fully sink in until months later.

[marcy]

I was on the train going to work and we saw the first tower burning. Someone thought it was mechanical failure. No one knew what to think. By the time I got to work, the second tower was hit. Someone in my office actually saw the plane going into the second tower from her train. I work in midtown and it felt so weird that while all the chaos was going on downtown, everything was going on as usual in midtown. Now every couple of weeks, I see swat teams with machine guns and dogs by Radio City Music Hall. It's kind of scary when that's a regular occurrence coming to work.

Marcy

[materialsgirl]

I was working at a job fair at Purdue University, as a representative for my company. I was outside all day for the job fair with no access to tv or radio, and the only information I could get was what other people were telling me they had seen on tv. I felt very much in the dark. I had to drive all the way back home right from the job fair (a 3 hour drive - complicated by looooong lines at the gas stations), and when I got home that night, I finally was able to watch the news and see the footage and the reports. Absolutely devastating and horrific. I will always remember that day.