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Where were you on Sept. 11, 2001?
Very rarely, events are so profound that we know where we were when we learned of them.
Older folks know where they were when President Kennedy was shot. The attack on America on Sept. 11, 2001, when commercial airplanes struck New York City's Twin Towers and the Pentagon in Washington D.C. is another one. I remember as I was waking to go to work, I heard an initial report on KUZZ that a small plane had crashed into one of the towers. Soon the news became more horrific. And my television set showed the devastation of both buildings and then their surreal collaspe of unimaginable destruction and death. Where were you? We'd like to know in just a few short sentences. Posted by Steve E. Swenson 33 comments from 23 users
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posted by
anonymous
on Sep 10, 2006 at 02:15 PM
I know I'm on the late freight, my comp was down. I remember we were getting ready to go to the coast, I had taken some things out to the car, my neighbors son ran out and asked me if I'd heard. I went in, turned on the tv, and for about 20min, we sat in disbelief. We listened to the radio reports all the way over, and that night, we took our chairs out on the beach, lit a small bonfire, and we realized how empty the sky was, no planes. Then we saw a small light moving in the sky, traveling out over the ocean, and then just as quickly it disappeared, and I realized it was a fighter jet, protecting our coastline, and I knew things would never be the same for any of us. 9/11 still hurts everytime I remember, and I still mourn for those who were lost.
posted by
taftrose
on Aug 21, 2006 at 07:51 AM
I was geting My Kids off to school Had Tv on (normely do in the mornings to hear the News from the Nigth before)
and geting my self ready for work I was working at the schools still . That day i walked around In a Daze wating and wondering if there whould be more and if so were Next posted by
NancyII
on Aug 18, 2006 at 06:34 PM
I agree Hardliner...I don't go to church as often as I should but when I do..Higher Ground is where I go. I'm not too crazy about the cell phone cross though.
posted by
Hardliner4freedom
on Aug 18, 2006 at 03:22 PM
Actually, Anny, our country did pull together, for a glorious few months, after 9/11. It was the return of division -- with a vengance -- that has made us a weaker nation since.I'm going to give a local evangelical church a real, positive plug: Higher Ground Church with Pastor Roberson. They broadcast their sermon on the radio shortly after 9/11. He began preaching about how God was using the 9/11 attacks to teach America something. I thought to myself, "oh, no, don't tell me... he's going to tell us all how God let this happen because we're so sinful, sort of like what Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell did." WRONG!!! He said that God was using this attack to bring Americans together. He was overjoyed at how Americans were pulling together and standing side by side, regardless of beliefs or politics. 'Could've knocked me over with a feather. Want a church with a good message? Higher Ground. posted by
anonymous
on Aug 18, 2006 at 03:08 PM
Yeah the country came together , with bad results, however, as we have not had a day's peace since 9/11.
It has been one war after another and there seem to be no end in sight. It has made war acceptable and admirable as well as limiting any other option to solve disputes, what is so nice about that? If it just makes you proud to puff your chest out and say "bring 'em on" every time you feel threatened, we are in big trouble and unfortunately the world is in big trouble with us. 9/11 brought on just what the perpertators wanted, a mentality and paranoia of fear, a destruction of our economy by constantly fueling the war machine, and a divide in our view of each other as people instead of religious zealots for the next millinuem. posted by
anonymous
on Aug 18, 2006 at 01:06 PM
I was so proud of the way the whole country seemed to pull together. I'm sappy anyway, I cry every time I hear the national anthem. I'm sorry that it took such a tragedy to remind us that we are all one family, but like most families, we can't keep from fighting amongst ourselves. My brother is still in Iraq (3rd go-round) and I just want to hug everyone I see in uniform.
Steph posted by
shayladphillipsmc
on Aug 18, 2006 at 10:58 AM
I was starting a new job and had gone to a late party the night before. My pager kept going off around 6-7 am and I turned it off. My neighbor finally came and banged on my door till I awakened. She hustled me down to her apt talking about a plane hitting the pentagon. I told her it sounded like a tom clancy novel. When I walked into her house everyone was really somber and they were replaying the footage of the second tower being hit. I had to go buy work clothes, so I bought a portable radio and took it with me. I needn't have bothered. Everywhere I went, there was a television set with coverage.I am a history major, so I told my family about the possibilities(including osama). Iam 28 so I remember the challenger disaster and I was in the fourth grade then. I had the same feelings of sorrow and anger on 9/11. After 9/11 I watched the news when they played the star spangled banner at buckingham palace and cried. When Bush stood on the rubble and told the workers that the bad guys would be hearing from us I cheered. I am ready to cry now so I have to stop.
posted by
littlealien1
on Aug 17, 2006 at 09:58 PM
I was sleeping, didn't have to work until mid-morning. My son woke me and told me to turn on the TV. I sat there in shock and watched until I had no choice to get up & ready for work. I went to work in shock, looking up at the sky thinking of how empty it was. They had already grounded all the flights, and it seemed so strange for it to be empty. But even now, I look at the sky and when I see a plane, I can't help but think it doesn't belong there... posted by
spooky68
on Aug 17, 2006 at 09:46 PM
On September 11 I was living at Point Mugu Naval Air Station. I didn't watch the news that morning so I had no clue what was going on. So after I took my kids to school I noticed that the base was being patroled by CIA and FBI and alot of Base Security (Living on Base they are always having drills) I didn't find out till I got back from my morning walk.. Alot of kids from the base were being picked up early from school, and every car was being searched. I spent every minute glued to the tv. I also remembered how people on base seemed to be in shock. posted by
tonyh
on Aug 17, 2006 at 08:41 PM
riverrider,For the sake of the kids, you did the right thing. I know it was hard. I had Cub Scout meetings to contend with. Parents were upset. Kids were confused. Fortunately, the majority of my leaders were either active duty Navy or Veterans. We huddled up before the meetings started and came up with an approach for ME (Cubmaster) to use with the kids and one for the leaders to use with the Parents who didn't understand the whole thing. By the end of the evening, I felt like we were able to calm a lot of Souls. A lot of Parents didn't know how to talk to theire kids about it. I've been told many times that we, as an organized Cub Scout Pack, helped a lot by being calm and honestly answering questions as best we could. posted by
riverrider
on Aug 17, 2006 at 07:00 PM
I woke up and lazily reached for the remote control to slowly wake up to face the day. The first plane had hit and I was shocked wide awake. I started getting ready for work trying to hear the news when the second plane hit. At that point I felt completely shocked. I'm a school teacher so I didn't have the luxury of not going to work (and I had to send my own children off to school). At school, the principal told us that we could not have radios or televisions on because we didn't want to alarm the children. I would wait for breaks and run to the television to turn it back on and see what was happening next. I remember worrying, will they hit Bakersfield? California? We have oil fields, a main grid through the valley for railroads, transportation... I wanted to go pick up my children and go home, make soup, and curl up with my family...but instead I had to go through the day acting as if everything was natural. I guess I'm a good actress --- but I was empty inside.
posted by
TomW
on Aug 17, 2006 at 05:05 PM
From your lips to God's ears. posted by
randomfactor
on Aug 17, 2006 at 05:01 PM
"The good old days," in other words, Tom. May they come again some day without such devastating loss as a trigger.
posted by
TomW
on Aug 17, 2006 at 04:48 PM
It does matter actually. We'll all tear each other apart here over this or that. I really liked this blog because it shows that we're all people, we all reacted and we do share a lot more than we don't. I was in San Francisco that day and I remember how quiet the city was, talking to strangers and every conversation starting with "How are you doing?" That is the part I'll never forget; the feeling that we were all Americans, that we were all in this together and that we were all kind caring people who took care of each other and would not be afraid, come what may.
posted by
anonymous
on Aug 17, 2006 at 04:37 PM
Does it matter, get over it, its history.
posted by
gr8scott
on Aug 17, 2006 at 08:48 AM
I was ironing my clothes preparing for work and happend to turn on the T.V. I couldn't believe what I was looking at and I'm not sure it really sank in for a couple of hours. posted by
NancyII
on Aug 16, 2006 at 10:01 PM
I was listening to an ex CIA agent who was stationed in the middle east for a long time and he said with all the electronic gadgets and the satelites there is no comparison to the man on the street in the middle of the foreign communities. He said elecronic equipment can't judge the feeling of the people on the street level and get an idea of the way the wind is blowing. I can see his point and in my opinion they need both to get the whole picture. Beside..after the cold war all my spy book authors lost their targets. Robert Ludlum would have been so disappointed. posted by
dougglendower
on Aug 16, 2006 at 09:30 PM
Since I worked late nights at the time, when the first plane hit, I was asleep. My father came rushing into the room and yelled, quite loudly, that New York was under attack. Since I was still in pre-9-11 world thanks to four hours sleep, this didn't make a great deal of sence. I threw some clothes on and walked out into the living room where my mother had the TV on with smoke coming from the building. That's about when the second plane hit and my dad started making a lot more sence.
Terrorism is about attacking the will of a people, and I hope American do not show faltering will in the fight against extremism of all sorts, even if our government may be targeting the wrong areas at the time. ALL terrorists, whether they be Chechens, IRA (who have seemed to given it up right now) or RUC (ditto), Islamic fundamentalists, African Warlords, or homegrown nuts are the enemy. We need to focus our intelligence apparatus on that, even in the anemic state it's in. It is one of the many formidable challenges awaiting the United States in the 21st century. posted by
NancyII
on Aug 16, 2006 at 08:35 PM
I was at the computer and saw that a plane hit the WTC. I didn't think much about it at first then thought..I should turn on the TV. When I saw what it was I woke up my grandson and he just kind of said wow..that's bad, and went back to sleep. I immediately popped a tape in the recorder and turned it on. In a bit, grandson came tearing into the room having had a call from a friend telling him the scope of the hit. We sat stunned all morning. I had to go to work that afternoon at WM and the place wes eerie..and quiet. People were glued to the TV's in electronics.I still have that 6 hour tape of the horrific events of that day but I've never watched it. Grandson told me he got it out a while back and looked at it again. Someone recently sent me the link to the video slide show of that day with a song playing. It was something about "who can know where the wind blows" ....I'm not even sure who sings it but along with the slide show, it's haunting. I'll never forget that day, nor the feeling that it was just the beginning since we've never known that kind of terrorism before. posted by
tonyh
on Aug 16, 2006 at 07:14 PM
I also remember scared people, confused people, crying. They couldn't understand that level of violence. I understood. Several of us were veterans and understood, because we'd been in conflict, in our "previous lives". We just couldn't believe it was happening on "Home Soil". I believe that's where my anger came from. That's why I believe that we should have pulled out all the stops and done business in the middle east. I have NO feelings of remorse or sorrow for any of them, as easy as it is to emigrate to another place. Send them all to their maker and het him sort them out.That's the most you'll get out of me on this subject. I've allowed myself to lose my composure and that's not good. posted by
TomW
on Aug 16, 2006 at 04:35 PM
I was at home. I turned on the TV as I got ready for work in time to see the second plane hit. I jumped in my car and drove to work. I was the facilities manager for 3 buildings on Market Street in San Francisco at the time and the only one who knew the buildings inside and out. I waited all day for something to happen in SF and talked to my tenants, passing on news of what was happening and how to contact people (phones lines were busy but email was still getting through). Then I called my friends and told them to turn off their TVs and get to my birthday party. I may have used the phrase, "If you stay home scared, the terrorists have already won."
posted by
Termite
on Aug 16, 2006 at 02:35 PM
I was living in upstate New York at the time. Our head office was in NYC. My husband called me at work to tell me about the first plane; he was watching CNN. I turned to my co-worker and said, "Janey, a plane just flew into the World Trade Center." We both got on line immediately. There was nothing at all for about 8 minutes and then the stories started flowing in. We didn't really have any idea that it was anything else other than a terrible accident. Then everyone in the office started getting phone calls. The women who worked upstairs came down to our office crying. Then the second plane hit. The people in the office next door came over to invite us to watch their TV. When the plane went down in PA, half the people in the office went home. We were so scared, and physically sick. Some of us stayed until the end of the work day but no one worked. We could not reach anyone at our home office. We could not believe what we were seeing on TV and on the internet. I'll never forget the scenes of people jumping out of the windows. The other thing I remember in the following days are those walls and walls of notes and pictures...."Have you seen....?" Eventually I had to stop watching TV for the sake of my own mental health. Our NYC office was shut down for a week. I have never felt safe again. And yeah, that awful feeling of violation. And anger, lots of it. And since I was around when JFK was shot, and remembered where I was that day too, I immediately thought to myself, "I will never forget this day." posted by
anonymous
on Aug 16, 2006 at 02:30 PM
I was attending a training session down in Simi Valley. In the hotel, while I was starting to get ready, I remember turning on the TV and started to flip to ESPN to get the scores, when I realized all the channels were showing the same event - I just sat on the edge of the bed, not quite comprehending what I was looking at. I called my wife at home and woke her up - I told her to turn on the TV - she aske'd 'what channel?' - I said 'It doesn't matter'. We stayed on the phone for a while but not much was said - we were both just kind of stunned. I finished getting ready and went to my class - I'm not sure if the entire magnitude of the event had quite settled in yet, but I don't recall learning very much in class that day.
We were dismissed early, and being the first time that I had stayed in Simi Valley, I decided to drive up the hill to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. As I approached the library and came around a corner, I was greeted with a few military personnel who had secured the grounds and they kindly asked me to turn around and that the library was closed. Evidently, they were protecting any and all federal property. Unbeknownst to me, back home, my wife went to the lab to have a pregnancy test taken that day where she learned we were pregnant with our first child. Due to the events of that day, it really made us question what kind of a world we were bringing this baby into. posted by
tonyh
on Aug 16, 2006 at 02:20 PM
I was at work. My Wife called me and told me to turn my radio on, that the World trade Center and Pentagon had been attacked. When I turned on the News, it was almost beyond belief. The whole office was gathered around my radio, when the Boss walked up and demanded that I turn it off, as I was violating Company Policy. I refused and told him that he could fire me if he liked. He was an imigrant from India (Naturalized Citizen since 1982) and didn't give a damn about what was going on. (The only reason that he didn't fire me, is because Human Resources wouldn't let him.) We all went into the Cafateria and they had a TV set up for us to watch the News. It stayed in there and ran for over a week.I remember that we all felt violated and angry. I still feel that way about it. I guess that's why I feel like we should have waxed the entire middle east.........................Nuke Subs (ICBMs) and Aircraft Carriers, that's all it'd take...............Courtesy of the Red, White & Blue. posted by
randomfactor
on Aug 16, 2006 at 02:12 PM
Let's not start that nonsense, CCC. An airliner full of jet fuel would be plenty enough. In fact, it did. Twice. Anything else just doesn't pass the smell test. . In fact, we got much luckier than we had a right to be, on September 11, 2001. Certainly didn't seem like it at the time, though. posted by
CCC1966
on Aug 16, 2006 at 01:39 PM
I was at work when I seen the burning of the building after the 1st plane hit and the tail fin sticking out. a supervisor thought it was a small plane that went in but I told him not it was not. Never been one to get emotional in front of TV but seeing that awful and the people suffering made my face wet. I never forgot the one man looking for his daughter ( I lost my composure again).Ever wondered why that the TV news networks never showed the planes hitting the Towers again on TV? An airliner jet fuel wouldnt be enough to bring down those buildings and I remember someone commenting on that. posted by
anonymous
on Aug 16, 2006 at 01:27 PM
My baby was ill so I had called in sick. My mom called and said to turn on CNN. I watched the second plane hit. Even when they were describing what was happening when the first tower fell, I just could not seem to comprehend. My husband, who is a cop, worked the graveyard shift but was not allowed off until about 8:00pm that night. I think I cried all day. I didn't send my older kids to school either.
Steph posted by
anonymous
on Aug 16, 2006 at 01:24 PM
It was my day off and I was home lying in bed watching TV. As I began to flip through the channels, I noticed something unusual was happening on the news, some sort of chaos, and that's when they began to show the towers. I remember watching as the plane hit the second tower and I was simply horrified. I'd never seen anything like that on TV and hope I never do again. The enormity of the devastation that day will remain with me always. All I wanted to do after I saw that was go get my daughter from school and hold her.
posted by
ProgressivePete2
on Aug 16, 2006 at 01:22 PM
I was getting ready for work. I went to work clueless to what was happening, since I don't listen to the radio (I especially can't stand those laughing DJ types in the morning. It really pisses me off) I heard people talking about the towers and was glued to cnn.com all day. It definately changed me because now I watch the today show (unfortunately for me) in the mornings while I get ready. I really can't stand lester holt, and I'm sure it will be even less relevant after meridith starts. Anybody know of another good morning show?
posted by
randomfactor
on Aug 16, 2006 at 01:14 PM
At home, had taken the day off. A friend called to tell me to turn the TV on. Walked through the day stunned.
posted by
rxgirl1984
on Aug 16, 2006 at 12:50 PM
I was getting up for school, it was the start of my Senior year. My mom came rushing in and was yelling at me, "What is the exact street your sister lives on??!!" She asked this because my sis lived in Manhattan, NY and we had just left there on August 11, 2001, one month exactly before on an American Airline. I said, "I think she live on 110th Ave, which was about 100 blocks from the Towers, but it was scary to think she was so close to the devastation. Of course, when my mom went to call her, she could not get ahold of her for hours. She was fine when my mom finally got ahold of her that night and she actually had to gone to work down by Times Square and she said it was eery because alot of the people who had been by the towers when they had collapsed came into her restaurant and were grey with soot and ash on them. When I went to school that day, everyone was in shock. We watched on TV all day the horrific stories that were coming out of NY and Washington DC. Everyone's lives changed.
posted by
anonymous
on Aug 16, 2006 at 12:31 PM
I was putting my makeup on in the bathroom, getting ready for work.
My husband came in to tell me that a plane had crashed into the world trade center. I assumed it was a small private plane so continued getting dressed. Then it was announced that the aircraft was a large passenger plane and everyone was presumed dead. I thought , MY GOD how did that happen. I'm ashamed to say that I commented to my husband that it would be on the news 24/7 for weeks. Before I left for work the second tower was hit and there was no doubt in our minds that something bad was afoot. I looked at other commuters on the way to work, wondering if they had heard yet. Most of them looked unfazed so I thought to myself "your world is about to change". And, it did. Audrey posted by
JulieJordanS
on Aug 16, 2006 at 12:20 PM
I first got the news by phone, but I misunderstood it. When I finally understood the magnitude of one of the most symbolic symbols of my close-to-NYC childhood teetering and falling.... I was standing on my walkway, about to take my daughter to school. I didn't want to take her, I didn't want to be separate from her. She looked up at me and asked... "What is it? What is it that makes some people do something so awful?" I knew I had to give her an answer that made some semblance of sense. That conversation lead to an essay that was published in my ezine in response to my readers across the world who needed reassurance - just like my daughter - that I was ok, that we, as a nation, were ok - I felt the outreach from my international readers in a way I had never felt it before. That essay also became one that was selected out of thousands submitted to be published in "Chicken Soup for the Soul of America".... I was numb. I took my daughter to school and asked the teacher if they were going to focus on the "horrible terrorists" and instill more fear in the children, because I didn't want that. Then I did another odd thing. I kept her out of school for the next few days... mostly because I was afraid.
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