September 11th, where were you?

[KateH1]

September 11th, where were you?

I had flown in from a business trip to Florida the night before. I had a layover at JFK, I remembered looking at the twin towers and thinking how cool it was to look out the window and see them on various trips over the years.

The morning of Sept. 11, I came downstairs and put the coffee on, then turned on GMA, I saw the first tower burning and couldn't figure out what I was seeing, I thought it might be a movie trailer. Then I realized that there had been a horrible accident. I ran upstairs and gently woke Dave up and he came down with me, just as the second plane was hitting.......horrified, is the only word I can think of.....we sat in front of the TV for the next few hours, trying to grasp what was happening. Over the next few days, I could barely be away from the TV. The skys over Denver were so quiet, with the exception of the Military planes circling the city, it was so strange. Everyone, everywhere seemed stunned and in shock.

Six days after 9/11, I was on a plane to CA. It was the strangest flight that I have ever been on. No one on the plane spoke.

[dexterhead]

September 11th, where were you?

My mom, visiting my brother in D.C., couldn't get out of the D.C. area for several days. She finally took a Greyhound bus back to the Midwest. It was crammed with doctors/lawyers, people from all walks of life. They didn't have enough of their own drivers so were using whomever could help out .. the driver got lost a few times. In the first days everyone was pulling together. I'll never forget that feeling of terror yet unity, that we were all in it together.

[LookingToGrow]

September 11th, where were you?

It was horrible. Company I worked for at the time had to assist with COWs and microwaves at the time, as we did with the space shuttle lost here in TX. No comparing, as they both sucked!!!

[Carmac]

September 11th, where were you?

I was in McLean, VA at my office. My boss, a private pilot, came into my office and asked me to help ckear our floor and the floor below - to send all home. I asked why and when he explained, he also added that our building was the tallest bulding between Dulles Airport and downtown. he feared our building might be a target if a plane ditched their effort to hit the Capital or White House.

I came home, phones jammed could not reach my daughter at college for hours.......very difficult. Watched with horror as things unfolded.

9/11 is one of the reasons I gave up a year of my life to work as a civilian in Afghanistan.

[gyco]

September 11th, where were you?

i have to add tht anyone that didnt feel anguish tht day has a problem,i no a lot of american people over the years and beleive you me i hope there all,alright,and to the ones ive never met i wish the same,but as i said earlier this is not a forum for that ,as all no we dont aal think the same as others gyco sorryif ive offended anyone

[lorisunshine]

September 11th, where were you?

I was home ready to leave for work. My hubby called and told me to quickly turn on CNN. When I told him that I was leaving for work he said that a plane had hit the WTC. Somehow a silly cartoon image of a little plane stuck in the tower came to mind, but then he explained that it was a commercial airliner. I immediately thought of Al Quaida , but before I turned on the TV I was hoping that it was an accident instead.
A newscaster was reporting from across the water when a shadow appeared in the background from the right and then the second tower was hit. I was just beside myself and in total shock and disbelief. We watched it at work all day long and finally left early.
Precisely a week later I left for Vienna, the hub of most of the flights to the Middle East. The fear and distrust at the Airport and in mid air was palpable. There was almost total silence on the plane and even the waiting lines through security were quiet and nobody made eye contact. Still today it feels as if nothing will ever be the same again.

[myra]

September 11th, where were you?

Was at home with the tv on. NEVER watch tv during the morning. Had just taken the kids to school. Hubby was in DC in hotel across from Pentagon. could not wait to hear from him. Did not think he would get out of washington and the story of how he got home was nothing short of miraculous. Picked him up at state line and brought his behind home. Very fortunate, we all are.

[Bambi]

September 11th, where were you?

Thanks to everyone for sharing there stories and for sharing the music......small world at times it seems!

:l

[wonderworld]

September 11th, where were you?

Reading these, and remembrances on other threads has had a tremendous effect on me today. I have never heard personal accounts of that day from people outside of New York, much less around the world. There is something very ........ comforting ..... reassuring...... in learning how much human beings everywhere shared the grief and shock and horror of that day, as it was happening. I never realized how MUCH people cared, or how deeply they were affected, or how much sympathy and compassion they were feeling for our City and our friends ........

It sounds arrogant to say "thank you". But, seven years later, I have a sense of hearts all over the world holding this memory today.

Another gift from this wonderful community....... :h

ww xox

[dexterhead]

September 11th, where were you?

Wonder/Laurie, was wondering about the viewpoint of a real New Yorker. The rest of us will never forget. For a while I got the NYTimes and I tried to read every single one of the "Portraits of Grief," profiles of the victims that ran for months, which was amazing.
Yes, you are right about hearts all over the world:h:h:h

[Rachelita]

September 11th, where were you?

I was in bed with an old college roommate. We had gotten drunk the night before and the town I went to school in is know for being extremely haunted. She was convinced the house we renting was haunted. She got scared the night before and begged me to sleep with her (just sleep). So I did. The next morning our other roommate burst in the room and told us about the first plane. Nursing a hangover we sat and watched the second plane hit. It was surreal. I went to my first class and our professor gave a short speech on the tragedy and then canceled class. Classes were canceled for the rest of the day. I was having reverse culture shock from having lived in Spain for a year and was hating the US. It's sad that it took a terrorist act to get me feeling patriotic again, but it's the truth.

[Preciouspinot]

September 11th, where were you?

Gyco, I have to say that at this point you're offending me. I am not mad and there is no drama but, I would appreciate if you did not share. This is a very sensitive topic.

[CS04]

September 11th, where were you?

I was at work, teaching high school ESL (English as a Second Language). I saw most of my students 1st period, but it was early and no one knew what was happening yet. By the time I saw them again at the end of the day, they were all confused as to what was going on. So I was drawing pictures of the Twin Towers on the board, and drawing pictures of the airplanes flying thru them...They were so confused and crushed.

I was supposed to start a yoga class that night, and that was cancelled.

I still teach ESL, at the college level currently, and I often ask students "where were you on Sept. 11?" Again, these are international students, very few of whom were in the US on 9/11. And they were young, too (maybe 11 or 12). But they all have a reaction and a memory of the event. It was indeed a world occurrence that shook up ALL of us.

[memarcie]

September 11th, where were you?

I was watching the tragedy unfold on the internet while at work. I had to go to the doc that day and I was ticked they didn't have TV's in their waiting room. No work was done at my office all day as everyone was watching TV or the internet.

[Rags]

September 11th, where were you?

A day/night I won't forget. I was staying up late watching TV and channel surfing when I came upon it. For the first couple of minutes I thought it was part of a movie, then the realization struck. It was about 1:30 am here when the second plane hit. I really thought WW111 had started when the Pentagon was hit.
It changed our world forever.