As we approach 9/11....I remember:

[C.Ann]

Bump..

In honor of a day of remembrance..

 

[Kimmumum]

I find it really eery that everyone remembers what a beautiful day it was. How could it be THAT beautiful all across the states at the same time??? I live in the south suburbs of Chicago and beautiful doesn't even describe the sky.

I remember working in Downtown Chicago, looking out the window at Lake Michigan and commenting how blinding the sun was off of the lake.

I remember my mom calling to tell me what happened (she was watching tv). She was taking my 7yo to school that day. She saw the news coverage of the 1st plane hitting on tv and decided she wanted to tell my son about it in case it was mentioned in school. As they were watching the coverage they both watched the second plane hit. My mom was devastated and apologized over and over again for letting him see it.

I remember working in the Amoco Building (as in oil). They had evacuated the Sears Tower and the Hancock Building because of threats. Our building was not closed (until about 2 pm) and we were not allowed to leave.

I remember standing by the window looking to see if any planes were coming our way.

I remember being told we could leave if we wanted but would have to make up our time on Saturday (I did leave that day and no I did not make up my time on Saturday).

I remember the sound of DH's voice when he found out I was safe.

I remember trying to get ahold of co-workers that worked out of our NY office whom I knew took the train that went under the WTC. Some were later found alive others were not.

I worked for an environmental company and I remember all of the stories/pictures that our employees took while being at ground zero for the clean up.

My uncle was on a camping trip in Canada for the weeks before and after 9/11 with no cell service. He told me about how on 9/11 he noticed that there were no planes in the air. He couldn't figure out why.

My cousin works at Logan airport assigning runways to incoming planes. She and 3 others are in a locked room. She was also 8 months pregnant. After the 2nd plane hit, the SWAT team kicked down the door and put a machine gun to her head. They didn't know who they good guys were and who the bad guys were. She had her baby a couple days later.

There are so many little things about that day that I remember and I wasn't anywhere near NY. I will never forget.......

 

[sk8ingmom]

I too remember the skies. We were living in Connecticut, about 1/2 way between Boston and NYC.

I remember not being able to get ahold of my Coast Guard officer husband and wondering when I would see him again - knowing he had bigger obligations than his family.

I remember watching my 15-month-old DS play on the floor wondering what kind of a world he was going to grow up in.

I remember watching American flags pop up on houses around my neighborhood. Ours had been flying on 9/10 and every day before.

 

[Donald - my hero]

I live in Canada. I too remember the colour of the sky. We live in a city with "smart lights" they turn red if traffic is approaching or stay green if none is there. A trip that should have taken us over 15 minutes took us only 5. We were headed to buy a 'puter, the store was very quiet except for the tv & monitor sections. Everyone was huddled around watching the news.

Worst thing i remember?
Our son was on a canoe trip way up north and they had no contact. once the air traffic stopped i became terrified for him.
Best thing i remember?
Our airports opening up to receive all the flights that were still in the air and tiny communities opening their hearts & houses to travelers.

 

[Camicar]

I am from the NYC area, but was living in the midwest on 9/11. I was on my way to work, listening to the radio, and on the regular news section they announced a plane had hit one of the Towers. I immediately thought:
1. Probably just like that time a while back when a small plane hit it. No big deal.
2. If it was a big deal, it was probably a mideastern terrorist.

I got to work and was all alone. Didn't put on the radio, bec I had only recently gotten one from my boss for my birthday days before so I was not yet in the habit of using it. Something... I still don't know what, some horrible intuition, told me at a certain point, to turn on the radio. I stood up and turned it on just as an announcer was saying or yelling, "The south tower just imploded!"

I remember standing there, frozen, with my finger still on the power button. Frozen. My boss walked in at that moment and took one look at me and said what's wrong. I said, "The south tower just fell down."

He said, "That can't be. That can't be."

I said, "They just used the IMPLODED."

We both stood there and stared at each other and he said, "Let's go into the other building with the tv and see what's going on."

We ran over and turned it on. I'm from there, he lived in NYC for many years. We were just in total shock.

I remember thinking of colleagues who worked in the towers and wondering if they were the people I saw throwing themselves out of the windows.

Another coworker came in and said, "Why aren't you two working?" My boss tells her, "Well, there is something horrible going on. Perhaps you don't know? But...We can't work." I will never forget her shrugging and saying, "Oh the attack in New York? I'm sure everyone got out of the buildings before they exploded." And my boss and I wanted to hurt her.

I remember hearing about Flight 93 and saying, "I bet the passengers took it down."

I remember someone telling me that "We deserved it since we are such a horrible country" and I told her to move the hell out of this country if she felt that way.

I remember getting postings from colleagues in NYC about their experiences that day.

I remember picking my dd up from the school bus stop at the regular time and her asking me about, "Some explosion in New York the bus driver was talking about."

I remember going home and raking up my lawn for something to do so I wouldn't just stare at the tv.

I remember my neighbor who had never said a word to me coming over and asking if my family in NYC was okay.

I remember trying and trying to reach my friend who takes the PATH train into NYC every day and gets out at the WTC and not reaching her until midnight and yelling at her dh bec he wouldn't put her on the phone. She heard me yelling over the phone, grabbed it from her dh and yelled at him. I remember thinking, "Typical New Yorkers -- we're all yelling." I remember her saying, "We WILL rebuild. And we will rebuild--" And I finished, "Something even taller. The biggest middle finger in the sky."

Later on, my fireman BIL was sent to NYC to help provide counseling for the crews. I remember him saying, "These are the bravest and toughest people I have ever met in my life. If I am ever trapped in a building, these are the people I want digging me out. They redefine commitment and persistence in the face of overwhelming adversity."

I have never been back to the site. I cannot make myself go there.

 

[C.Ann]

Thanks for all of the sharing..

 

[mrFDNY]

Hi all,

I try to remember the good at ground zero, here's some of it.

On the night of sept 11, 2001. I remember Outback steak house showing up with 3 vans packed with food. Were talking hundreds of burgers, steaks, trays of mashed potatoes, salads. Tons of cakes and desserts too. Burger king, mc donalds and wendys did the same. No one asked them for the food, they just showed up with it. Were talking hundreds of pounds of food.

I remember timberland and rockys companys showing up with hundreds of pairs of boots for the rescue workers. Coke and pepsi as well as a poland spring trucks showing up and droping off tons of cases of drinks for us.

The phones did not work and cell phones were dead too, i finally was able to get in touch with my wife at around 8:30 at night. Not really understanding why, she began to cruse and scream at me over the phone, but at the same time kept saying i love you. The FDNY had listied me as missing, she thought i was gone. She was sure of it, she figured i would have checked in much earlier. I called my dad next, it was the first and only time i could tell my dad was hysterical on the phone when he found out it was me. He too had been told by the FDNY i was offically missing.


Around the 13 or 14 of sept, 4 large 18 wheeler trucks pulled up and began to unload some things. It was donations from all over the usa. boots, pants, flashlights, face masks, knee pads, millions of other things we really needed and were able to use too. One box read from texas and another from wisconsin. Someone gave the FDNY thier all thier season tickets to the giant games and another for the mets.

I remember taking a break at ground zero on sept 11 at about 6pm. One of the guys i was with also FDNY wanted to go check his car that he parked that morning across the street from beekmen hospital. Its about 6 blocks from the trade center. We knew both trade centers collapsed, but were not sure how much the collapse zone went out. As we got around 4 blocks from the hospital, thier was a line over 7 blocks long going into the hospital. At first i thought they were all hurt vicitms.

We soon found out the hospitals had asked for blood donations. There were over 900 people at this one hospital alone and all thier just to donate blood. From what we heard this was the scene at every hospital in the 5 boro's in nyc, hundreds of thousands of people just waiting hours to give blood, to do thier part.

Most of all, i remember Walt Disney World. In april 2002, Wdw released the "Hero's Getaway package" It was for any member of the FDNY,NYPD or NYC EMS as well as thier sister agencys from the pentagon. It was 50% off room rates and FREE park hoppers for each night booked at the resort.


Thats what i remember, they way this whole country came together and helped each other.

 

[C.Ann]

Hi all,

I try to remember the good at ground zero, here's some of it.

On the night of sept 11, 2001. I remember Outback steak house showing up with 3 vans packed with food. Were talking hundreds of burgers, steaks, trays of mashed potatoes, salads. Tons of cakes and desserts too. Burger king, mc donalds and wendys did the same. No one asked them for the food, they just showed up with it. Were talking hundreds of pounds of food.

I remember timberland and rockys companys showing up with hundreds of pairs of boots for the rescue workers. Coke and pepsi as well as a poland spring trucks showing up and droping off tons of cases of drinks for us.

The phones did not work and cell phones were dead too, i finally was able to get in touch with my wife at around 8:30 at night. Not really understanding why, she began to cruse and scream at me over the phone, but at the same time kept saying i love you. The FDNY had listied me as missing, she thought i was gone. She was sure of it, she figured i would have checked in much earlier. I called my dad next, it was the first and only time i could tell my dad was hysterical on the phone when he found out it was me. He too had been told by the FDNY i was offically missing.


Around the 13 or 14 of sept, 4 large 18 wheeler trucks pulled up and began to unload some things. It was donations from all over the usa. boots, pants, flashlights, face masks, knee pads, millions of other things we really needed and were able to use too. One box read from texas and another from wisconsin. Someone gave the FDNY thier all thier season tickets to the giant games and another for the mets.

I remember taking a break at ground zero on sept 11 at about 6pm. One of the guys i was with also FDNY wanted to go check his car that he parked that morning across the street from beekmen hospital. Its about 6 blocks from the trade center. We knew both trade centers collapsed, but were not sure how much the collapse zone went out. As we got around 4 blocks from the hospital, thier was a line over 7 blocks long going into the hospital. At first i thought they were all hurt vicitms.

We soon found out the hospitals had asked for blood donations. There were over 900 people at this one hospital alone and all thier just to donate blood. From what we heard this was the scene at every hospital in the 5 boro's in nyc, hundreds of thousands of people just waiting hours to give blood, to do thier part.

Most of all, i remember Walt Disney World. In april 2002, Wdw released the "Hero's Getaway package" It was for any member of the FDNY,NYPD or NYC EMS as well as thier sister agencys from the pentagon. It was 50% off room rates and FREE park hoppers for each night booked at the resort.


Thats what i remember, they way this whole country came together and helped each other.

---------------------------

I've been thinking about you all of this week.. Weren't you the one that was keeping us up to date on the illnesses and such that the firemen and other rescue workers were suffering from now?

I recently saw a special about that on television and have been wondering if anyone has written a book about it.. I'd be interested in hearing more..

Hope all is well with you..

 

[Shutterbug]

I remember a couple weeks later. I was about to take a road trip to the Smoky Mtns for a week. My parents asked me to not go..to cancel my trip.

I said, "I have to go. If I dont go on my trip and stay home.....they have already won."

I use window paint to put the letters USA on my back window. I taped small United States flags on the back side windows. On the front door I put those short lil flag poles that attach to the window.

I had people honking and waving at me the entire way down there

 

[CruiserMom]

I remember being at work, hearing about the plane flying into the first tower, and thinking that it was a terrible accident. I went to CNN's website and watched the live streaming video. For the next 2 hours.

I remember getting a call from DH, a National Guardsman at the time. Even though we live a long way from any of the attack sites, his Guard unit was being activated and he was on his way to our state capital.

I remember my DD (3 at the time) was being picked up from preschool by my mother for an overnight visit, and being glad that I could watch the news reports without trying to hide what was going on from her.

I remember that night watching the news, and being all by myself, because DD was at my Mom's, and DH was with his Guard unit. And I remember how scared I felt.

And, I remember talking with my Mom several days later, talking to my Mom about how these terrorists were trying to kill all of us. And she said "Oh, they won't kill us all, they just want to scare us to death."

 

[kcork1026]

I was in PA, on the morning that changed our lives. I remember being in my classroom full of kindergartners as I heard the news, All I could do was cry. My youngest daughter was in another classroom in the building. Parents immediately started returning to the school. My husband turned around on his commute, to come and follow me to get our other daughter from her grade school. We sat in front of the tv and watched in disbelief, how could this be happening. I lost my breath as I watched the first tower collapse, I couldn't speak. As the second tower fell, I too fell on the floor in agony, as the magnitude hit me. I cried for everyone that lost a loved one, all the children that lost a parent, all the parents that lost a child, I cried for people that I had never met, and I hurt like I had never hurt. We live near a National Guard base, I remember going out that evening to get gas in the car, and seeing the armored guards down the street from my house. I stood at the gas pump and cried, afraid that my family would not be there when I got back home. I cried the next morning, when we had to go back to work and school, I wanted to hold on to my family and never let them out of my sight. I didn't sleep for weeks, and when planes started flying again, cringed everytime one flew over our house, getting ready to land, at the airport, less than 1 mile away.

Although, I did not lose a love one, I remember all that did. I promise you that I will never forget, and I wish you love this day and everyday.

 

[C.Ann]

Bumping for the night crowd..

 

[amyhughes]

I too find it eerie that everyone remembers the sky being so crystal blue. It seems to my memory that each anniversary we have had hanging overcast clouds and rain since. Today was gray and it spit rain most of it. Last year was the same and we even had some pretty bad storms roll in. I am not for certain the few years between now and 9/11.

 

[LJC1861]

It rained here in the mountains of NC today too. I also seem to recall that it has rained almost every year since 2001 on this particular day. It may seem corny, but to me it seems as if God is crying. By mid afternoon the skies had cleared, but this morning it was rainy. At about 10:00 it was pouring, with thunder......somehow seemed fitting as that was the time that it was the worst on that day.

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone who was touched by the events of 9/11/01....especially those who were there, those who lost loved ones, those who lost their lives, and those who were there helping in the aftermath.

As I said in my original post....may we never forget.

Linda

 

[C.Ann]

It was a beautiful day here at the lake today - sunny, clear blue skies - just a little "too" reminiscent of 9/11/2001..