Remembering 9/11

I remember every minute of that day. I was in school at UF at the time and waiting tables on the side. I had classes on Mon, Wed, Fri. 9/11 was a Tuesday. I didn't have to work that day, so I had the whole day off. I was sleeping in, and my phone was just ringing off the hook. All my good friends knew my brother was in school in Manhattan and my family all lived in DC. I kept on ignoring my phone, but then my roommate came bursting into my room. She was in class, and they told all the students to head home and take the rest of the day off. She was like "get out here and look at the TV!!"

I'll never forget when I first saw that tower on fire. And then when the towers fell... That may be the hardest I've ever cried in my life. I was just weeping.

Like CRedskins, I'm getting a little teary just typing this. We will never forget. I can't believe it's been 9 years already.

I was working at CompUSA at the time. Someone came into the back office saying a plane flew into one of the towers. We went out on the floor to see what was going on. I think a bunch of us, customers included, stood there for hours watching everything unfold. We were watching live as the 2nd plane hit, I remember everyone's jaws dropping to the floor and some people started to cry. I just remember feeling like it was the end of the world or something. I mean you guys know how it was, it was just so unbelievable that it almost didn't feel real.

My Dad at the time worked in DC at the Dept of Agriculture so I was very concerned when I couldn't get through to him as all the phone lines were jammed up. (I found out later that day he was out of town on business and ok.)

I think when the towers fell, that's when reality really hit home. Wow, 2 skyscrapers have literally been reduced to rubble. WTF is going on?! Even to this day the footage amazes me. I remember the reports of the jumpers and literally getting sick to my stomach about it.

And I remember the confusion of the day, reports of multiple planes in the air unaccounted for, you were literally just waiting to hear the next report of another plane hitting something. What sticks with me is the bravery and courage of the first responders that day. Those that so unselfishly gave up their lives in order to try to save someone else. I don't think I'll ever look at a policeman or fireman the same. Especially whenever visiting NYC. Those are the true heroes.


Seriously. That was never even a consideration for me when I was watching that day. I mean as it was it was an unfathomable tragedy...but not once (until it happened) did I actually think the towers would fall... just crazy and so sad.

Again, the police, firemen and everyone else... like you said, can't look at them the same....

Was working on a bid response in my home office and was on the phone with one of my sub-contractors. He told me to turn on the TV. As soon as I turned it on, I had a terrible feeling this was no random incident and that all our lives were changing right before our eyes. I watched the 2nd plane hit, the footage of the Pentagon disaster, the Towers fall. I went and picked up my son from elementary school, just to be safe.

God Bless all those that were murdered that day and all that have fought and given their lives to keep us safe since. My parents, although they were young, remembered Pearl Harbor and never forgot. It's our duty to never forget 9/11/01.

9th grade, I was walking into the locker room to change for PE. One of my teachers had the radio on and we heard all about it. It seemed horrific to me at the time because I couldnt see it, it was all just chaos over the radio. I have family with offices in the Pentagon, quite a long day. They were all safe, but it was certainly a trying day.

Making America Safer | The Onion - America's Finest News Source (http://www.theonion.com/articles/making-america-safer,7710/)

ok, not the solemn memorial from theOnion, but still the fear and paranoia that took over for a lot of people is a side effect of that day.

Hard to believe and remember as a kid going with my mom to the airport and just walk straight to the terminal with her and watch the plane take off, no security, that was for Europe. (this was the 70's and early 80's). We would sit at the Dulles observation deck and watch her plane taxi and fly off. Just amazing the different era.

10th grade.. English Lit class.. Mrs Leatherwood, the old hag.. another teacher ran in and told us about it. Our teacher told us that it was not class-related and we would not be watching the coverage. Conversely, shortly thereafter we had to list the 5 things most important to us. Many people listed religious things and she said that she saw us in the hallways and there was no way that any of us really held that most closely. She said that there was NO excuse to not have your country as number 1. I was quick to remind her of the incident with the WTC.

Anyways, back to the actual day. I ended up walking out of the class and a few others followed me. We went and sat in on our next class.. right as we were walking in, the first tower fell. We sat there in disbelief watching the smoldering of the other tower. Somehow I knew that the 2nd was going down right when it did. I said, "It's about to collapse" and as the s sound came out, tower 2 fell. It is horrible what happened but we're somewhat fortunate that the death toll was "only" in the 3000s.

On 9/11/01 I worked in the Admissions Office at the University of Maryland, my first job out of college. My office was down the hall from our lobby area that had a TV. I remember walking to the bathroom, and seeing a large gathering in front of the TV; thinking it was a campus tour, I ignored it...but when I realized the time (too early for a tour) I went to see what was happening and the realized what was going on. Immediately I ran to my office to call my sister and her husband, who worked in Manhattan, and my NY family. After a while, I was able to find out that they were fine. Being close to DC and after hearing the attack on the Pentagon, and the possibility of another plane being out there (the one that eventually crashed in PA), the campus was in a state of nervousness to say the least.

I also remember visiting NYC that following month (work related), I remember getting as close as possible to the area, and seeing a street narrow down to a grayish background and seeing construction cranes surrounding ground zero, it was quite a sad sight. Also, the city just felt so different from its old self. Also later that month, I remember the sight of a National Guardsman with an M-16 at a security check point at BWI, and just getting the feeling that things were different now.

May God bless those that were affected and their family. Also, let's not forget the brave policemen, firemen, and all involved in the rescue operations that day.

I was living in Colorado at the time, and had just gotten up to get ready for work. Turned on the TV to start the day, and saw it. Stunned and shocked I just sat down. I was also in the midst of a huge personal tragedy and all of that week just blurs, If there was one week I could simply erase from time it would be that one. Eventually I made it to work, where the owner set up the main conference room as a prayer/meditation room. People were in there constantly through the day, with tv's and news reports heard in every office and cubicle.

The most positive thing I remember, was waiting in an hour and half line of people in colorado springs, all of us waiting at a red cross donation center, giving a few dollars, or whatever. The red cross had set up certain collection points and lines stretched out with US citizens waiting to help people they had never seen, never knew. Truly awesome emotional outpouring and support. I am tearing up even as I remember that time.

I had never been to NYC beforehand so the magnitude of it never really struck me until I went and saw the crater in January of 2007. Looking up at the surrounding buildings and knowing that the WTC was much larger than most. Looking down from the 1st observation deck on the Empire State Building and realizing there were another 20 or so floors on the WTC from the point in which I stood (something really cool happened though, it was snowing and the snow at that point was actually coming upwards).

What REALLY hit me was right in that area are the Jersey trains. At the time they had an exhibit of drawings done by children that had lost parents, grandparents, and other family in the tragedy. I never grew up with my father and never said "I miss you Daddy" as many times as I saw written on the pictures that day. There were so many that had pictures of footballs, baseballs, etc and how they missed going to the Giants, Jets, Yankees, Mets etc games with their dads and uncles. That's really when there was a connection as it still hadn't fully hit me, I know that people die and I know that raw material collapsed. Without a real tie to it I hadn't really realized the emotional aspect. I actually had to stop typing this for a bit because my eyes were so full of tears. It was also on that day that I realized that sports are just a game, though I treat them as a lifestyle still. When the minds of the innocent are so dearly affected not much else matters anymore.

I remember watching it on TV for about an hour before I had to leave the house for an appointment. As I drove I was listening to it on the radio and they were talking about other things they could hit like tunnels just as I was entering the downtown tunnel going to Norfolk. If I could have stopped and turned around I would have and then to top it off I got stuck in tunnel trafic. It was a really weird feeling as I sat there helpless.

Was working as a news/sports producer in DC. Had been working the early morning news that day. Filling for a co-worker for a local break (you know when the Today show or whatever tosses to your local station for a quick weather/traffic/news update)

I was exhausted, but figured let me just get this quick two minute segment out of the way and then I'll go take a little nap before I get ready for the Noon news.

Honestly, when I heard that suddenly breaking news was coming in from New York that a plane hit a building I don't know why but I turned to my co-worker and said "Osama" I was purely speculating.

I ended up spending 7 straight days working and sleeping in the newsroom. My mom was supposed to be at the Pentagon that day. Luckily, a last second meeting at her office kept her away at the last minute. As part of her job, she was actually overseeing the identification of all the bodies at the Pentagon.