what were you doing....

[rainbabies]

on 9/11/01?

I remember the day clear as a can be. Dh and I were still living in Vermont.....I was helping my friend pick pumpkins on her farm and load them up on the tractor. Dh was at work when he heard the news, and actually left to come home. My friends husband came out to the field we were working in and he was updating us. We eventually got done picking the pumpkins and went back to my friends house. Dh joined us and we were glued to the tv all day. We kept trying to call dh's aunt, uncle, and grandparents who all live in the city. I kept trying to call my aunt.(she is in NJ, but goes to the city all the time.) We couldnt get thru until two days later.

The whole thing was so sureal....I just could not grasp what was happening. Seeing people jumping from the buildings......

When I see the pictures of the planes crashing today...I still cant believe it happened...I still get goose bumps.

The following June dh and I visited my aunt in NJ....we went into the city to see a show....we made sure to go to ground zero so we could try and comprehend the HUGE catastrophe. Seeing it in person was so sad.

My daughter was just over one year old and it was a time when I could still listen to NPR around her. I usually had it on while I got ready in the morning and played with her in her room. I was listening as the story was unfolding and they were trying to piece together what was happening. I agree that it was surreal, trying to make sense of what I was hearing. I mostly heard audio accounts of it and didn't see the news footage until later that night or next day.

I was in Mission KS, playing with our oldest son on the living room floor. DW called me on her way to work to turn on the TV, she was listening to it on the radio.

[Stella]

*sigh*

I was in college and we didn't have cable in our dorm room. I got up and went to my 9:30 class like any other day. We all sat down and the professor or our CHRISTIAN ETHICS class said that a plane had hit the WTC - now open our books to page 358 and let's discuss...........

I had no idea what she was talking about and it totally went over mine and everyone else's heads. It wasn't until I walked into my 11:00am Media Studies class and my teacher was sobbing and I saw on the TV what was going on. I ran home to (try to) call my parents who often worked in the Pentagon but all the cell lines were all busy. (They were all fine...)

Needless to say, I dropped out of my "Christian Ethics" class.

[DCJenn]

I was on my way to work, listening to NPR- they had someone broadcasting from the Pentagon while it was being hit. We were in Texas at the time- and since everyone here is military it was a bizarre day. We all ended up in the conference room watching it unfold on a Sony Watchman that I used to keep in my office.

One of my staff had two brothers who are transit cops in NYC- she was a basket case as no one knew where they were- for three days. I ultimately sent all of my staff home. Then, while I was at home I was paged by one of the group homes- a state surveyor was there to follow up on a survey report. I went ballistic and informed him that 1) there was no way my staff person (who was the one with the missing cop brothers) was coming in 2) I was from Washington DC and I had family unaccounted for in NYC and I wasn't going in and 3) he needed to go home and be home with his wife.

the next day it took my husband four hours to go five miles waiting to get through the gates at the AFB- so he saw a few other residents cars in line and they decided to go get chinese food instead. (some yahoo had decided that pediatric residents were essential staff- even though they had closed all of the outpatient clinics.)

Jenn

[Phoebe]

I was 39 weeks pregnant and it was my first day of maternity leave. I came home from a dr appt when I heard someone's car radio going crazy. I turned on the TV after the first plane had hit. DH was post-call and got to come home at noon. We watched TV the entire day.

Jennifer

I was at work, Jacob was at daycare. I saw it on my home page and emailed my friend (Monica) who worked on Wall St. (this was after plane #1). I apologized for 'bugging' her, but said I had no idea of NYC geography and wanted to make sure she was okay. Then I called her sister in Chicago - who assured me that Wall St. is nowhere near the WTC (wrong!). As the day unfolded my office started running the news in the media center and I was sitting there watching as the 1st tower fell. I started sobbing (still hadn't heard back from Monica). About an hour after the tower fell, Monica emailed me "We're okay. Everything is black outside. Just pray." (I still tear up when I think about it.) Shortly after they announced that people could go home, so I collected my baby and went to Monica's mom's house so we could wait for word.

Now I'm pleased to say that 5 years later I just talked to Monica TODAY and learned she has gotten ENGAGED. I'm so thrilled -- 9/11 took a huge toll on her, and she has only truly returned to herself over the past year. It feels appropriate to me.

I was in second period French class.

you're so young! you did almost exactly what Ryan Larrosa did in MY 2nd period french class when the principal announced the Challenger explosion on the PA.

[anwanie99]

I was in a psychology class. I remember vividly this girl who sat two rows behind me said the she heard on the radio in her car (just like 5 minutes before) that a plane had struck the WTC. We were like, no way - gotta be a joke. We turned on CNN and I watched live the next two hours in class the 2nd plane crash, both buildings fall, and the Pentagon. It was so crazy. It still is....

[Amiens]

I was 7 months pregnant with Emma. I woke up, made breakfast, sat down on the couch, and turned the TV on see what the weather was going to be. Instead of getting the weather report I saw the first plane crash right into the WTC. At first I thought it was some sick joke of a movie, and then it hit me that this was really happening. I just wanted to bawl my eyes out. That day, I thought I was nuts for bringing a child into this crazy world.

I walked to work, where the next few weeks was rather interesting around the health sciences campus where I worked. The building I worked in seemed go into a lock down of sorts- checking of badges, and telling campus security where you were going, etc.

Crystal

[SueC]

I was sitting at home with my brand new baby. She was 2 weeks old to the day and my sister had come to stay with me to help out. My bil called and told me to turn on the TV and my sister and I watched in horror as the whole thing unfolded. My dh was on call the previous night from the VA and I couldn't get ahold of him, but he was watching it at work. He ended up coming home much later that day after driving all over town in search of an American flag to hang. God, I'm getting all teary even thinking about that day. I would just look at my 20 month old and my brand new baby and felt so bleak about what the future would hold for them.
This is the first year that my oldest daughter is noticing the media coverage of it. She was asking me the other day if that really happened and I started tearing up when I told her that yes that really happened and yes that many people died. If I'm that emotional not having lost a single soul that I knew personally, I don't know how those of you cope that knew somebody that died.

[Meenah]

I was at work in the Endoscopy department doing colonoscopies!!!!

[Vanquisher]

I was home sleeping on my couch while Ryan played on the floor. I was really tired that day for some reason. DH was in med school and called me and told me what was going on. I turned on the t.v. and watched it continuously after that.

I also remember where I was for the Challenger expolsion, when I found out that Princess Diana died, when the O.J. Simpson verdict came in.

[KCwife]

I was on 1-35 heading to the office. I usually have NPR, but for some reason didn't turn on the radio until I was almost there. I walked into the office, and everyone was crowed around the receptionist desk, then we heard that the pentagon was hit, I just turned around and went home. I held my babies on the couch for days and cried watching the news.
Those pictures of people that were held up crying saying "have you seen my husband?" Ugg, it KILLED me.

I also remember where I was when Challenger exploded, when Princess Di died, when the OJ verdict came in, and when the OKC bombing happened.

[planet]

I was at work in Boston and was just checking in online with Boston.com. A coworker had a daughter-in-law who was a flight attendant for United based out of Logan and had flown out that morning. My coworker was in tears and we just comforted her until she finally got word early in the afternoon that her dil's flight was diverted and they were ok. Basically everyone there had only 1 or 2 degrees of separation from someone who died. It was horrible and traumatic. I just listened to and watched the news most of the day.

I also remember the (edited to change to) Columbia accident. I cried during that too, but I am such a space fanatic. I have never gotten over a rude and tacky interview Scott Simon did the following day. I still dislike him... Challenger I don't remember.