Thursday, September 11, 2008

September 11th

Seven years ago today... where were you? I had moved to California 7 days earlier, 2,803 miles away from home. It was my second day of classes at Brooks Institute. I woke up a little bit before my 7:00am alarm to one of my best friends calling me with the news.

I remember picturing in my head a little Cessna 2 seater sticking out of the side of the building... when I got up and looked at the tv the first tower was already gone. A few minutes later I watched the second tower fall. Then I showered and got ready for my second day of classes.

I was 18 years old, thousands of miles away from everyone I knew, on my own for the first time... my dad lives in NYC (safe, thank god). I was terrified. I remember being glued to the tv, praying and crying on the phone with my mom.

My first break from school at the end of October I booked a flight home on a whim. I'm terrified of flying, and it was the first time I ever flew alone. My dad and I took the subway to WTC to pay our respects. Even 7 weeks later it looked like a war zone... debri everywhere, piles of ashes and paper several feet high. I have pictures in my office from this trip -- I'll post some when I return back to NV next week.

I remember very vividly the first time I ever saw the twin towers up close... I was maybe 6 or 7 years old, going to the statue of liberty with my grandparents and brother. My grandfather drove right by the WTC. From my perspective they were so tall I couldn't see the top. Just hugely massive.

On a recent trip to NYC my dad and I again took the subway to the WTC stop. I took a picture on my camera phone.... but of course I can't figure out how to get it to my computer :)

I can't post without an image... this is image came up when googling 'america'.. seems appropriate.


Comment and tell me where you were 7 years ago today.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

To the author of this blog,I appreciate your effort in this topic.

Luis Murillo said...

I was at my high school sitting infront of the classroom with some friends talking when a fellow classmate came by and asked me "you saw what happened to the twin towers?" I didn't know what he meant by that but I would later find out. I got home and it was all over the news, I think I called home before getting out of classes but I'm not sure. Mom told me that my little sister was the first one to find out about this on the news since she turned on the TV and it was on CNN Headline news, which I used to watch quite often.

Michael Chansley said...

I was in my Jr year of High School at the time. My sister told me while I was in the shower and I followed the event all day. Didn't have to go to work since the mall was closed.

E. said...

I was in my junior year of college. Waiting for psychology class to start when the professor came in obviously upset. She told us what happened and that we should go home. I went back to my dorm to watch the footage. I could not stop crying. I could not take my eyes off the TV. I called everyone in my family. I didn't think I would ever feel normal again. To some degree, I still don't - I can't watch footage or listen to replayed reports without crying.

Michelle said...

um my story is pretty much the same. it was my second day of college in boston and they canceled all classes and closed down the subways and stuff. and everyone in the dorm congregated the common room and watched the news and were pretty shocked. sad stuff.

GO OBAMA.

Jeff Vachon said...

I currently work at Brooks Institute but I was living in Boston at that time. I had a friend visiting me from Russia. I was busy working in my home office when she came running in saying "Jeff! On the television! You must see!" The following day she and I went to NY and viewed the devastation, snapping pictures the shole time.

Juliet Douglas said...

I was still in college at UNLV. Back then, I used to get ready for the day by eating breakfast in front of the TV while watching the news. So, I witnessed it "live" and it was surreal. I remember walking around campus all day wondering why I was even in school. I believe I only made it through half the day.