Do you remember where you were on 9/11/01?

mank32

on my way to work, waiting for a bus. the guy sharing the bus stop mentioned it: I thought he was BSing me--in a very weird, somewhat inappropriate way--to make conversation. By the time I got to work everyone knew what had happened and they were playing NPR's coverage over the PA.

sweetcurlz67

I was at work. someone in the office had just said a 'small' plane had just hit the first tower. it was thought it was an accident. we were confused. then we learned the 'truth'. everyone was in pure and utter shock.

my parents were suppose to fly to florida that day to be here to support me for my surgery the next day, but all flights were cancelled. they did make it the next day.

paygep

In the car on the way to work...

I was listening to one of those morning comedy radio shows "John Boy and Billy".

They were breaking the story, and I said out loud "That's not funny!"

But it was real.

ShibaEars

I'm not American, but I remember. I had just started grade 12, but because of the time zone I'm in, I think it had happened before I was awake. We talked about in class though.

I still remember being at home for lunch, watching the news as the played the footage of the towers collapsing. I don't think I'll ever forget that.

Joannah700

I was on the train to school and in between stops, someone announced that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center.

No one knew it was a terrorist attack at first, it was just a horrible plane crash.

I got to school, and my history professor had turned on the large projector and we watched the news unfold in the auditorium. Everyone was so quiet, is what I remember. It was a 7am class and we all just sat there in stunned silence.

The entire campus shut down after that, no classes, no services, and the public transportation was beginning to shut down too.

DenDweller

I was at work at a chemical plant in NJ. We were close enough to NYC and had a building high enough that we could see the towers' smoke plume from the roof.

Everyone was so lost and distracted that for safety reasons (and for human reasons), the plant manager shut down the facility and let everyone go home early.

We did A LOT of security upgrades at the facility in the following few years.

ajnb88

It was my 13th birthday. I was at school and knew nothing about it. Came home for presents/cake, and my parents wouldn't turn the TV off. TBH I had no idea of the significance at the time.

meemo88

i just want to say something

SEP 11 WAS BAD, AND A MARK IN HISTORY. A LOT OF PEOPLE DIED AND FAMILES SUFFERED.

however; america makes things such a big deal. DO YOU GUYS KNOW THAT THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. PEOPLE DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THINGS LIKE THIS. SO IF 9/11 WERE TO HAPPEN IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THEY WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT AS BIG A DEAL AS THE AMERICANS.

i find it funny because americans are willing to go to war with other countries and **** up their land, but when a minor thing happens to them they all freak out. i guess that is karma.

and yes i am an american born girl but i do not agree with how our people think most times.

thanks.

teresamwhite

i just want to say something

SEP 11 WAS BAD, AND A MARK IN HISTORY. A LOT OF PEOPLE DIED AND FAMILES SUFFERED.

however; america makes things such a big deal. DO YOU GUYS KNOW THAT THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. PEOPLE DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THINGS LIKE THIS. SO IF 9/11 WERE TO HAPPEN IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THEY WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT AS BIG A DEAL AS THE AMERICANS.

i find it funny because americans are willing to go to war with other countries and **** up their land, but when a minor thing happens to them they all freak out. i guess that is karma.

and yes i am an american born girl but i do not agree with how our people think most times.

thanks.

You are right..the significance, I think, is always much more poignant when these things happen close to home. Think on the difference in the way you would feel if a child in your local elementary school had cancer vs the way you would feel if it was a child in your immediate family. We are always going to feel more strongly about things as they get closer and closer to our sphere. Considering terrorist attacks on our soil is not the norm compared to some other countries, I would say, damn straight I felt it much more strongly.

The genocide in Bosnia, Rwanda & Somalia probably affected me more than it would have otherwise had I not been boots on the ground during those operations. Black Hawk Down is not just a movie to me.

I wouldn't call the deliberate hijacking of four aircraft, significant damage to a federal building (housing much of our military's leadership), complete destruction of two buildings large enough to each have their own zip codes and subsequent deaths as a minor thing.

spiralated

however; america makes things such a big deal. DO YOU GUYS KNOW THAT THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. PEOPLE DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THINGS LIKE THIS. SO IF 9/11 WERE TO HAPPEN IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THEY WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT AS BIG A DEAL AS THE AMERICANS.

i find it funny because americans are willing to go to war with other countries and **** up their land, but when a minor thing happens to them they all freak out. i guess that is karma.

We can think on it, doesn't mean we agree with what happened afterwards. In fact, every year I'm down right angry with the way in which this event was abused in the media, and by the government who went to war for the wrong reasons and based on lies (or at least faulty information). We had the support of much of the world and squandered it. (Not knocking anyone in the Armed Forces, you go and do what you are told and serve the country in the best capacity and space you are given).

Considering terrorist attacks on our soil is not the norm compared to some other countries, I would say, damn straight I felt it much more strongly.

The genocide in Bosnia, Rwanda & Somalia probably affected me more than it would have otherwise had I not been boots on the ground during those operations. Black Hawk Down is not just a movie to me.

Thank you

liftingbro

My dad was murdered 4 days before 09/11, so I was home at the time. I was doing laundry and preping to go to my dad's funneral. I lived in an big appartment complex at the time and they required you to buy tokens to use the washing machines. So, I went down to the office to get some tokens.

They have a big screen TV in the office, in a common area where people that are using the gym/pool sort of congregate and chat after their workout and I walked buy and saw these two buildings on fire. I'm born and raised in MN, never been to NY so didn't know which buildings it was at first or even if it was in the US. Then they said it was the WTC in NY.

Even while in a state of shock that I was in over my father's sudden death, I was wrecked by what I was seeing. I guess i had been standing there with a terrible look on my face for so long that one of the employees (who hadn't heard yet) came over to ask if I was OK. Then she saw what I was looking at and she was in a similar state. We sat on the couch an watched the news for probably an hour and a half.

liftingbro

i just want to say something

SEP 11 WAS BAD, AND A MARK IN HISTORY. A LOT OF PEOPLE DIED AND FAMILES SUFFERED.

however; america makes things such a big deal. DO YOU GUYS KNOW THAT THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. PEOPLE DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THINGS LIKE THIS. SO IF 9/11 WERE TO HAPPEN IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THEY WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT AS BIG A DEAL AS THE AMERICANS.

i find it funny because americans are willing to go to war with other countries and **** up their land, but when a minor thing happens to them they all freak out. i guess that is karma.

and yes i am an american born girl but i do not agree with how our people think most times.

thanks.

Got news for you, planes do not get hijacked and slammed into two buildings filled with people causing the deaths of thousands of people in all of about 10 second, everyday.

Yeah, people die everyday. Yeah, terrorists bomb places all the time but nothing like this. You show me the last time 3K people were killed in a bombing or in any matter every day.

Do some research and you'll find that there has never been a terrorist attack on this scale. And you are wrong, if this had happened to England or Europe it would have been a huge deal there as well. Maybe not in places where terrorism is common but most other places it would.

TriShamelessly

Unfortunately, I remember that day all too well. I was at work, and we all went into a conference room to watch the news after hearing about the first plane hitting the WTC. We all collectively watched in horror as the second plane hit and immediately realized that it was a deliberate attack. Shortly thereafter, we could see the fighter jets circling downtown. Working in the tallest building in Philadelphia, the announcement soon came that we would be evacuating the building as a precautionary measure. I then went to a nearby diner with a close friend to talk before heading home to sit and watch the news for the next 24 hours. The depth and mix of my emotions on that day come flooding back every year and I, for one, will never forget.

Dayiscoming

I was in 11th and 12th grade Music class, 2nd period. Then we watched the TV to see what was happening pretty much all that day at school.

jackson7478

I had just gotten home from work and turned on the computer and the headline was that a plane just hit the WTC. So I clicked on it and all it said was that a plane hit the WTC, so I turned the TV on and couldn't believe my eyes, then I saw the second plane come into view and hit the 2nd tower. It was just totally devastating. I just stayed glued to the tv the rest of the day. I couldn't even go to work that night.

Faye_Anderson

I was 21. It was around 1.40pm here when the first plane hit. I was sat in my friend's house with my 7 month old son watching it all unfold. Even now that footage sends a chill down my spine, all those poor people who lost their lives, all those poor families who were affected by this terrible tragedy. A poster above said America makes too big a deal about things but in all honesty I think this affected the world as a whole. We sat and cried for everyone affected that day.

pita7317

Just waking up that morning at the Peppermill Hotel Casino in Reno, NV.
It was on TV. Thought I was dreaming at first. No such luck.

4daluvof_candice

Do you remember what you were doing or where you were on this day 13 years ago?

Out to sea on the USS John F. Kennedy

zcb94

I was a little girl, so I was at home, playing while my parents watched the whole thing unfold. I caught a glimpse of the destruction, and, in my tiny brain, was like "OK, what the hay just happened?" I didn't understand much about terrorism, and grew up sheltered from much of human evil, so that was a shocker.

Paleohawk

At home, I have a day off from work and watched TV. Then I checked my emails. Suddenly, my spouse ran across the living room to change the channels to news. The picture of one of towers, spewed out flames and black smokes, engraved into my memories of Sept 11, 2001. As the results after this event few months later, I was laid off from work due to some economical difficulties. I still remembered this day.

Jenni129

I was working at home, took a break to catch some TV, and astonished at what I saw. Then I got MAD and wondered who was dumb enough to declare war on us.

Babbs1977

I was 24 and was driving to work when our local radio station, KQRS, started talking about the first plane hitting. Then they started yelling that the second plane had hit. The host immediately said it was a terrorist attack and said Bin Laden had to be behind it...sadly he was right. I spent the entire day refreshing website pages (most were crashing), watching news in shock.

It never fails to make my heart sink when I think about it, it's that gut wrenching sadness that never goes away. People leaping to their deaths rather than burning to death is something I can't forget.

yellowlemoned

I remember being at school (I was in high school then) and the teachers had been told to not tell anyone what was going on. Tons of kids started getting pulled out of class for the day by their parents so we assumed it was a bomb threat at the local chemical refinery (it happened way more often than you would expect.) Everybody was asking what was going on, but the school banned computer lab use for the day and confiscated any phones and radios they found someone trying to use. It wasn't until my grandparents picked me up at school and brought me home that I knew what was going on. By that point it was almost 1:00pm. I'll never understand why my school was so paranoid about us finding out.

giggitygoo

I was 16 and in high school at the time. I had shown up late because I wasn't feeling well, and it was eerily silent when I walked into the school.

Everyone was standing on desks in the back of my class and crowded around a TV. I couldn't see it. I hadn't had any media contact for a day and said the stupidest thing to ever come out of my mouth: "Is something exciting happening?"

Everyone turned around to see who let the world's most idiotic phrase slip out of their mouth. When the crowd parted, I saw "the jumpers" live. The reality check of that moment made me physically ill.

Saucy_lil_Minx

I was an avian animal handler for World Bird Sanctuary here in St. Louis. I was in the Bald Eagle pin feeding them before Grant's Farm opened, when the elephant handler came by on the Gator to grab me. Told me we were all needing to get to the break house. The World Trade Center was hit. Got there just as the second tower was hit.

I was taking care of Our Nations symbol, as we were attacked! I will NEVER forget were I was that day.

marwamelmenshawy

I was at my aunt's, we saw it on tv, it was very sad knowing so many families were in agony, God bless them all

Hungry_Annie

I was living in Cornwall, Ontario at the time, and I was getting ready for a job interview. I was in such shock, it was hard to focus on the interview. Once the interview started, we barely talked about anything but what was going on.

So heartbreaking still to remember that day. Definitely the worst day ever

roanokejoe49

I was in London, walking around Picadilly Circus. I saw a crowd of people hanging around a pub, and wanted to be involved. I walked up to the crowd and said, "I'm in, I'm in. What are we doing?" A guy at the front of the line asked, "You're a yank, right, mate?" I said yes, and the crowd parted. I could hear whispers of, "he's a yank...he's a yank....let him through." I was gently pushed through the crowd until I could see the TV in the pub. At that moment, the second plane hit the Twin Towers. I yelled out, "What the **** is going on?!!!" I can't tell you how many people patted me on the back, saying stuff like, "It'll be OK, yank. It'll be OK."

During the first few hours, rumors of other planes hitting things were rampant. The Capitol Dome, The White House, hell even Mt. Rushmore.

I was staying at the Docklands, which just so happens to have the tallest building in all of Europe. They evacuated that building and many others.

My wife at the time locked ourselves in our hotel room and just watched the coverage.

We went to see the Lion King a couple of days later to sort of reemerge into the world. The cast members passed out buckets asking for donations for the American Red Cross.

We were standing outside the gates of the castle as the royal guard played the American National Anthem for the first and only time in British history.

It was a sad, horrible time, but we were well taken care of by our British brethren.

HelenaCavanaugh

i just want to say something

SEP 11 WAS BAD, AND A MARK IN HISTORY. A LOT OF PEOPLE DIED AND FAMILES SUFFERED.

however; america makes things such a big deal. DO YOU GUYS KNOW THAT THINGS LIKE THIS HAPPENS ALL OVER THE WORLD. PEOPLE DIE EVERY SINGLE DAY WITH THINGS LIKE THIS. SO IF 9/11 WERE TO HAPPEN IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY THEY WOULDNT HAVE MADE IT AS BIG A DEAL AS THE AMERICANS.

i find it funny because americans are willing to go to war with other countries and **** up their land, but when a minor thing happens to them they all freak out. i guess that is karma.

and yes i am an american born girl but i do not agree with how our people think most times.

thanks.

Are we not allowed to mourn our dead just like everyone else?

424a57

wow, I feel old now. I was in 10th grade at the time.

Wow! Your feel old? I had recently retired from the Navy. The clock-radio woke us up with a report that a plane crashed into the WTC. I thought, "Probably some Cesna pilot out of control." Boy, was I wrong!