What were you doing on 9/11?

[HBK-aholic]

I didn't remember it as being a big deal at the time. I was young, and don't think I'd ever really thought about World Trade Centres or terrorism or anything similar. I can't remeber how old I was but I remember I was in school and suddenly there was a big assembly where we were told.

As I said, it wasn't a big deal to me at the time. I thought it was just a simple plain crash which is tragic but isn't the end of the world sort of thing. I didn't really think too much of it as I didn't exactly watch the news or anything.

 

[ROHDude]

I was a junior in high school and that morning we (juniors) were taking those tests to see what you'll be when you get older. I don't know the specific name of the test, but it determines what you're interested in and comes up with a career for you.

Now it's some national test or something because for whatever reason there were 2 guards in the room. Anyway we were taking the tests and we were maybe 20 minutes into it and the 2 guards leave. Now some people saw the news that morning before school and mentioned a plane crashing into the twin towers, but none of us knew what really was wrong for until lunch time when we were done with the testing.

So the rest of the day school tried to carry on, but most classes just watched the news.

 

[Instant Classic]

I was at school and I got in turned on the tv and thought wow thats some crazy shit. Not very intresting.

However my dad had an operation on that day and when he woke up someone told him that planes were flying into buildings or something. He said he thought the guy was crazy or on morphine or something until he read it in the paper the next day.

 

[Rizza]

I was in 6th grade and math class got interupted, we were told what happened and the we all went back to homeroom and watched t.v. I didn't understand what was goin on becuase I was too young to really grasp it. We pretty much watched and talked about it the whole day.

 

[3rd Degree Burn]

I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade. We were taking a test or something then all of a sudden, our principal randomly gets on the speaker, and asks to take a moment of silence for those lost. Then about 30 minutes later, my classmates were checked out every 5 minutes. So I'm like "WTF where's mine?". I didn't know what was happening until I got home from school that day and my parents had told me.

 

[Gavel]

I was in, I believe the 4th grade. I remember we had to stay inside for recess cause it was raining. All of a sudden, the principal came over the loud speakers, telling all of the teachers to turn on their T.V.s. I remember it mainly because we sat there and watched the news for the rest of the day, just aw struck.

 

[Uncle Phatso]

Well when I first sort of herd about it I was in music class in 4th grade, We were setting there waiting for my music teacher to get off of the phone. She was all into shit with army (she sends like 10 grand in shit to the troops every year) And she started to cry and said somthing to the fact that her husband thought it was sadam hussaein.

Well I got home and my ususal stuff I did when i got home was go get a snack and put on some shorts and flip on mtv and do some homework. Well that day they had a black screan on with somthing to the fact that the network will be down due to the tragity in new york. I'm like 9 or 10 and i'm thinking allright what the fuck wares my music. I said scew it turned off the tube and did some of my homework. I was waterboy for the junior high football team that year and we had a game. It was on a tuesday. I was getting ready and getting my jersey and shit on. And i herd the paper thump on the door. Went and got it and it had 2 big pictures of the planes crashing into the towers. I got my shit on and ran to the field. It was like 2 blocks away and showed our coach and he did'nt say much.

The other team cancled the game and we made it up that saturday, But about 7 pm my dad came and told my mom to go get gas because it was like 2 dollers, Whitch was alot more than usual. And we sat in line for like a hour and filled up our tank. And the next day we went to school and they sent us home.

 

[streicher187]

Actually I thought it was the FBI who knew.. Aren't they the one who had an agent living with one of the terrorists and they received the info that terrorists were training to fly planes and didn't care to learn to land them.. Then there was the intercepted phone call from Al Quida to the US that was ignored.. Oh and the whole memo written to the president that "Bin Laden set to attack in the US"..

Clinton did try and kill him but the congress at the time said that he was trying to draw attention away from the whole BJ incident..

 

[Krush]

I was in the fourth grade in Social Studies. The Princible told us to bow our heads and we were like WTF? LAter in the day we seen on the tv in the cafeteria that the towers were destroyed and the field in Pennsylvania

 

[Pimpin]

I was in the 6th grade & the classes were decreasing very rapidly. Within the next 2 hours only me & 5 kids were left in my class & we was all thinking WTF is going on here. Well come to find out the teachers sent us to the teachers lounge where there were teachers in there watching the tv & it was then that they told us that the attacks had happened.

 

[Jane]

I was young enough at the time to believe anything anybody told me, and I remember my friends telling me there was a war or something going on in New York. I was at school and the teachers were all confused and that, so I took anybodies word for it trying to figure out what was going on. I was freaked. I thought it was the start of another war or something, and any second a nuke was going to go off on our school. Needless to say it was terrifying. I never really comprehended how many people had lost their lives until I went to a memorial the next year. It was huge obviously, but I'm Canadian and was young so it wasn't quite as big a thing. But then at the memorial I went and saw this book listing the victims, and I was shocked. It was then I realised how much of a tragedy that was. I still remember it. American or not, that was the biggest tragedy of anybodies life, and probably one of the defining moments of our generation.

 

[The Big Gunnzbowski]

I was sleeping. My roommate came running in and said,"Dude! They just blew up the WTC!" I groggily replied, "Again?"
"No, this time they actually got it!"
I got up, ran out to the living room, and looked at the screen just as the second plane hit... I was...speechless. My boss was in Texas, on his way home. His flight was grounded, so I had to open up our store myself... I worked at a big ass mall at the time, so as I get to the front of the mall, I see a plane coming down as if it's gonna nail the mall. (Come to find out, the Airport is about 5 miles BEHIND the mall) I saw that and said, "Fuck it", got back on the bus, went home, called my boss, and told him I'd see him as soon as he got back... Watching the towers fall that morning will be etched into my mind forever. It was a very dark day in history...

 

[Bozzaholic]

I was at home playing video games when my mum came in to my room and told me about it, I remember turning on the TV and seeing the second plane hit. me and my mum were in utter shock. I remember going to work that evening (At Maccy D's) and everyone was talking about it. crazy stuff

 

[agentmichaelscarn]

I was supposed to be at class that morning it actually was a History class of all subjects but I wasn't feeling well and I didn't go. Instead I just chilled out and watched TV, my dormmate and I were flipping through channels when we saw that on the Today Show. They were showing live footage of the aftermatch of the first crash and obviously we both just thought it was an accident then as we were watching it you could see the second one hit the other tower. It was such a surreal thing to watch because for one you knew that you were witnessing something terrible, far bigger than just an accident and for another to actually see something like that live is crazy. It's something I know I'll never forget the rest of my life. It's definitely one of those things where you will always know where you were when it happened.

 

[FromTheSouth]

I was asleep when it first happened. I was about to get up for a job interview, and I started having this strange dream that we were being attacked. I always sleep with the radio on. If the house is too quiet, I can't fall asleep. So waking from a dream about what was going on on the radio was nothing new. I came out of it and flipped on the TV, and I saw the first tower smoking. I quickly gathered that we were under attack for real. After the second plane hit, I felt so angry. That shit doesn't happen to us!!!

I went to the job interview, and that was a waste of my time, so I went to a friend's house, and watched the news for hours, which turned into days. I smoked a lot of pot because I didn't know what else to do. I live in a town with the 6th largest port in the nation, and two strategically important military bases. Everything was shut down.

Since that day, I admit, I profile people when I see them. You never who could have a bomb strapped to them. I know that I am likely never going to be the victim of a terrorist attack, but my Judaism leads me to be uneasy around many people already, and 9/11 added to my xenophobia. To this day, nothing is the same for me. It never will be.

 

[Richard]

As the planes hit, I was asleep because in Australia, it was very, very early morning when the planes had hit because of the time difference between here and there so I didn't know about anything for a few hours until I woke up and saw it on the news and I was confused about why people would do that because I was only young and didn't understand the concept of terrorism etc.

At school that day, our teachers were told to explain to their classes what happened and that it wasn't good and to answer any questions we had about it but I don't remember much about what happened at school. I just remember it being on the news a lot.

 

[LigerBomb]

11 or so pages in I doubt people'll read but I'll write it anyway.

I'm a native New Yorker. I had just begun my sophomore year of college at the School of Visual Arts which for those unfamiliar with the school is located on E 23 St. near Gramercy park in Manhattan (There are various buildings all over Manhattan but this is the main building). I had an Illustration class which met in a building on the border of TriBeCa and the Financial District (where the towers were) early in the morning but for whatever reason, my cousin -who was 10 yrs old at the time- needed to be driven to her grade school and I was to drive her that morning. I figured since the year had just started I could miss my first class plus I would get to go back to bed and sleep late! After dropping her off I was listening to the Howard Stern show on the radio in my living room while lying down on the couch. The show broke the news of the first plane. Intially they thought it was some accident. I shut off the radio and turned on the TV to CNN I believe. Then I remembered my class. I knew a few people who where in class and tried to call them. Not everyone had a cell phone then so I only had a couple of numbers. Still I got no answer. My Dad who worked in Midtown called me. So did my Mom who works at a Highschool. I remembered that a few of my Aunt's friends worked in Tower 2. Years back when there was the car bomb at the Towers they got stuck. Now I wondered if they would be alright. When the second plane hit I saw it on the screen and couldn't believe it. I had a lot of family in the city and although I was pretty sure none worked at the trade center I wasn't positive. Later I would find that none did but they worked near the area and many where stuck in the city that day and had to walk across the bridges to get home to Queens, Brooklyn, Long Island etc. Others were trapped and slept at work. From others still I heard horror stories of them running from the giant clouds of smoke and debris, some even seeing what looked to be body parts falling through the air. To this day I still hope that last detail is exaggeration, but who knows.
My fellow students were relatively close to the towers and could see the smoke billowing from the tip of the island on the horizon. When the buidings fell and the rush of smoke and rubble engulfed the streets they told me how scared they were that they were going to die and how they ran into a local shops and bodegas. They were the lucky ones. They were mostly far from the real mess. My older cousin, a cop in the NYPD, specifically within transit (the subway lines) saw a lot and lost some guys from his precinct. At the time he was a sergeant I think, perhaps still detective, and was heavily considering a transfer to the Port Authority. He always said it was better money and much less work. I'm glad he didn't make the switch. My future girlfriend was at school in The Bronx. She said she and her classmates went to the roof of her building and saw the second plane go by. I'm not sure if she saw it hit the tower however. I personally didn't lose anyone that day. But by a few degrees of seperation I know so so many who did.
Honestly as someone who has spent his life in NYC it still feels "different" even to this day. Beyond the uniformed soldiers who patrol the subways and train stations, beyond the giant hole that has slowly been cleaned up over the years, beyond the sickening dread when the lights go out, or when a plane flies by just a little too low, the city has never quite felt the same to me. Some people I know are fine with it. I'm not. Don't get me wrong though, I've gotten used to it. This past Christmas -my favorite time of the year in NYC- when visiting family I still wanted to walk around and soak up the scene, just like I do every year, I just didn't go to the waterfront. Mostly I don't think about it. And certainly it's not talked about much unless I'm with specific people. I've never been to "ground zero". Too gawdy I suppose. Few people I know have either; even some who lost loved ones and colleagues. I think it's also that it's gotten a bit too "touristy" for my tastes. A friend of mine coming back from class one day told me how he walked by and saw visitors taking pictures in front of it like it was an attraction. It left a bad taste in both our mouths. I'm curious to see what the area will become over the decades. I don't honestly think it'll happen again. At least not the same way. And not for a long while. When I move back to the City I'll probably live a bit further away -maybe Chelsea or SoHo- just so I don't have to be around the area all the time.

 

[The Dewbliners]

On the day of the attacks, I was sitting in the studio of the student run radio station here in my hometown. I was in the middle of doing an improv station ID when my associate answered the phone, went out to the adjoining classroom, told the teacher our principal needed to talk to him. After a brief convo with the administration, I was told to throw to stand-by mode, and join the rest of the class, for an "emergency news meeting". I walked out to the room, and Spurrier flipped on our t.v. and explained by simply saying "There's been an accident in New York." At the very same moment they showed the second plane and went into crisis mode. All three computers were manned, going to all the newswires. I was immediatly sent back on the air to announce it and inform the listeners to either stay tuned till we had more info, maybe call any loved ones in New York, or to turn off the radio, and watch a major news outlet. Sadly, a friend of mine (hard-line Marxist), was convinced it was a neccessity, and got his ass kicked for his statements.
Anyway, I spent the rest of that day in the studio, updating the listeners.

Very next day I compiled a list of entirely inappropriate songs that my classmates and I decided to not play for a "till further Notice" situation. chief amongst them " Learn to Fly". I'll never forget where I was or even what song I was playing on air (it was "Silent All these Years" by Tori Amos).

 

[NSL]

I was home...My friend was living with me, and one of our friends, that had already graduated, was staying over the night before, so we cut school the next day. The two of them had just finished their physicals for the military the weekend before. I was supposed to, but separated my shoulder in a car accident, and was told by the recruiter to not go.

We fell asleep around 8a, after a long night of drinking, and figured we'd be out for the day. Then, about 5 minutes after the first plane hit, my uncle called, telling me to turn on the news, because the WTC was getting attacked.

Quick side note: My uncle was on more drugs than Keith Richards, and for a lot longer. I figured he was either hallucinating, or having a bad trip.

My friends, having just signed their life over to the military, panicked and put on the TV. Right away, we saw what happened, and we al lbroke down in to tears. They were calling their recruiters, while I was calling all of my various family members that lived in, and around, Manhattan.

We went to my brother's school to try and get him, and the schools werent releasing anyone until they were told it was OK by the State Police. Then, as we were getting my brother, we heard about United 93. I had family that lived in rural PA, not far from there, so I was calling all of them.

It was a day full of madness. The next few days were all spent in front of the TV, wondering what was going on, and what would happen to my friends.

My mom worked in the WTC in 1993, when it was first attacked, and where the second plane hit, was right on the floor where her old office was. She knew over 20 people that died there. I had a friend whose uncle had died that day also.

I have, and had, a ton of family and friends in the military during the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and I'm thankful that most of them have been physically fine upon return.

9/11 changed our lives forever, and we'll feel the fallout from it forever.

 

[Azrael Cain]

I was in the middle of English class, I believe. I think the TVs were on in the student lounge and some students saw it happen, but I had no idea what was going on and was very surprised when I got a call to go to the office with my stuff. Turns out my mother panicked and picked me up from school. We drove home and watched the news for the remainder of the day.

A lot of people talk about what the Towers meant to them, and I realized that I had an interesting dilemma in the fact that, to me, the World Trade Towers didn't mean as much as they did to other [Americans]. I am an immigrant to this country, and have little pride in NYC and the symbolism of the Towers, unlike say my step-father who is a born and bred New Yorker. I was horrified at the fact that the attacks happened, kind of numb to them even, but I think it was more so at the loss of life and the unreality of the entire situation.

I had no friends or relatives who worked at WTC. I have no friends who had relatives or knew people. My ex-girlfriend's mom was in DC during the Pentagon attack, so there was fear for her life on 9/11, but we didn't know each other at the time (we got together about two years later) and so even that doesn't really count, you know?

My heart does go out to anyone who had friends, and to the relatives of all of the victims. It was a horrendous event, and one that is now in the history books and must be taught by history teachers to the future generations... ultimately, the event showed that no one is immune from the horrors of terrorism, so there is a lesson to be learned and with that said, I hope that something like it never happens again, not only on American soil but anywhere in the world.

 

[OIL]

Not sure if this thread is too old to post in but it's on the first page so I'll take the assumption that it is.

Anyway. I was young at the time, so I had no idea how big it was. I remember my dad picked me up from school and told me. I thought NOTHING of it. Ignorance I guess. I was young. Then I went home and watched the news for hours just trying to figure out what was going on. My brother (few years older) explained it to me. From then, pretty much pissed me off. The next day at school we had that minute silence, although I'm sure it was a 3 minute one. Teachers were crying & everything. Still didn't really hit me. Not until I was older did I REALLY understand everything. Terrorism didn't even enter my dictionary until that event. Then you get the ***** who think because you're coloured you're a terrorist. That day pretty much opened up many taunts from people. *****.

 

[The Rob]

I was only 10 at the time and I remember being at school. One of the other teachers came into the room and started whispering to my teacher, then both left the room and didn't come back for about 10 minutes. He looked as white as a ghost. It's one of those things I haven't forgotten about.

 

[Shane O Mac]

I was at college when it actually happened. Walked down into the town and saw something on the news through a shop's window, but didn't know what it was about. The little flash bar said "Twin Towers attacked" and that was all I knew.

Got home from college and Mum asked me if I'd heard what had happened, put the news on and watched it until I left for work. Then had it on at work as well. Can still remember seeing it now

 

[CDR]

I was at school, in the first grade. Early in the morning, like right after the pledge, the principal came screaming over the intercom for the teachers to not turn their T.V. on so the kids wouldn't see what happened. The teachers, as well as the kids, had no clue what happened. As the day progressed, more and more kids left. Everbody was leaving! Still, the teachers didn't know what happened. That changed when lunch started. Most of the teachers went to the teachers' room before lunch started to get their things. There, they learned of the tragic news. The teachers were strictly told not to tell the students of this. And upon hearing of this a few years later, I was suprised. However, the choir teacher, and coolest teacher there, told the fifth graders. They understood. The rest of the day is somewhat shady. I remember my mom turning the news off, and she never did that. That's when I knew something was up. I think it was a few years later that I really understood what happened. And upon hearing this, Toby Kieth's "Angry American" became my favorite song. I was so pissed off.

 

[Leeds Guy]

I was on my lunch break from college,popped home for some food turned on the TV didnt turn it off till the coverage was over. Didnt go back to college that day.

It was so sad just like the 7/7 attack in london.