September 11th. Where were you?

[BuzzH]

Working near Laramie peak. Hiking out that evening saw a 350 class bull elk and about 30 cows. Bull was going crazy bugling like mad.

When I left that morning the first tower had been hit. Listened to the radio all the way back, couldn't believe the shit that had transpired.

In hindsight, seeing that bull elk made me realize that many times nature just doesn't care about the troubles humans make for themselves. I find a certain level of comfort in that.

 

[YukonGold]

I was a senior in high school. Didn't know about the WTC til I walked in to my first period class. Everyone just kinda stayed in their first period classes all day, watching the news. I was on the newspaper staff so eventually all of us on staff migrated, unbidden, to the staff room and we made a special edition for the school.

My dad was a newspaper executive. He had a long day. I remember when he got home late that night, we stood out on the back deck watching the skies which were eerily devoid of airplanes for the first time in my life (I'd always lived under relatively heavy air traffic). I was scared, had not felt that kind of fear before. I asked him if he could remember a moment like that in his life, where there was so much uncertainty about how the world was going to be. I wish I could remember what he said, but I wonder if he was thinking about how much he'd like to ask his own father, who was drafted in WW2. He had died a year earlier.

 

[Perlodid]

I was 4. It was a Tuesday, so presumably I was at preschool. I imagine they had all the kids go home but I honestly can't remember. Not sure when I actually first learned about what happened that day.

 

[Beignet]

I was supposed to be tagging along with my old man on a work trip to El Paso but our flight got grounded on the tarmac. Once it became apparent that it wasn’t an accident they disembarked all us passengers. My dad said right then that the world was about to change. Rest of the day was very surreal.

Moved to Manhattan a year later to start college. Took me a few years to stop avoiding the site to go have a look in-person.

 

[Hammsolo]

First year teaching, grading papers on my couch before work. News was on and I saw all the coverage. I watched the second plane hit in real-time. I can replay the whole day. Recess was creepy. I can still see the kids looking up at the little personal plane coming in and asking me if we were safe. God Bless all those affected in any way.

 

[drexal]

I was stationed in Turkey. I had just got off shift and the boss called and told me to turn on my TV and that I was on telephone standby. Things got busy really quick!!!

 

[Nick87]

Freshman US history class. Teacher brought a TV in for us to watch the coverage. Felt very surreal. God knows we don't need anything like that to happen EVER again. but just think about how joined together the country was for months or years past that moment and fast forward to today...something to think about for sure.

 

[buckbull]

I was on a business trip in everett washington. Was on the first flight out of seatac after the grounding was lifted. I wasnt sure how long i was going to be there.

 

[elkduds]

Mrs. Duds and I were on a flight from Hawaii to Denver after a sweet 9 day vacation. Somewhere over NV the plane began making a slow turn. Captain said on the PA that flight attendants would be picking up all food service. And they did, fast, w grim determination. Next capt. said we had to land in Vegas for an emergency, gave no details. Passengers generally calm, none had access to news in flight in those days. Our flight was United, found out later some or all of our flight crew knew some of those who perished. Landed in Vegas w no notice of what was happening, to total pandemonium. Police and military everywhere, armed w ARs and wearing vests. Now we heard rumors of some kind of terrorist attack, vague and incomplete. United ground staff told us they might have lodging for us, no idea when. We could stand by for that or seek our own lodging and transportation. As a constant background, the airport slot machines kept imploring, "Wheel-Of-Fortune," I can still hear that as I write this.

Since we were 9 hours from home in Grand Junction, we checked car rentals. Their airport service counters were pandemonium, and they closed rentals for out of town. Trains. . . cancelled. The armed police and military had nothing to share and told us so, bluntly. After 2 hours of this chaos of uncertainty and fear, United put us on a shuttle van and took us to a hotel and casino called Sam's. On the ride the speculation about what was happening grew darker, more speculative. The driver had some facts, some kind of terrorist attack in NYC. The airline and hotel graciously gave us each a meal voucher/day for their restaurant, and there was a Village Inn within walking distance. Our instructions from the airline were to watch local news on TV. That is how we would be notified when the airport was reopening. We were instructed to be ready to load the van for the airport with 5 minutes' notice. So we were effectively glued to the small hotel tv for the duration, endlessly watching a jet like the one we were on crashing into the WTC.

Skipping ahead 3 days, past phone discussions w family in Denver who wanted to drive and rescue us, and employers wondering when we planned to return to work. Past consideration of buying a car to drive home, then resell. Rumors, false alarms about the airport reopening, eating the macadamia nut pie we brought back as a gift.

Afternoon of day 3, hotel desk calls our room w instructions to be in the lobby in 5. Luggage slammed shut, quick sweep of room for any personal stuff, and beat feet across the pool yard to the lobby. There 10 of us got on the van and were delivered to McCarron International. It was nearly deserted. In the concourse to our departure gate we saw a worker cleaning a closed Cinnabon storefront. And heard, endlessly, "Wheel-of-Fortune" from the dozens of one armed bandits in rows down the center of the long concourse. There was no departure/arrival information. The lone agent at the gate said they had an aircraft readying to fly to Denver, they were trying to recruit enough a crew to fly it. We learned later it was being shuttled from LAS to DIA in anticipation of air service reopening the next day.

After a few hours of that earworm, 10 of us were escorted onto a 777 and told to sit wherever we liked in 1st class. There were only 3 flight attendants. We taxied past gates double-parked with jets on deserted runways, and took off into a spectacular sunset, all alone in the sky over one of the nation's busiest airports. The crew opened the bar and meal service, and told awful, tearful tales of learning that friends and colleagues perished at the WTC, the Pentagon, and near Washington DC. The luxury of personal service in sparsely seated 1st class dissolved into the surreal horror of those stories, while lights in small patches of towns below us answered the dusk we flew eastward into.

 

[CPAjeff]

Eighth grade health class. The teacher left the news on and we had an open discussion about what was happening.

Never thought of that teacher the same after that day. She opened up to the class that day and became a real person to me, not just some lame adult.

 

[belshawelk]

Sitting at the Holiday in in Englewood Co. Remember getting out of the shower and turning on TV. Called my wife and told her to turn on TV. Then tower 2 got hit.

Never forget

 

[Beignet]

one an hour testifying before a committee

This is pretty cool, Hank!

 

[BAKPAKR]

My friend and I were sitting along the Going-To-The-Sun road in a pull-off just up from the Weeping Wall, watching three bighorn rams above the road. I guy approached us and told us what had happened.

 

[geetar]

I was a 10 year old homeschool kid. My dad was a truck driver listening to the radio and heard it on the news and called my mom and told her about it and she told me.

 

[Hunter4Life78]

Was crashed out on the couch gotten of work and was up late only been out for a couple of hours maybe. My mom came over and told me what had happened. I remember it was the only time she didn't knock. She told me what happened, I thought I was dreaming and dozed back off. Fiance' at the time did the same thing about an hour later. We just watched the coverage for the rest of the day at folks house.

I do remember how people pulled together and how it impacted families in MT. One the ladies that was a reserve officer with me in our small town, may she rest in peace, was visiting a family friend during 9/11 in New York State and she couldn't come back for a bit. When she told me that, I still remember her emotions and how much it affected her afterwards.

Graham Allen says it best and I'm paraphrasing here, "Live like its 9/12". The day after the attacks this country was close. If we could find that again comraderie again this country would be in a much better place.

 

[TwistedSage]

5th grade sitting in Mr Thomas class when the phone rang, he answered it and wheeled in a TV, watched is a daze as you could see his concern. We were in south jersey, most everyone had family in NYC, some that worked at the towers. I remember watching live as the second plane hit, Mr Thomas's face dropped and he just said oh my God were under attack. Very frantic as everyone was worried about getting in touch with thier family in the city. But the few minutes from him getting the phone call to seeing the second plane hit and him realizing right then what happened are seared into my mind.

 

[RealMuddyboots]

I was in an off site business meeting when my wife called me on my cell phone. The call was in middle of a presentation and when I heard her crying I bolted out of the meeting. Of course everyone noticed. When I came back in, meeting stopped to make sure I was ok. No one knew at that time and the shock and horror was immediate. We immediately adjourned meeting so everyone could contact families. I was 51 at the time and I could not stop thinking what the hell was the future going to be for our son who just started college. Heck, I feel its worse today for our kids.

 

[Lilhowie83]

I was a senior in high school, I had the first two periods of school off for "work release" because I had more than enough credits to graduate. I had just got in my truck to drive to Burger King and get a breakfast sandwich. As I drove, on the radio, they were talking about an explosion at the World Trade Center. I thought they must just be talking about the 1993 bombing at at the WTC. I got home to eat my breakfast sandwich and turned on the TV just in time to see the second plane hit the second tower. The rest of the week in school all we did was watch news coverage of the events and talk about what was going on. 21 years later and it's crazy how vivid those memories and feelings still stand out.

 

[JLDemo]

Freshman year of highschool, first period wood shop.

 

[YukonGold]

oh my God were under attack.

This. That is such an inexplicable feeling. I remember the moment that crossed my mind too. I can't remember the timing of things exactly relative to my school schedule; I think when I first got to class the second plane had already hit, or they wouldn't have been showing it at my school (far removed from NY). But they must have been playing a replay when I got there; nobody told me we were under attack, I just saw the first tower on fire and was concerned. When the second plane hit there was no mistaking what was going on. Horrible feeling.