Remembering 9/11

[ViperJeff]

What were you doing 5 years ago............

I remember sitting at work and listening to the radio when it was interupted by news of the day. I thought it was all a big joke. I remember listening as the second plane hit.

To this day. I will always remember.
As I continue on with my busy life, I find a time each and every day to remember. To continue to support an ever difficult task of preventing another terrorist act upon the citizens of the world. I know this will not sit well with all.


To the Men and Women of our Military. Thank you


You dedication to service honors all those who had died giving us the freedoms we have today.


Jeff

SSgt USAF (Ret)

421st Black Widows Hill AFB

5th FIS Minot AFB

8th AGS Juvats Kunsan ROK

 

[DenOfThievz]

I was at work, on the phone with my wife when it was announced and she saw the second plane hit live.

To the men and women of the military, my family has a proud history of serving and will always respect and support you and the Commander in Chief.

 

[OCBob]

9/11
Never Forget
Never Forgive

 

[K-80-123]

My Wife called me at work....and as we were talking the 2nd plane hit.....she just started crying.....I will always remember that day.......I agree with BOB......never forget.....never forgive.

 

[hemi killer]

I was in the garage working on my 68 Coronet R/T while listening to the radio. Turned on the TV and saw the 2 plane hit live as well.

 

[Begood]

I was at work when I heard it on the radio, I quickly turned on the TV to see the second plane hit. I will never forget, or forgive.

Bill.

 

[Kevan]

We were living in Long Beach, NY at the time. I was at home working; Rachel was in Manhattan at her office on 57th. Our cleaning lady showed up, yelling "CNN!!! CNN!!!" I rushed over and turned on the TV to see the first tower had been hit. I remember the commentators saying, "It looks as though a small commuter plane or helicopter has hit the World Trade Center". Anyone who has been to the buildings and seen them in person knew that from the size of that hole....that's NOT a small plane or chopper. That was something major.

Typical me (from so many years in the TV business), I grabbed a blank tape and jammed it in the VCR. I knew something was going down since the commentators didn't have a clue and were all flustered.

Then the 2nd plane hit.

I actually saw it coming in from the top of the picture and said to myself, "That plane is really close to Manhattan considering there's something happening at the WTC.....". Little did I know.

Our cleaning lady started to work. I knew traffic back to her home in Queens would really suck, so I told her, "Here's your check. Please just go home." I found out a couple of weeks later that her husband was working on the elevators of the South Tower when the plane hit it, and luckly managed to get out of the building just before it collapsed (broken arm and some cuts/bruises).

I tried to contact Rachel in the city. Phone connections were sketchy at best. We used email to remain in contact once the phone lines went down. The city was essentially closed. No trains. No busses. No bridges. No tunnels. No airports.
I told her that I would meet her at Silver Cup Studios (my old workplace). I also contacted my friend Rob Balducci and his wife and a few others and explained the deal to them. They confirmed.

I watched in awe at the two towers fell.

I got in my Durango and drove up toward Manhattan. I turned on the hazzards and drove the (mostly empty, which is very odd) roads towards the city. Silver Cup is at the end of the Long Island side of the 59th St. Bridge. After arriving, I parked and double-checked with the officers present, "Is it okay for me to park here for a little while?" The cops said, "Today buddy, you can park anywhere you want."

The mass exodus out of NYC was amazing to watch first-hand. The Queensboro Bridge (aka 59th St. Bridge) was PACKED full of people leaving Manhattan. It was incredible.

Rachel and Rob and our other friends finally made it to Silver Cup and we started our journey of taking everyone home. In total, what should have been about a 2 hr. trip was closer to 9 hours.

It was a very long and very scary day. And scary days to follow- seeing an aircraft carrier in front of your house REALLY puts things in perspective.

To the troops: You guys rock.......hard! THANK YOU for everything you do.
To the terrorists: Keep lookin' over your shoulders, azzholes. We'll find you eventually.

NEVER FORGET
NEVER FORGIVE

 

[ntw0rk]

I was in class for my work, the guy next to me had a text pager with news updates. When it went off and we read it, we thought it was a joke, or a small plane. When the reports continued we left the class and turned on the TV in the break room in time to see the second plane hit.

I had to drive back to my region that afternoon, and I will never forget driving up I-95 through NYC and seeing how silent everything was. And I will NEVER, NEVER forget seeing that column of smoke rising from the center of downtown and the way it trailed off down the coast seemingly forever.

We stopped for the night before making it all the way back to Boston. On the way in the next morning, we stopped at a store to buy some flags (of which there were none) and on the way out of the store, my boss and I performed CPR on a man that had had a heart attack. The paramedics were able to bring him back and transport him to the hospital, and he was stable the last time I checked.

I don't tell that story for recognition, I don't want any, but it was very weird to me in light of everything that had happened, that we were able to make a difference in someones life anyway.

We went to work doing what we do, and by the time I made it home 4 days later, I remember breaking down in front of my (now ex) wife, and just losing it in a flood of mixed emotions, Anger and grief being the foremost.



NEVER FORGET,
NEVER FORGIVE.

To our troops and vets... YOU GUYS ARE THE BEST!!!!

 

[FlyingLow]

I was in Corpus Christi, TX in Flight school. I just started driving to work and was listening to NPR. It was just reported that a plane crashed into the WTC and that it was an accident. My squadron's buildings were being remodeled so we were in trailors out by the runways. We sat around and just listen to the radios because we didn't have a TV. Soon they started recalling all the Aircraft. After a few days I was both very sad and angry. It was hard not to cry. I will never forget.

 

[OCBob]

It was early here on the West Coast, I was just getting ready for work when it all happened. It hit me very hard, as I am originally from the East Coast, and spent many a day in Manhatten. More than that though, for my job I had been spending a lot of time at the Marriott World Trade Center. In the year before the attack I spent more than 90 days staying at that hotel. I was there so much that I had a permanent room on the concierge floor at the top of the hotel. I ate dinner more that year at the Tall Ships Bar & Grill at that hotel than I did at my own home. I have often wondered about some of the folks that I came to know at that hotel, but really have no way of tracking them down.

 

[JTS VENOM PERFORMANCE]

I was at the Miller clinic in Charlotte seeing my bone specialist AGAIN for broken bones, in th waitning room with many others.

This is something I would rather not remember, but will NEVER forget.

 

[WAZZSUP]

DRiving back to work, called in to tell them I'd be there shortly....as they told me, I just could not fathom what was happening. My daughter and I were planning on going to see the US Womens soccer team play at the Columbus Crew stadium later that night.....it was a better time before that day.

 

[KRAZYSRT10]

I had just gone to bed after working the mids shift when my wife called and woke me up. As soon as I turned on the T.V. the second plane hit....I called in and was told to pack my sea bag. 24 hours later I was on the USS George Washington in New York Harbor looking at two billowing smoke stacks and feeling this strange sense of sadness and apprehension. 10 months later I was hangin' out around Afghanistan helping to serve up some retribution!! On a lighter note, I was flying today and one of the Air traffic Controllers came up at 8:46 am and said " We Will Remember!"...as I'm sure most of us do. I Will Never Forget that day for the rest of my life and appreciate those patriots that don't also!! "Let's Roll!"

 

[Kevan]

24 hours later I was on the USS George Washington in New York Harbor looking at two billowing smoke stacks and feeling this strange sense of sadness and apprehension.

Did you see us in Long Beach cheering you guys as you passed by? If not, now you know we were.

We would see cargo ships all the time off the beach, and they're pretty damn big. But when that aircraft carrier was off-shore, it totally dwarfed the cargo ships. Holy hugeness, Batman!

Krazy- Thanks for helping keep us safe!


Side Note: My little brother lands in Iraq today. This is his 3rd tour with the U.S. Navy.

 

[NBT]

Had just got off duty from the firehouse that morning...got home about 08:35 went out to cut the front yard while it was "cool" outside... had my cell ring...
It was one of the fellas I work with....he told me to go in and turn on the TV.... it was 08:53 am when I looked at the cable box.

I will NEVER forget

 

[Brat]

i had just left the shop heading to the tire store to get a flat fixed on the wrecker i was driving,had talk radio on,they said a plane had hit the wtc,got to the tire store they had the t.v. on saw the second plane hit,i will never forget that day. god bless our troops with out them we would be in deep poop.

 

[ntw0rk]

god bless our troops with out them we would be in deep poop.

AMEN to that!!

 

[KRAZYSRT10]

Did you see us in Long Beach cheering you guys as you passed by? If not, now you know we were.

We would see cargo ships all the time off the beach, and they're pretty damn big. But when that aircraft carrier was off-shore, it totally dwarfed the cargo ships. Holy hugeness, Batman!

Krazy- Thanks for helping keep us safe!


Side Note: My little brother lands in Iraq today. This is his 3rd tour with the U.S. Navy.

Thank you and Ill pray for your Bro!!:rock:

 

[TheSickness]

I was at work at Lowe's and I had one of the contractors come back and tell me what was going on. I set up a make shift TV in the Garden dept that we used to run video's on. I remember just standing there with about 50 customers watching the events unfold. I was in shock I openly wept as did many of us. I wanted to kill something and I even went to see if I could somehow re-enlist in the Army a day or so later. I am a patriot and to be honest I would sign up today to kill some of these Bastards if I could

I am glad the George Bush was in office instead of John Kerry. Even though I think he sucks as a President now. The man stood up and said, not in my house and Let's Roll....I will never ever forget that day and neither will my family. I will make sure of that. It was our generations Pearl Harbor. These radical Bastards need to be exterminated and at all costs. I for one think the idea behind being a free man is worth every penny.

I salute the brave men and women of our armed forces. The first responders and every man, woman and child that will stand up in the face of terror. God bless the families that were directly affected by the tragedy and to those that have given the ultimate sacrifice in the name of Freedom and Liberty.

God bless the United States of America and let Freedom ring!!!!!!Semper Fi, Mikey

 

[Hamrhead]

I was sitting in a quarry, waiting to get loaded when I heard. The F'd up part is, I was backed up to a pile of stone, and in this particular quarry, it was on top of a hill, so I could see out over the countryside for a few miles. The sky was blue, a few white clouds, and it was just a really nice day. It was very difficult to comprehend what had just happened.

Today I listened to Howard Stern, and he rebroadcast the 9/11 show he did that day. Definitey a sad show, but a very good one. It really irritated me all over again.