story9397.xml

story9397.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2003-07-30

The alarm went off at 7:45am on Tuesday morning as I was crawling out of bed to work out at the gym. I looked outside; the sun was shining and I thought, ?Today will be a good day for me.? The time was now 9am when I finished my work out. The tragedy had already occurred, yet I knew nothing- why? Well, usually I grab the newspaper every morning on my way back in, however that day, I decided to skip it. I also promised myself no TV unless I had extra time before going to work. I went ahead and got ready for work. I had a 45-minute drive ahead of me and decided instead of always flipping through radio stations, I?ll just throw in a CD. At the time, I worked for a bank so when walked in, it was hectic. All of my co-workers were completely busy. I started helping out the first customer when the man said, ?Wow, we Americans never saw this one coming!? I didn?t question his comment; I just didn?t quite understand his remark. As soon as the gentleman left, my co-worker said, ?Gosh, that customer almost sounded as if this tragedy is a wonderful thing!? That?s when I asked, ?What are all of these people talking about?? Yes, I definitely heard every little detail throughout the day; from my co-workers, as well as the customers. My manager said he was surprised I didn?t know a thing. But I explained to everyone how my morning began; no television, no newspaper, and no radio on my way to work. My co-workers and I engaged in a huge conversation about the technology we have now, and yet sometimes it goes overlooked, as in my case. I know, one way or another, I would have found out through interaction with the public. I realized the difference in the means of communication we have now as opposed to the past. For the following days, the tragedy was everywhere; every newspaper, TV station, radio stations, everywhere on the Internet. It?s a shame we have the advancement of technology to inform us, by any means, of triumphant and tragic events. Unfortunately, it could have done nothing to prevent this from occurring. I learned from my experience. In fact, now, I go out of my way to read the newspaper every morning, watch the news before leaving home, and flipping through the radio stations, no matter how long the distance. I discover something new every day- sometimes good, sometimes not so great, but the point is I?m listening.