story3356.xml
Title
story3356.xml
Source
born-digital
Media Type
story
Date Entered
2002-09-11
911DA Story: Story
At the beginning of 2001 I had suffered through a business failure. While chasing what had proved to be a non-existent business opportunity the previous year, I had also developed some health problems. We struggled financially throughout 2001, and finally in August, my wife left me. To save money, I had cancelled cable.
For the mornng of September 11, I had lined up an appointment with what I thought was going to become a very important client. I had arisen early and driven nearly 2 hours to Madison, WI. My car radio was dead, but I was pretty happy about this appointment and I remember singing my way to Madison.
I walked into the client's office about 10 minutes late. When he came to the lobby to meet me, I stuck out my hand and said cheerily, "Good morning, How are you today?"
He looked at me somewhat quizzically and said, "I'm fine except for what's going on in the world."
I quickly explained aout my car radio not working and said, "Well, tell me what's happening!" When he told me that someone had flown a jet into the Tower, my jaw just dropped. I didn't know what to say.
I seem to remember launching into my sales presentation and just getting thru it as quickly as possible. When I left his office I called my ex-wife. Someone had brought a TV into the office, and she updated me on the latest happenings. I went to a MacDonald's and sat for an hour watching replays of the coverage. I tried to make a few sales calls but did not seem to have the heart for it.
After I drove home, I called my son. He works third shift and had slept most of the day. We shared a pizza and watched the replays. We both agreed it looked like scenes from the movie "Independence Day."
I held my grand-daughter tight that night.
For the mornng of September 11, I had lined up an appointment with what I thought was going to become a very important client. I had arisen early and driven nearly 2 hours to Madison, WI. My car radio was dead, but I was pretty happy about this appointment and I remember singing my way to Madison.
I walked into the client's office about 10 minutes late. When he came to the lobby to meet me, I stuck out my hand and said cheerily, "Good morning, How are you today?"
He looked at me somewhat quizzically and said, "I'm fine except for what's going on in the world."
I quickly explained aout my car radio not working and said, "Well, tell me what's happening!" When he told me that someone had flown a jet into the Tower, my jaw just dropped. I didn't know what to say.
I seem to remember launching into my sales presentation and just getting thru it as quickly as possible. When I left his office I called my ex-wife. Someone had brought a TV into the office, and she updated me on the latest happenings. I went to a MacDonald's and sat for an hour watching replays of the coverage. I tried to make a few sales calls but did not seem to have the heart for it.
After I drove home, I called my son. He works third shift and had slept most of the day. We shared a pizza and watched the replays. We both agreed it looked like scenes from the movie "Independence Day."
I held my grand-daughter tight that night.
Collection
Citation
“story3356.xml,” September 11 Digital Archive, accessed January 16, 2025, https://911digitalarchive.org/items/show/6924.