story3480.xml

story3480.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-09-11

I have a radio on at my desk all of the time, mainly for the white noise which covers the real noise of a busy office when on 09/11/01 I heard a news break that said a plane had hit the World Trade Center. I told the two people close by, one a salesman who stated, unsurprised, that he had eaten at "Windows on the World" restaurant and wondered if he would end up with a plane in his soup. The regular programming resumed for about 20 minutes when they again broke in to say that a second plane had hit the South Tower and reports were that the Pentagon had been hit. The receptionist, who lived nearby, went home and brought a TV into my office where we all remained glued for the remainder of the day. We did try to go back and work but the TV simply pulled you back. Some of the comments on that day have remained with me to this day. A female reporter on ABC angrily wondering why we didn't know where the president was had to be the most inane. I, of course, was damn glad no one knew where he was. If we had, as we usually do, told everything we knew the terrorists would follow up on it. Living in a free country has it's perils. Letting it all hang out, as we are still wont to do will always be dangerous. I wouldn't change it for anything.