story107.xml

story107.xml

born-digital

story

yes

no

2002-03-01

I got up late and turned on my bedside radio as I always do. Talk radio helps me wake up, especially when it is shock-jock Howard Stern. I listened to a frantic caller tell Howard that he was in Manhattan and the entire downtown area was on fire. At first this piece of information didn't register as consequential. People who call the Howard Stern show are normally not "right in the head." But he kept up his frenetic pace, sounding much more grave than a typical caller. Howard's response was equally grave and serious. It finally came to me that this was no joke, something was truly wrong. Now fully awake I rushed out of bed to the television. The Twin Towers were on fire. Disbelief. Every channel had coverage. Newscasters reported that airplanes flew smack into the New York skyscrapers, clearly on purpose. Fear. Images of the Pentagon, not 10 miles from my house, came on the screen. It too was on fire. Panic. The Twin Towers collapsed, one after the other, clouds of dust blanketing the skyline. Horror. It became increasingly clear: America was under attack.