9/11 revisited from a personal perspective

This post was conceived after I read a post by Lorraine at Crafty Coo during WOYWW. I considered joining, but since the challenge was to make something red, white, and blue, I simply have not had time to make anything for it, although I usually try to make something to honor that day. Perhaps you will join Lorraine in her challenge, or visit her blog, though.

Like anyone in the USA who was over the age of five, memories of what started out as a perfect September day in 2001 will stay with you forever. I decided to share something very personal: memories of that day nine years ago, along with memories of my visit to the World Trade Center using images I found on the internet since my relevant photos are stored away in non-acid free boxes in my always damp basement. You should click on these to get the full picture, since they load from each original site's link.

When I woke on September 11, 2001, I wasn't thinking about checking my blog, or checking my friends blogs (what in the world was a BLOG?), but of the day at hand. I had made an appointment with my financial institution to refinance my home. As I was getting dressed, I happened to turn on the Today Show and

saw the North Tower on fire, sometime after 8:46 AM Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). The moderators talked about checking out what had happened, then went to commercial. Not long after they came back online, and while their cameras were still focused on the twin towers,

a second plane showed itself in the distance and crashed into the South Tower at 9:03 AM EDT. I had little time to see what was happening as I prepared for my appointment at 9:00 am CDT. On the way to the bank,


I remembered the time I visited the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan, probably the most famous of the 5 boroughs that make up NYC and the many views I saw from the Observation Deck located on the roof of the South Tower which I got to from two escalators from the enclosed Observation Room directly below the Observation Deck.

I remembered starting the day early, finding a parking garage, and walking to the plaza


with the beautiful fountain that was situated between the two towers.

It was the day before the date on my ticket to the Statue of Liberty, and I was excited to get the lay of the land from a bird's eye view. This could well be the Lady Liberty ferry that took me to the Statue the following day. It was also the day of my reservation to Windows on the World, the gorgeous and well appointed restaurant located in the North Tower (the one with the antenna). I remembered how excited I was when I received confirmation of my reservation to this oh-so-lovely and well appointed restaurant.

What struck me most was the gold and shining lobby. While waiting for the elevator to take me to the Top of the World Observation Deck in the South Tower, I remembered taking photos of myself in the reflection of the gold elevator doors.

And then my mental images were gone, like evaporation of dew on a hot summer morning.


All this drama was playing out on TV while I was driving in traffic or working my way to the third floor of the bank.

Although I had no idea what was going on outside the loan officer's office, we talked about the attacks while he looked up interest rate options. He was curious as to "why today?" I've often questioned the significance of the date, myself.

We continued to talk as he gave me loan options. As I was pointing out which option I wanted, someone from his office (maybe a secretary/assistant, or whatever they are called now days) knocked and entered. She told him the computer system had just been shut down and no transactions were possible, due to potential computer and financial attacks. She also stated the financial district had been shut down, including the Stock Exchange. The loan officer even tried to get the loan I was planning to sign back on his screen, but it was useless. His computer was now nothing more than a fancy paperweight holding down his lovely mahogany desk. That was when I realized I would not get my loan changed that day.

Instead of immediately driving home, I walked out to the street. I was surprised by all the police, National Guard, and other uniformed officers who were on the street. As I stood by the bank parking lot, I caught sight of at least six officers on one side of the street and four on the bank side. What a difference an hour made!

When I got home, one of my neighbors was standing in her yard. She walked over and told me that both towers had collapsed. Both towers had fallen? How could that be?

More memories flooded my still shocked brain. What about the lovely Windows on the World restaurant on the 106th floor of the North Tower where I had lunch that day over 20 years ago (as of today, not 2001)? I remembered lunch consisted of a lovely soup and well appointed salad, far more food than I could possibly eat at the time. Needless to say, as these memories of crisp white napkins and beautiful tablescapes resurfaced, I was SHOCKED.

(First image above from CNN. Panorama images from 360 Cities that do not enlarge. All other images above from http://www.greatbuildings.com, ABC News Photos, or September 11 News.)


When I finally walked in the house, still stunned with disbelief, I checked the images coming from my TV. I was curious as to how other countries were reacting.

Norway


Denmark


Finland


Independent (UK)


London (UK)


Germany

(These images are from September 11 News.)


In the days after the attack, I sat and watched, as I'm sure many Americans did) as the events unfolded and the towers collapsed in front of my eyes over and over and over.



I watched as those elegant stairs in the South Tower I remembered climbing to reach the elevator to the observation deck, and now nearly unidentifiable, were climbed by rescue workers in hopes of finding survivors.



I watched as Fire Fighters formed bucket lines to remove debris or search for their lost "brothers."

And today I'm watching as I find images I've never before seen of wreckage from the World Trade Center that was taken to the Fresh Kills landfill.

According to the caption under this Time Magazine photo:

More than 65,000 personal items were recovered from Ground Zero, including 144 rings, 437 watches, 119 earrings and 80 bracelets.

Possibly the most bizarre photo I found, also from Time Magazine, was this one above of identification cards belonging to Blue Cross and Blue Shield employees found during the screening of debris at Fresh Kills. The fact that so many people burned to death in both towers when the planes ripped the buildings apart, then the fires burned for over 12 weeks after the collapse, it seems odd that bits of plastic, although deformed, would make it through all that heat and devastation.

Some of the images that came from that horrific day must have taxed photographers, both amateur and professional. I am grateful to those who have chosen to share their photos on the internet. (The last set of photos above are from various photographers at Time Magazine photo essays.)

I found images at several sites. I know there are many more. Here are the sites I linked the above images from:

Great Buildings.com

CNN.com

Mail Online.co.uk

Time Magazine.com

360 Cities (has interactive panorama views, including Ground Zero photos)

And my blog pick of the day, September 11 News, had the best coverage, the most images, and the widest worldwide coverage of that day, of all the sites I visited. I know these will bring back thoughts that will be remain in our memories forever, whether we lost anyone or not. However, each of the sites listed above have many wonderful photos, as well.

And lest we forget, two more planes, their passengers, and crews, also perished that day. Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon at 9:38 EDT and Flight 93 crashed into an empty field at 10:06 EDT. Feel free to share your 9/11 memories. After all, if you made it here, you read mine!