9/11/01

It will be no surprise that with the 10th anniversary of the 9/11/01 attacks that bloggers will be posting their, "Where were you on 9/11?" entries. It may seem cliche, but in the case of 9/11, I think it's a good idea for people to have a hard copy of their memories on such a historic and tragic event. First hand recollections of historic events can at time be a bit hazy to the reader, especially when those recollections are from times long ago. The audience may not have the cultural context of the times to truly understand the impact on the everyday citizen. Awaiting word of monumental news events could be anguishing for a family with son's on the front lines during the Civil War. Today people lose their cool if their iPhone is not in a hot spot.  Getting your experiences down that have something in common with a global community is not only cathartic and supportive in nature, but may hopefully remind us that through our differences, we are all people with common goals. We need to continue to strive for peaceful coexistence and tolerance as long as no one group is infringing on the inalienable rights of others.

2001 was shaping up to be quite a memorable year for me as I had finished one small theater production where I was one of the leads and had been cast in another production which had a good reputation at the lower levels of the Chicago Musical scene. I was working full time at a large video rental chain that rhymes with "Cock Mustard" so I had insurance as well as a steady income to pay the bills while I performed in theater on the weekends. Near the end of the production run I had started a romance with one of my female cast members. We started dating after the production had closed and  I would stay over at her apartment from time to time if I didn't have to work in the morning. We lived nearby one another in Chicago, but I had to ride my bike over to where she lived or she would drive to see me. The night of September 10th, 2001, which was a Monday, I went over to have dinner and watch a movie after a theater rehearsal that was in her neighborhood. We talked about my upcoming birthday and what plans we could make together. We fell asleep watching the movie "High Fidelity" which coincidentally was filmed a few blocks away. She had to work the next day and would give me a ride back to my apartment on her way to work. We woke and had coffee and toast for breakfast without watching any TV. About half way through the drive, she turned on a news radio station which was already talking about a disaster in New York City. This was moments before the 2nd plane hit the South tower of The World Trade Center. They announced that people were falling from the windows and we both lost our breath. I couldn't quite understand what was going on. I was rather ignorant to foreign affairs and was focused on my little theater world and trying to make a name for myself at the lowest levels. The radio announcer said,
"You will never forget where you were at this moment."

 We looked at each other in silence as we weren't entirely sure how this newly realized romance might progress.
I was dropped off at my apartment, still in a bit of confusion as to what was happening in New York City. I raced up the stairs and woke one of my roommates, Geoffrey, to let him know something terrible had happened. One of his artist friends, Matt, was sleeping on the couch and I quickly turned on the TV to the first local channel. Both of the World Trade Center towers were on fire and the three of us let out a collective,
"Holy Shit..."
 The news anchors were confirming that two commercial airliners had struck the Towers and that there was speculation that this was an act of terrorism. They also announced that there had been an explosion of some kind at the Pentagon, but are unsure of it's cause.
My roommate pointed to the TV and said,
"People are jumping, what the fuck is going on?"
The next ten minutes were a blur as we watched  smoke cascade in to the sky.
I was still trying to make sense of not only what was happening in New York, but the whole idea that 2 planes had been hijacked and flown in to skyscrapers. Who could plan this? Why?
"Oh my god, it's going to collapse.", Geoffrey said.
"What? That can't happen..."
The South tower just buckled right above the floors where smoke was flowing out of and collapsed on top of it self, floor by floor.
"Was there anyone in there? Were they evacuated? Are they all dead?", were some of the endless questions going through my mind.
The News anchor somehow kept his composure (I'm not sure which channel we were watching) and stated that if the South Tower collapsed, it wouldn't be long until the 2nd tower fell as well.
"If this was Terrorism we need to fucking find those cock suckers and fucking bomb them back into the god damned stone age", Geoffrey spurted out. He was now pacing around in visible anger. His friend, Matt just sat as I did, on the couch, slack jawed in shock.
We watched as people fled the streets near Ground Zero to get away from the monster like cloud of debris that was rolling through each street corridor.
Are we at war? What is the response to this? How is this happening?

It was also announced that a plane had crashed in Pennsylvania. I, like most people on this day, was petrified to leave my home. Although we were quite far from the Sears Tower in Chicago, we were still in a major city and what if a plane that was intended for a skyscraper nearby, crashed into our neighborhood. I felt a wave of helplessness wash over me that left nothing, but seething anger.
About an hour later my body started to relax  a little and in an effort to cope, I called my manager at work to find out if the store was closing given the events. I was a bit shocked that the corporate headquarters decided to keep all stores open. I arrived a bit before 4 o'clock for my shift and it was basically a ghost town inside. We had the stores TV set to new stations the entire night and didn't do much in the way of work. There was a man standing on the corner the entire night waving an American flag as passing cars honked and cheered. It was a strange yet comforting feeling that night as the few customers who did come into the store spoke to us like we were neighbors. There was no need of introductions or "Hellos". I was inexorably connected to everyone which filled me with a bittersweet feeling of pride, as I knew that in time, it would be paved over with my pessimistic view of the various personalities that frequented the store.
Within a few weeks the girl I was dating decided to go back to her previous boyfriend who had moved back from LA, I would end my aspirations of performing in theater with the end of the calendar year, and to reject the notion of joining the military with the request of going to Afghanistan as I had learned that Iraq was the real target for the current administration. The one thing that has never left me is the feeling of sadness for those who passed away on 9/11/01 and pride for those who fought to save them. I cherish the knowledge that despite our differences, Americans can and will come together in times of need.