I was on my way to work and stopped to pay my garbage bill. They had a TV on and I watched it with them. Needless to say, I was late for work but nobody noticed because the boss brought a TV and they were all watching.

Marie

Of course I meant to say 9/11/2001, not 2011...

We had just started a vacation and were in the car unawear of what had happened. Didn't hear about it until we stopped in Vt. that afternoon. An unbelievable shock. We continued with our vacation to MA. but not the same.

We had taken that week off for vacation, the end of the week we were going to Sanibel Island with my son and his new bride. I was - take a guess - in my sewing room, relishing in some time off to do what I wanted. I'm pretty sure I was watching sewing shows, then flipped to the news channel at 9:00 and saw the first tower in flames. So I said to myself, "some idiot has flown their small craft into the WTC!" Then it wasn't long before I saw a plane hit the other one, and at first thought it was a replay of the first one, but it didn't look like a small plane, it was weird. When I realized what had happened I called my sister, she came over. We lived a short distance from TIA and when the airports shut down it was just eerie how quiet it was. I called my husband who was at work, when they said the Pentagon was hit I called him again, it felt like WWIII had just kicked off. Of course the whole week was shot. We did go to our beach vacation but it was just completely not fun. To this day I cannot watch those films from that day, this morning they had a review of it and I had to leave the room in tears.

I was at home. I had retired recently from my full-time job. My husband called and told me I'd better turn on the TV. What eerie scenes to recall. Of course I remember the footage they showed of each plane hitting the towers, the smoke, the buildings falling, etc. I think the thing that struck me the most was seeing all the photos and names that had been posted where family members were asking, "Has anyone seen..." They seemed to go on forever and after awhile you knew none of those people would be seen.
I had expected to do lots of things that fall after my retirement and I remember just going day-to-day sort of in a fog. It was hard to get motivated or feel joy in anything you did.

I was home with my 6-week old daughter, my first. My DH called from Springfield, not far from the Pentagon, and said to turn on the news. I asked "which channel?" He said it didn't matter, it was on all the stations. While he was talking to me on the phone, we watched the first tower fall.

DH made a quick getaway from the DC area as I recall and didn't have issues getting out of town like many others did in the following hours when they shut down all subways, and everything in the DC area got gridlocked. [My sister's MIL worked at the old executive office building next to the White House and didn't make it home until very late that evening!] It wasn't until he was on his way home that we heard about the Pentagon. Oh, and cell service very quickly overloaded and was useless.

I remember watching unstopping tv coverage for days before I simply had to shut if off and not watch anymore. [If ever there was a trigger to post-partum depression that was it!] I still get a knot in the pit of my stomach when I watch any of the footage. And of course, there's been a lot of tv coverage/shows in this last week! It's like it happened yesterday.

I grew up pretty much out of the country, and was in Europe during the Algerian crisis, the Berlin Blockade and the Cuban Missile crisis. When I returned to America there was this distinct feeling that things like that didn't happen here. Until 9/11.

We had just contracted to have our drive to the business paved and back then the weather channel was on all the time and I had just happened inside when what they were showing wasn't weather. It was a replay of the first tower being hit. I stood there thinking of what a horrible accident that was when it showed the second tower getting it. I knew instantly it wasn't an 'accident'. I figured at that instant whether it was declared or not, we were at war and I walked outside, interrupted my husband and the contractors and just said "we are at war".

I had planned on visiting a friend in Pennsylvania and meeting friends there. I remember we all got in touch on the inet and asked each other if we were afraid to fly then, but we all decided to go anyway. The security at the airports was bizarre and I remember eating lunch at a terminal in Pa. and they would not put out any silverware but plastic spoons.

I couldn't watch any of the footage this weekend either. I thought I had healed, but I felt my eyes burn and tears running down my cheeks and had to leave the room.

I was at work and on the phone with DH when the second tower was hit. I sat at the sewing machine when at home and made a flag-like wall hanging while watching the news for days on end. The wall hanging, now faded, is still on the front porch.

SharonG/FL

I was still working part time as a travel agent but had gone back to school to get my teaching certificate and had the tv on before I left for class. I was stunned. My DH worked from home & I went into his office. He said it had to be a "war of the worlds" type thing on TV - this didn't happen here in the US. Both my son & our exchange student had already left for school - they both said the teachers let them watch most all day (they were in high school). I went on to school also. Needless to say - we skipped the lesson & talked about what was happening & watched what we could.

That night our exchange student's mom called from Germany to make sure we were okay and to express their sympathy for this horrible event happening to our country. She wanted to know if there was anything they could do for us!

Several of my travel clients were calling to figure out how they could get back to Colorado since all flights were cancelled. I managed to get rental cars for some & they drove. It was very strange not to hear airplanes and kind of scary the first time we heard one flying low over our houses three days later.

Today our church is hosting an interfaith memorial service for all churches in town. It will be packed and somehow knowing everyone is coming together helps with the healing.

Sue/polardream

Heard something about a plane as I was coming out of an early all-hands meeting at work Had three upper level agency staff from Washington doing a site visit that day and explaining something "important" to us ... no recollection of what it was. After it was clear it wasn't simply a plane accident, many of us clustered in and around a small office where someone had a small TV. We all stool and watched in silence and shock, many of us with tears streaming down our faces. Folks from Washington tried to get out of town and head toward home. Hours later they gave up on public transportation and, with permission, rented a car and started the drive toward home, about 1300 miles away.

I was working in Atlanta, a co-worker came in and said a plane had hit the WTC. We went into the conference room and was watching and wondering how a pilot could hit a building so big...did he have a heart attack a stroke or what....then the second plane came into view and we all knew in an instant this was no accident. Stunned we watched all day....all I could think of was those people went to work just like any other day....and they were never coming home. I knew our world had changed forever, my heart broke and I just cried.
I

I was home, drinking my coffee and watching the "Today" show. I don't think I turned off the TV all day - I know I got nothing done that day.

DS was 15 at the time, and evidently the whole high school watched the events all day, too.

Being on the west coast, this was all very early in the morning here. I was in Reno on business and couldn't sleep so turned on the TV about 5:30AM and saw news about the first tower. I, too, thought it was just a small plane accident till I watched the second tower hit. I called home and woke up hubby. Our conference was halted. No planes home but trains were still running and I hitched a ride from the Reno hotel to the Sacramento train station with a man and took the train home arriving very late that night. It was so traumatic seeing that carnage while being stranded and all alone. I still can't watch the TV replays.

I was in hospital in Orange, Australia. I had collapsed the day before and rushed to hospital. They didn't know at the time what was the matter with me. I was awake during the night and the nurses were talking about the attack on the WTC. They were watching it on the TV on the ward. In the morning I was able to get up when my husband came in and go and watch the TV myself and see the unbelievable events. They were played non stop on all channels. My husband said he had stayed up and had been watching TV and seen the 2nd plane when it hit the 2nd tower. I would think everyone in Australia would have been watching too. I heard today that 10 Australians died in the Towers, not many compared to US citizens, but I think there were people from many nations working there. This event has affected not only US citizens but the entire democratic world. I later went on to be diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis - a rare auto immune disorder. So there is a double memory connected with this date for me.

Kristene

I was at work and DH called me to tell about the first tower and then the second tower. I work at my church and on Tuesdays we serve lunch to the Rotary Club. I remember sitting at the table eating lunch with the kitchen workers and talking about the events of the morning.One of the things that sticks in my memory is how blue the skies were that day and the stillness when all planes were grounded.
Linda OH

I was at home eating a snack. I turned on the TV. The sound was muted and at first I thought I was watching some movie. Once I realized what had happened, I was glued to the TV all day. I live in Newfoundland, and hundreds of the planes were diverted to Gander and St. John's airports. Many people that lived close to those centers, took in stranded passengers or volunteered at the airports or at the temporary shelters, took in food and blankets and toiletry items. Everyone wanted to help in some way.

~Geraldine

I had just taken my oldest son to kindergarten, and was sitting at home with my 2 other boys (the youngest was 5 months old). I was watching GMA, and towards the end, they had a special announcment about a bomb or fire at the trade center. While they were talking about it & showing that, Diane Swayer all the sudden says...."OH MY GOD! A PLANE JUST HIT THE 2nd TOWER!!" And then Charlie Gibson says..."AMERICA IS UNDER ATTACK!"

And I just sat there. Shocked. Holding my 2 babies, and wondering if I should get my boy out of school.
I guess what sticks out in my mind the most is the panic afterwards. Everyone swamping the gas stations, the grocery stores. Hundreds of cars waiting in line, snaked around the corners...waiting for $4 a gallon gas.
My grandma watched the covereage every day for months. She went into a depression that she's just gotten out of in the past few years.

Melissa

My brother sent me an email to work saying that a plane hit the wtc. I had to email him back asking him what was the wtc?? I went searching for a tv to watch and them tried to get updates on the internet, but the traffic was too busy to get much from the big news sites.

My son was only 6 months old and my daughter wasn't even born. That was really strange thinking about that yesterday.

Robbi

Thank you all for sharing your memories of that day. The stories from Kristene, Geraldine and Calliope - people who lived or had lived outside the US - adds so much to the perspective. The world changed that day for so many.

At the time, my office was in my home and my mother was living with us. When I got back home a couple days after the event she and I sat in front of the TV for hours every day. We both became terribly depressed and finally had to turn off the coverage and force ourselves back into a daily routine. A few months later I changed jobs, knowing that I needed to get out of the house every day.

My husband and I were driving to Wichita Ks and I remarked to my husband how quiet and still it was...he turned on radio and thats how we found out. I was numb. Soon a plane flew over and I told my husband I bet that was one they quickly took the president on. It was only one in the sky and no birds flying about. It was so odd.

I was working in one of the tallest most prominent buildings in my city. We all were watching TV after the first plane hit, and when the second hit and it became apparent that this was a deliberate attack I remember speculation that perhaps Chicago was next and then the West Coast. We evacuated our building in fear.