Red, White, & Blue Forever

[Foadie]

We are approaching the anniversary of September 11th.

I'm curious to anyone's thoughts about this whole thing.
Such as if we should make a holiday out of the day, what
you would like to see in place of those once lovely towers,
what you will do on the day this year, and
if anyone still thinks it was all a bad movie, like I do.

Rhetorical if you want: What will you think during that minute of silence?

America stay strong!

 

[wertsie]

I definitely think it should be made a holiday. It will be one of those things where if somebody asks on in thirty years about it, we'll be able to tell them where we were and what we were doing when it happened...

 

[adamswildhoney]

Its hard to say, Im not sure if I think that we should have a holiday to remember what happen but I definately think that we should commemorate it somehow, ie a Statue or a building.

It weird to think that its already almost been a YEAR since that dreadful day!

 

[Foadie]

 

[LarryMullen's POPAngel]

those pictures make me sad

I like the last one with the two rays of light, though..

 

[souLnation2002]

i remeber sept 11th last year... went to school like it was any other day. one of my teachers had told me that new york was under attack...we were all, like, "yeah, watever" and thought it was a joke. during our last period we had a prayer service, did holy mary's. i didn't think it would be that serious. when i got home, i found that i was wrong... i turned the tv on and was in shock. i called my best friend and we watched it over and over again on tv.... it was heart breaking..... and it still is...

 

[Kristie]

Lessee, where was I...
Sleeping. I woke my ass up at like 9:30 to go to work and on the way there I kept hearing snippets of conversation, like.. "it hit the first tower..." "..collapsed.." "explosion" so I walk in the office to get my keys and I'm like, "Okay, what happened?"
Ladies on the office told me and I just sorta went
So I wander up to my attic and busted out my radio and turned it on to listen to the news for the next few hours. The building I work in is mostly used for conferences for the whatever society, and I remember walking by the big conference rooms and the only thing happening were masses of people around the televisions.
Still had to take my math quiz though.

During the moment of silence deal I'll be at work where there's no clock and no other people, so chances are I'll miss it.
I don't know, some of my views on the matter would just sorta bring down the thread, so I'll refrain.

 

[MonaVox]

Apparently it's not exactly a holiday but it's somethin like it.....

Plans for September 11

I remember exactly where I was. It was a Tuesday and I was in Church History in one of the portable classrooms that doesn't have a PA system or anything.

My friend Katie had left to use the bathroom inside the school. She came back and said this math teacher, Mrs Schriber was saying that part of the Pentagon blew up.

We all kind of laughed at it because we're like "how do you blow up the Pentagon?" It was like a joke, nobody took it seriously. Sit down, Katie. Everything's fine.

Then the chair of the Religious Studies department comes in and talks to our teacher in the back of the room. Then she announces what had been said so far on the news about the Pentagon and the towers.

I hadn't ever felt that nauseous for a whole day before, not even when I was sick. It was absolutely disgusting and incredibly scary. I was scared for my brother and sister in law and their 2 little girls, my neices bc they live in DC. Nowhere near the Pentagon, but I thought it must be chaos down there, we can't know everything that's going on, what if they were in traffic, etc. Just so many thoughts. But my mom works at my old high school and we were let out of that first period class early to go to homeroom and try to settle down since there was no way class could continue. I went to my mom's office and we tried calling my brother's house. The phone lines and connections and servers for everything that close to DC were just shot. Everything was busy or disconnected for some reason. That was insanely scary too. Part of me was sure my entire family was fine phsyically, but you just have to have that confirmation, to know for sure, to hear the voice of the people you're worried about. It's not like I knew anyone in NY or the towers; but I think on that day there wasn't any concept of comparative importance. EVERYTHING at that point was equally important and vital and essential to just having the day work, to having the world work.

Eventually Mom got in contact with my sister in law. Everyone was fine. The thing that made me the maddest though was seeing my neices and knowing they had done nothing to be so young in a world that was suddenly so f*cked up. My oldest neice, who's 3, caught a glimpse of the news coverage on TV at one point during that week and told me one day while we were building with legos (I have never forgotten this...), something like "The castle fell down but the mommies and daddies and babies got home" I literally started crying at that moment.

Anyway We got out of school early that day. I remember sitting in government class, we were watching the news coverage, the same footage over and over again, but we still couldn't get it. Nobody really got it. It was so cinematic. It just wasn't right. I remember saying to some girls "You guys see the date? 911. Help." Nobody said much else the rest of the day. When I went home I watched the news and the music channels. A lot of tears. Friggin scared outta my mind.

Everything was so messed up for awhile. Being so close to DC this past year has been SO scary. The anthrax thing. We didn't know what public places we could go to. There were rumors everywhere about threats to local malls and landmarks. We didn't know if the water system was safe anymore. It was insane. People were afraid to go anywhere. A lot of girls had relatives or friends working in the Pentagon and other buildings downtown. On top of which, uin government class we had an assignment to interview a congressman or representative for some project. A lot of people didn't get to do them because of all the anthrax scares in the offices downtown. Field trips were cancelled.... the school was actually looking into more security.... people were just quieter, sadder.

Things weren't funny anymore. Nothing was the same. You couldn't forget. You couldn't NOT be scared, even at home. We were/are at the age when we were getting ready to go to college the following year and be independent and everything. But then suddenly we wanted to just be safe. And we couldn't be 100% safe in our own homes. And we knew it was hard on our parents. So hard. Because wtf do you do when you want your kids to know everything's ok but you KNOW that everything's NOT OK and you KNOW that they know that too. And they expect you to keep them safe.

One of the other scary things in the whole aftermath was the planes. There were always so many friggin planes flying around. Security, military, more planes suddenly than I had ever heard before. You couldn't sleep at nite because there'd be government or military helicoptors at all hours.

People got closer though. You figure out what and who is important in your life. Senior year was really important bc of that. I'm not happy at all that any of the attacks went down, but I mean that year I figured out a lot of who and what was really valuable to me, and what kind of person I wanted to be. A lot of discoveries, a lot of big decisions that year. All because that one day was in the back of my mind. I still don't know what's gonna happen with this. I do know I've changed since then, which is probably a given. The important thing I think is to not be solely angry. Be mad. You have a reason. But use it and be something MORE than angry.

Ak sorry to go off like this... well I'm done.

That's all I have to say about that.

The most important things I want to say about this, I couldn't get into words if I really wanted to read them. But I'm sure you all know.

 

[hippy]

I don't know, some of my views on the matter would just sorta bring down the thread, so I'll refrain.

Mine too.

I don't think I'll observe any specific moment of silence. I feel that I've already done my grieving for what happened.

To let it go...

But that doesn't mean to forget.

 

[DML]

I can't believe it has almost been a year...I remember my mother waking me up and saying there has been a horrible accident and the rest of the morning we watched the news in disbelief. I think the hardest thing for me at that moment was being in Florida with the rest of my family and friends in New Jersey, and my sister in law worked at an army base in NJ, and my brother in law all he does is fly, so I was terribly worried. I later found out one of the kids that I went to school with was in one of the planes. I sat RIGHT next to the kid all year, how could that be? It didn't seem right, and still doesn't seem right. A few weeks after that we drove up to NJ for my brother's wedding passing by NYC, something I took for granted all those years, I was listening to ATYCLB and I looked over and saw the towers gone, I remember silently crying, and I knew the rest of my family felt the same way as we past the city. I couldn't stop staring though, it was exactly like when there is an accident and you have to look, even though you know you don't want...

 

[daisybean]

warning long ramblin post ahead

Well I plan on definately not watching TV....I did a thread in the confessionals about it.....I was kinda hoping I would have to work on Wed., but I have it off so I guess it will be the internet and radio for me....

Anyway...it was weird, that whole day still seems so surreal to me.

I had slept in and had the day off from work...btw sleeping in for me is 8:30 am . I had gotten up and turned on the TV and went to make the coffee. I was watching Good Morning America and they had cut in that there was a fire or bomb at the WTC. As news started filtering in that it was a plane, my intial thought was "oh wow, someone sure got lost." Just after that I saw the second plane hit, and it was like a bad movie....something like this just doesn't happen on accident, it was an attack.

I called my sis (in CT) to see if anyone in the family was in NYC or on a plane...and she was just getting up herself, and did not see what happened. After getting off the phone with her, I made other calls to friends/family, and thankfully no one was near the area.

Shortly after the pentagon was hit, I called my sis again to make sure no one was in DC. My only thoughts were "what are they gonna hit next? where is the next attack going to be? Why?" As we talked, we both sat silent on the phone as the first tower collapsed.

I was sick to my stomach, my head pounded, and I was just cold. On an 80 degree day I was curled up in a blanket, just trying to make sense of the whole thing.

Later that afternoon (after they had made the US a no fly zone) I heard a plane overhead...which under regular circumstances is a normal everyday sound, but I freaked. I looked out to see it was one of those big cargo military planes....every half hour I heard one of those planes headed southeast...probably full of supplies and soliders.


I think what sticks out in my mind the most , was that night on the Nightly News, Peter Jennings broke down and cried on air.


Everyone spent the next few days after that in shock..... on the 14th I went to the mall and people were just wandering aimlessly, not really shopping, but like me looking for normalcy and not finding it.

 

[adamswildhoney]

I realised that when I lasted posted I didnt talk about what and how that day was for me!

I woke up at about 7 or maybe 6.30 somewhere around there and I turned on me stereo bc I do that every mornin. DJ Rick Dee was on and he was talkin about the WTC and how a plane had just hit it or something and at first I thought it was a complete joke bc he jokes about almost anything.

So still half way awake I went out to where my parents were and told them that Rick had said something about the towers but I didnt know if it was true or not.

Anyways, We turned on the Tv and there it was the towers had been hit and it scared the crap out of me!

 

[Gina Marie]

Foadie

Mona, that was a WONDERFUL post.

I will spend the day thinking about that day and all of the people we lost, and in absolute awe and admiration of the heroes-the firefighters, police officers, rescue and recovery workers, volunteers, and the heroes of Flight 93. In my eyes, everyone we lost is a hero for what they endured.

I can't really put into words what I feel, but I hope for one day, we can put aside politics and other issues. I love this country, and I am also well aware of its' flaws. My grief for that day doesn't mean I grieve any less for any other tragedy around the world. But for this one day, I am just hoping I will be allowed to grieve, and that the magnitude of that day, and the people we lost, will be respected.

The banner says 'The human spirit is not measured by the size of the act, but by the size of the heart'

 

[Jenn121]

I don't think September 11th should become a holiday because I imagine that, over time, it would become just another day off from work/school, just another excuse to have a BBQ. I think that would take away from the magnitude of what happened on that day and the impact it had on so many people.

I was working that day (I teach kindergarten) and I remember one of the parents came in and asked me if I had heard anything about 2 planes crashing into the World Trade Center. He thought it might be a radio prank. I thought he was talking about the World Trade Center here in Boston and said that I agreed, it was probably just a radio prank. About 10 minutes later I passed by our school's office and the principal and the 2 secretaries were gathered around the TV in the office. I stuck my head in to see what was going on and one said, "2 planes crashed into the Twin Towers. They were both from Boston, and they are saying it is terrorists." I tried to think if I knew anyone flying that day and luckily I didn't. I went back to my classroom and told my co-teacher. My students are 5 and 6 so we did not tell them what was happening but they could sense something was wrong. Around 10 we got a memo that no one was to have their classroom TV on or to talk about the tragedy to the classes because a mom of 2 students was a stewardess for American and her husband was not sure if she was on one of the planes. (She wasn't).

I'll never forget when my boss got a phone call from her sister saying that the Pentagon had been hit. I felt like I had been punched in the stomach...the Pentagon, the very symbol of American military strength had been attacked. I was shaking. We took our kids outside and I was struck by what a gorgeous day it was, there was not a cloud in the sky. Our school is under 2 airpaths to Logan airport and it was eerily quiet with no planes flying. The first parent showed up at 11 to pick up her daughter and she was crying. I asked her if she was alright and she told me "We have an office in the World Trade Center". She then said that many buildings in Boston were being evacuated and that we could expect more parents to be picking up their children.

The first fighter plane flew over around 2 and I remember thinking how lucky I was that seeing that fighter plane freaked me out, that this wasn't something that we experienced everyday like in so many other places in the world. I went home and waited for my husband to get home. When he finally arrived we got into bed (it was only around 6 pm) and watched the news all night. I couldn't sleep because I was afraid of being vulnerable, I was sure that someone would immediately break into our house as soon as I fell asleep. Now that the anniversary is approaching, I feel that way again. I wake up every night afraid that someone is in the house hiding.

I will honor Sept 11 by attending an inter-faith prayer service and candle-light vigil. I'll be praying for all of the people whose lives were destroyed on that day.

 

[GypsyHeartgirl]

Guess what I was doing the morning of Sept 11? I was reading Interference :blush: when the phone rang, and it was my brother telling me a plane had hit the twin towers. I got the chills. Then he stayed on the phone talking to me while the tower collapsed. It was terrible.

It was so weird, because my son had been on the hugest twin towers kick. He had been looking at them online, on a camera that showed them 24/7. Just the night before, he had printed a pic of them for a school project. That was Sept. 10.

On Aug. 29, we had been in NYC. Well, almost. He wanted to see those towers so bad, I drove up there, scared as I was. I had driven all the way to Texas and back (from VA) but was scared of NYC! I remember driving up the NJ turnpike, and how we first spotted them almost 100 miles away, we saw those two imposing shadows through the trees against the sky. "It's the twin towers!" we screamed. We saw them when we were driving into NY, and I was surprised they were white. I'd always thought they were black. I stared at the light on the top blinking. For a few minutes, we had them, and it was cool.

When we crossed into the city, the oil light came on and I freaked out. I mean I lost it. There was a traffic jam, and I couldn't stand it. I got off and turned back. I told him I was sorry, but I just couldn't do it, I was too scared, but he was only 15 and had his whole life to see the twin towers. I feel so sick about that now. You just never know.

 

[Foadie]

sorry ignore this

 

[DML]

I don't think September 11th should become a holiday because I imagine that, over time, it would become just another day off from work/school, just another excuse to have a BBQ. I think that would take away from the magnitude of what happened on that day and the impact it had on so many people.

That is my thinking also. I don't want it to become yet another "Hallmark Holiday". It's bad enough that people already tried to make money off of it.

 

[Foadie]

I'm ready to tell my story.

It was a normal day for me, I spent half of my day in high school, and half working for the United States Peace Corps back then.
I played in a band that gigged at night in Manhattan clubs.
I was the drummer and I co-wrote the songs with my boyfriend
Joseph (Joey) who played guitar. He was the sweetest guy
I ever knew. He worked 3 blocks from the WTC.
That morning I started out at work, a few blocks farther away than Joey. I remember the exact moment that I heard the plane
hitting the first tower. I was sitting at my desk talking with my friend Leah who plans trips to less-fortunate countries. She was excited about her newest idea: Bangledesh. We jumped up and ran to the window, to see something horrible- like this:

(except it was the first tower- couldn't find a good enough picture)

I screamed and then we ran- I heard things along the way from
people's radios and TV's- "large plane hit the World Trade Center, lots of fire and smoke" "get to safety" and such. Much after that
I can't remember. I know I ran down the street- my destination was Joey. When the second plane hit Leah caught up to me and told me we had to run the other direction. She said it was terrorists. Later she told me I was hysterical about Joey and I struggled to get away from her, but she succeded in pulling me into a McDonalds. They were watching the TV because they said
it made it seem like it was far away. I watched in the doorway when the towers collapsed.
Then I ran towards them...I just went and I hid behind a building when that cloud of everything roared through the streets. It made a sound. I found Joey laying dead in the street
about 4 blocks from the WTC. Flying debris to the head. I lay
over him until the second tower collapsed, then a policeman picked us both up and brought us to a station. They put Joey
in a body bag and then I did what I knew I should: I ran back to
work and got in my uniform and I went down there. I helped with
the cleanup and I saw things I will never forget.
I am so happy that I helped with the cleanup, because Joey would have never wanted me to stay there with him. I think
he would have wanted me to help- he would have.
My band stopped in his honor, and I continued working and helped to plan a trip to Afghanistan to help the women there. Soon after, I found Interference, PLEBA, and the girls helped me in ways the will never know. I was able to focus my
attention on U2 and not spend my every waking moment on Joey.

So during the minute of silence, I will think of Joey, U2, and PLEBA.



PS- I know I told my story to Lilly once and she had questions for me that I gladly answered. It helps me to talk about it, so if anyone wants to ask me anything, I will answer! Thanks PLEBA

 

[Ultravioletbabe]

Foadie, you were *gulp* THERE?! ((((HUGS)))))

 

[adamswildhoney]

Foadie

 

[Liesje]

September11, 2002 is my 18th birthay, so I dunno how I'll feel....

oh, one thing that really annoys me, I don't even know why, but I hate it when people refer to September 11 as "nine eleven". I dunno, that just doesn't sound right.

 

[souLnation2002]

September11, 2002 is my 18th birthay, so I dunno how I'll feel....

oh, one thing that really annoys me, I don't even know why, but I hate it when people refer to September 11 as "nine eleven". I dunno, that just doesn't sound right.

ack... you're bday is on the 11th.....? that must be hard ... are you going to be celebrating this year?

ps- to foadie

 

[Liesje]

ack... you're bday is on the 11th.....? that must be hard ... are you going to be celebrating this year?

I dunno, cus that's like, next week.....and I just moved into college so I won't see my parents, but I think I've convinced Ellen and Laura to take me to the Indigo Girls concert on Oct 1 to celebrate. Laura is 18 September 12 and the tickets go on sale that day......

 

[Gina Marie]

Foadie-I remembered you mentioned that you lost your boyfriend that day, but I didn't want to say anything in my reply that might upset you.

Of course there are no words I can say to you. I thank you for sharing that story w/ us. I think you must be an incredibly strong young woman to have endured that-I admire you I remember at the time you said PLEBA/U2 was helping you a bit-I hope it still is.

Your loss, and the losses of all the friends/relatives of those who died that day, are of the utmost importance-anything anyone else feels pales in comparison.

and to you-I will think of you Wednesday

 

[BAW]

September11, 2002 is my 18th birthay, so I dunno how I'll feel....

oh, one thing that really annoys me, I don't even know why, but I hate it when people refer to September 11 as "nine eleven". I dunno, that just doesn't sound right.

I'll be 36 on 9/11...I don't know what to do either. Isn't it weird when you tell someone your birthday is 9/11 and they give you that look like "oh...that's awful" and then they don't know what to say?

 

[Sicy]

my god foadie.. x100

You are a brave, wonderful person.. there are no words.

 

[Can'tSeeOrBeSeen]

Hi everyone,

Although I'm Canadian, I feel like a part of me is with all of you. I know alot of people who were directly affected and my thoughts are still with them. I remeber those events like they were yesterday. I'm not sure I remeber any day like I remeber that day. I can still remeber every single feeling I had. It's kind of scary if I think about it.

Before I read this thread today, I was at my Stevie Nicks website (as usual) and came across her journal entries from Sept. 11th. I read them as she posted them last September and a couple more times after that, but hadn't for about half a year. Anyways, I stubbled across them again tonight and felt I had to read them. The way she writes is so beautiful and I know she helped alot of people (including myself) with what she said and how she said it.

While reading all your messeges, I kept thinking of her words... so I thought that maybe some of you would like to take a look at them...

http://nicksfix.com/stevies_journal.htm

*extra for Foadie*

 

[MonaVox]

Flannely to everyone, esp Foadie

 

[MissVelvetDress_75]

((((((FOADIE)))))))))))))

Foadie, thank you for being strong and for sharing your unfortunate story with us. I am sure that it must have been very difficult for you to post. God bless you and Joey's spirit and his family and the rest of those who lost loved ones in these horrible attacks.

 

[Foadie]

THANK YOU!

WOW, thank you so much everyone for being so supportive! I didn't know how people would react.

I just wanted to say that I agree with the people who say that
September 11 SHOULDN'T be a holiday- I just think there should
be a period of silence or rememberance every September 11th.

PLEBA