9/11/2001 Let's never forget.

I was off from work that day but had just gotten in my truck to go somewhere. I turned on the radio and heard the news and when back in the house and turned on the TV to watch even more unfold.

I didn't have rentals at that time. Did it have any effect on your rental business?

I was loading up my lawnmower after mowing vacant house I had for sale.

A total stranger walking down the street told me some plane had flown into the world trade center.

I thought a small plane where the pilot must have had a heart attack or something.

Until I got home & turned on the TV.

I was a secretary for an Assistant City Manager of a major municipality. He was in charge of Airports, Housing, Engineering, Transportation/Public Works, Water Department, etc.

The City Manager and the ACMs all had tvs in their offices. We heard about it pretty quickly, because the first plane hit at 8:46 am EST, which was right as we were coming into the office to start our workday CST. We were glued to the tvs all day.

One of the things I remember the most was someone had left a duffle bag in the lobby on the street floor. On 9/10, no one would have thought twice about it, but on 9/11, everyone was super-cognizant that an unattended bag might have explosives on it.

Another thing I remember was Congress singing "God Bless America" together. Things got political pretty quickly afterwards, but there was a little bit of unity for a brief moment there.

And a third thing I remember was all the little flags people had on their car antennaes. Those lasted for a year or two or three before they wore out and weren't replaced.

I was driving home from looking at a house to buy when a big jet went overhead (this was near the local airport). As it went by me it suddenly turned around and went back to towards the airport- very unusual. I saw this and knew in my gut that something was wrong. Then the radio came on and said a big jet had hit the twin towers. I got home about 5 minutes later and turned on the TV. Called the wife at her work and told her. The rest of the day we were glued to the tv and discussing it and what to do.

I appreciate the thought, but "never forget" is a tall order. Consider...

Ask the average person on the street what war the US was involved in during the early 1950s and about how many US service members were killed. Ask them when it ended. *

You'll get a deer-in-the-headlights look from most people. A few might guess Vietnam or WW2. They'll have no idea on the casualties or when those events ended.

* Btw, this is a trick question ... we're still there and it never officially ended.

What's the point? There's a lot of history. In 20 years, 9-11 will be just another fact kids are taught in schools. It's already that for many. Think of all the major events that went on 20-40 years before you were born. How many do you remember in vivid detail or commemorate on the day they happened or ended?

Time is a strange thing. Van Halen released their break out album "1984" 40 years ago. 40 years prior to that we were still at war with Germany and Japan.

I think if we remember anything specific about 9-11, it should be to stay out of conflicts in the Middle East. We spent more blood and treasure there than we ever lost in the twin towers.

If you read this far, here's the answer: Korean War. 37,000 troops killed. Many more wounded or MIA. The war never ended: an armistice was signed putting hostilities on hold. Hardly anyone remembers.

Additional thought...

Perhaps 9-11 will be remembered a bit longer than most events, because it was a strike we felt here, in our country, in our largest city. The emotional impact makes it feel more "real" than something that went on "over there".

But then I think of the event that happened Dec 7, 1941. A day that will live in infamy. Or at least in the pages of a history text book. That too was a gut punch, but that too was sort of "over there".

I was flying yesterday, so it felt a little odd. The lady next to me got a text from her husband reminder her it was 9/11 and she was flying today. I said "Well, a bit too late for him to warn you now -- since we're already on the plane!"

Typo -- "reminder her" = "reminding her"

It was a perfect blue cloudless day...I remember that part like it was yesterday.

It was a bad day for me. DH had left the night before on the cheaper American flight to LAX, I was ticked because he could have flown out the next morning. It was more expensive but the company was paying so I was mad...turns out that would have been the Pentagon flight.

I was listening to Howard Stern and heard it all happen live, turned on the TV and watched the second building get hit and then the buildings fall. All the rumors flying...a plane was said to be flying towards FAA headquarters near my son's school...we were under an alternate Dulles flight path but all the planes were grounded so what was this plane? (Turns out nothing.) I zipped up to my son's school and grabbed him; my DIL, other son and granddaughter left work and school and came out to my house and we all hunkered down and watched...We figured if the world was ending we'd be together. No phone service for a long while as they cut us completely off. By the time I spoke with DH it was all over and he didn't even know about it yet (time difference.)

WMH, what a close call.

I was still at the W2. Working in the toolshop. Got a call from a sister plant in Nashville. He said turn on the TV because a plane hit the twin towers.

No TV in the area but was able to watch I think MSNBC on the computer. Saw the second plane hit and wondered what is happening?

No personal losses on my end. So many other did have them though, even if just close calls.

I agree that it is fading a bit from memory. It will last longer because of the closeness but even those in the middle of the country didn't deal with it the same as those closer by.

I was on active duty. It is typical for each ship to provide line handlers for one another if you are staying in port that day. On that day - nothing that floated stayed in port. all piers were emptied out. If you had a pulse and were on shore - you were at the piers tossing lines. Rank didn't matter. I was the top 2% of the ranks doing what someone with six months in normally does. In many ways, I wish I was on those ships that day. They had REAL weapons. I worked at Afloat Training Center - we train sailors at sea. A .45 isn't going to do all that much.

On the second day after flight started back, I was up in the PacNor West. Typically we send full birds for these training missions - but there was huge surge planned and we didn't have even enough Commanders. Those of us qualified as Combat System Team Leaders were deputized and given the Full Birds person Cell phone numbers where we had to be his eyes and ears. Twice daily we had designated check in times with him.

Normally when doing training work ups, a ship will totally withdraw from real world operations and go into training mode. Simply not enough ships for that either. On that Aegis Cruiser, one half of the battle screens were set up as training exercises to launch missiles sometimes in the future at an "unknown location in an unknown country" The other set of screens were monitoring real world commercial air traffic with war birds on the rails. Folks, that isn't cool - doing military drills for a future mission while tracking civilian aircraft. The potential for something to go very wrong was real.

I am dark skinned, I have short hair with a military hair cut, I am on an airplane two days after the flights started back up. People are on edge to begin with but having the skin tone that I do have - I know many people believed I might be middle eastern ....... Good thing I didn't have to get up to use the bathroom on the plane.

I am dark skinned, I have short hair with a military hair cut, I am on an airplane two days after the flights started back up. People are on edge to begin with but having the skin tone that I do have - I know many people believed I might be middle eastern ....... Good thing I didn't have to get up to use the bathroom on the plane.

They told U.S. government that they would knock them down

and they did.