Posted By:
Al C.risafulliI watched CNN Pipeline all day yesterday; they rebroadcast their 9/11 coverage in real-time, starting at 8:30 AM. I was struck by how different the world was then, and how quickly it changed - when the second plane hit the second tower, the reporter was speculating that there must be something wrong with the airplanes' navigation systems and they were steering them all right to the WTC. Today, if thunder sounds weird, people wonder if it was a bomb.
The best friend I ever had died indirectly as a result of what Barry is talking about. He was recovering from colon cancer and a CT scan uncovered something near his stomach. They had scheduled an exploratory surgery for 9/12/01, but all the New York and Northern NJ hospitals cancelled all non-emergency procedures in anticipation of an influx of WTC victims that never came. My buddy didn't wind up having the surgery until late October; by that time the tumor was so big it was inoperable, and he was dead before February at 32 years old.
Everyone I know knows at least someone who died that day, and lots more friends were nearby, or in the building. I also watched the towers burn - first from a block away from my house, and a week later from across the river in Frank Sinatra Park. We remember it every day, but it was fitting to have the reminder nonetheless. Despite all the mayhem that has occurred since, I am glad to be alive and I've hugged my family a little tighter every day since.
-Al