9.11.2001

On the eve of the 5th anniversary of 9-11, I'm watching the accidental documentary by the French brothers filming a rookie fireman. It is as hard to watch as it was the first time it aired, and there are of course no words to describe it, except that it puts you right there.

I remember how surreal it seemed that morning, when I switched my radio for some reason to NPR as I got ready for work. Realizing what was going on while trying to squeeze in my routine. Realizing, but not comprehending. It hit me first when the airport sign on I-5 indicating something. I don't remember what specifically it said, that the airport was locked down? Something that made it real. Then my school emergency communications pager went off, as the naval/army bases went under lockdown, including the schools on the bases. Here in Seattle, that is what initially made it real.

I tried to read online what was happening, but didn't see the tv footage of the planes hitting and the towers coming down until I went to a bar near my house, since I didn't have cable. It is still hard to watch.

It is the eve of the fifth anniversary of 9-11, and I can't help but wonder what tomorrow will bring. Hopefully it will only be a sad, quiet milestone. In case it is not, I will check the batteries in my work phone and my pager, and hope that I won't need them tomorrow.