7 years ago today, I was at early marching band practice. Something felt "off" the whole time. It was quieter out and I hadn't seen a plane all morning. Next class I made it to was German, where we turned on the TV in time to see replays of planes smash into buildings. Then watched them fall, live; something I'll never forget. We went through the rest of the school day quiet and scared. - Jordan Hofker

I lived in the dorms on Lackland AFB, San Antonio TX. I was off the 10th and the 11th. We were partying on the 10th well into the next morning. When I woke up on the 11th, I turned on the TV and saw the damage to the first building. Then I saw what happened to the second building 'live'. I couldn't believe it! Moments later I was called into work to man the gate in front of the our medical facility. (Used to be Security Forces now I'm Medical Admin)... - David Cook

My wife and I had just moved across the country and I was at my new office for only the second day. A co-worker came in and said he heard something on the radio about a plane crashing into the WTC. We put on the TV in the conference room. After the first tower fell, I went home early. I don't recall being afraid, but I was certainly very sad, as well as worried for my brother in law and his wife who live in NYC. - Tim Chemacki

7 years ago today, I was in the U.S. Navy. My family and I were driving from Michigan back to Maryland from leave. We started out after the 2nd plane hit the WTC. The towers collapsed near Toledo and United 93 went down before Cleveland. Pulled over at a rest stop and called my unit. They said to turn around and stay put in MI until things settled down. - Steve

When I stepped out the door that morning, I was struck how blue the sky was getting and how nice it felt outside. I decided to leave the radio off on the way in. Got to work, logged in... friend comes by and says "A plane crashed in the World Trade Center." My brain immediately conjured a small plane that some how got off course. The internets were clogged and couldn't find anything specific. We pulled the big TV out from a conference room and stood there, stunned. The sky was so blue that day. - Yolanda

...People were pouring into the gate that were deploying to various places to assist in medical treatment. People were nervous and some were even crying. Up until that day, people coming through the gate had never thanked me for what I do. I must have gotten 100+ thank you's from people comming in. I was in full protective gear and doing 100% vehicle searches. It was intense. Then 2 months later I got the opportunity to volunteer to go to the desert. My tour in the desert is still my proudest time in my career so far! - David Cook

I had meningitis and had a nightmare that was in vivid shades of blue of a skyscraper collapsing and people falling. One of the people were decapitated by a girder while falling and that instantly opened my eyes. A little while later my mom called to tell me that a plane had hit one of the towers and I should turn on the TV - RAPatton

I was first horrified, shocked and then very angry that those jerks would take innocent passengers on an airplane and drive them into unsuspecting business folks hard at work. Still passionately angry over this - Susan Beebe

I had worked the night before, and was still in bed. The phone rang, and it was my wife (then of 2 months) telling me that I needed to turn on the TV. All I remember thinking was that, from that day on, every rule that the United States had lived under was going to change. - Bradley McSpinn

I was on my way to work in downtown Kansas City and turned on the radio. I had to pull over to the side of the road because I started crying. I was a CS Manager at Gateway then. After a few hours we started letting people go home. - W!cKeD's L!fE

I was waiting for my masters polisci class to start at Emory. A fellow student ran in asking us why we werent watching tv, so we turned on the overhead in the classroom. All I could think about was the fact that my family lived there, and none of the phones could get through. The prof forced us to turn it off and held class like it was a normal day. I have zero recollection of what he said. - The Archangel ωαřмaiden

Interesting that last year I remember posting my story on Jeremiah's blog in the comments. Now the action is on FriendFeed? - Andrew Cafourek

i found out on an Xml mail list by a guy who could see it all. Was quite surreal. Still is. - Steven Livingstone-Pérez via twhirl

My brother called me in panic, he thought I was in NYC since I was travelling back and forth at the time. At first, I understood it was a small commercial aircraft, like the one how hit the Empire State a few decades ago, then I tuned in to CNN... got on the phone with everybody I knew n NYC, just to check they were ok (and probably to share the panic). I really realised what was going on like a week later... - Fabrice Epelboin

I was working for Crosswalk.com at the time. I set up my laptop in an office with a TV and began relating information to our members in chat. We also organized a prayer vigil. The information was so unreal and a lot of our members had a hard time believing what they were seeing. It was a long day, spent most of it in chat. - Fred Alberti

Lost some good friends 7 years ago today. Here was one of the best http://gregorytsaucedo.org/ - Mark Congiusta

I was sitting waiting for my Anthropology professor to show up at Framingham State watching the news, when the first plane hit the towers. Students trickled in like zombies, their eyes never leaving the screen, not believing what they were seeing. Next thing we were all being sent home since our school was a "possible target" up on it's high hill. I couldn't get shake the shocked feeling that I'd been on Flight 93 a few months before bound for LA... Still gives me goosebumps... - Shannon

Seven years ago today, I was in Brisbane, Australia, in my first semester of graduate studies. I heard about the crashes when getting off the train near my apartment at about 11:00 at night. I raced home and stayed up most of the night, watching in horror (including the collapse of the second tower) and making calls home to my family in the US. It took a couple of days to get through to friends in New York City, because all the lines were jammed. Like many others, I'm sure, I just felt completely helpless. - Bryan Person

7 years ago today I was there. I came out of the subway at Vessy Street just in time to watch the 2nd plane hit, I got hit by flying debris and wound up with a shattered knee cap. For some reason the memory of that is stronger today then any other anniversary of the day. its hard to believe it was 7 years ago - Drew Stein

7 years ago I showed up early on my NJ consulting gig. We were cut off and working and someone came in and said "What are you doing here? A plane just hit the WTC". We ran next door to find a TV, but ended up back at hotel (client shut down). My co-worker was a new yorker and I am a former New Yorker of 13 years...went to college there...and also worked at WTC for a year. At the time, I was living in DC and had friends @ the Pentagon, too. So, I hastily began dialing friends inside the impact zone to make sure they were okay. My best friend's hubby was caught in it -as the fire marshall of his building adjacent to WTC. He went through a horrifying ordeal. Couldn't reach him until 9pm to make sure he was okay. One of my clients lost ALL his college roomates and best man at his wedding. TERRIBLE. I thought I made it through without losing anyone I knew Then - 2 weeks AFTERWARD, I caught a Dateline story about a guy and his Dad running the NYC marathon in memory of their lost brother/son. It was a guy I w - Leigh Duncan-Durst

My 8:30 Com Law class at Syracuse had just been let out. I was walking through the door and an acquaintance who was in the building grabbed my shoulders in panic and told me a plane just crashed into the WTC. The magnitude of it didn't strike me immediately; I remember just walking back home in disbelief that an accident like that could happen. As I walked in to the apt, my roommates were all gathered around the tv in horror looking at the smoky holes in the towers - some, crying - some, angry - some, just confused. I sat down and within minutes they went down. I was absorbed by the horror. My parents were vacationing in Portugal at the time, where they were born. I knew they had been looking for an excuse to return permanently. And I remember the first thing I thought about was them choosing not to coming back. - Michaela

I live in Canada, and I was a manager in tech support. I remember one of the techs coming to my office to tell me that he had heard that a plane crashed into one of the towers. I had a small radio in my office, so I turned it on to listen. As the events progressed, our phone queues got very quiet. I don't think I've ever felt so empty. - Scott

I was on the train home, people on the train's phones were ringing and that's how I found out what had happened, it was surreal! - Joe Dawson

I had taken off from Washington Dulles to Raleigh, leaving 15 minutes before AA Flight 77. I was in conference in RTP going over SIP UC architecture when cubes outside the room erupted. My girlfriend had lost her parents to an airplane crash in Indonesia in 1997, and all she knew was that I was on a business trip. Phone lines were tied up until late afternoon, I could not get in touch with her until 4PM to let her know I was OK. A horrible, traumatic day for many, many people. We cried together for weeks. - jcunwired

It was a little after 8:50 and I was walking up to my Office building at Queens College. The library building stood at the highest point of the campus; and, from its sides, one could have a clear view of the manhattan skyline. Someone walked up that I knew and told me that a plane had just crashed into the WTC. Started working and heard that another plane had crashed. The work stopped, College closed a few hours later. We gathered in another building trying to find news coverage on TV's. The worse thing I remember about those times is knowing that we would be at war soon and would stay there for a long time. The exaggerated numbers of deaths; the burning smell that lingers in my fantom imagination, the sadness, and the worst of all, the unnecessary and useless deaths of thousands of souls. And, what has come following that event: more useless deaths in the name of security, democracy, and a false sense of pride. - Pratik Patel

It was a little after 8:50 and I was walking up to my Office building at Queens College. The library building stood at the highest point of the campus; and, from its sides, one could have a clear view of the manhattan skyline. Someone walked up that I knew and told me that a plane had just crashed into the WTC. Started working and heard that another plane had crashed. The work stopped, College closed a few hours later. We gathered in another building trying to find news coverage on TV's. The worse thing I remember about those times is knowing that we would be at war soon and would stay there for a long time. The exaggerated numbers of deaths; the burning smell that lingers in my fantom imagination, the sadness, and the worst of all, the unnecessary and useless deaths of thousands of souls. And, what has come following that event: more useless deaths in the name of security, democracy, and a false sense of pride. - Pratik Patel

I was working at AT&T in Mesa, AZ. I went downstairs and all the tv's were showing the footage after the first plane hit. I went back upstairs and was telling people that a plane had hit the WTC and how could somebody actually drive a plane into a building that big. Then the second plane hit. That's when all work ceased in the entire building. A little later an announcement came across everyones computers that Corporate Security wanted all non essential personnel to leave all the buildings that AT&T owned and to go home. Only those responsible for essential operations were to stay. I called my wife on my cell and told her what was happening and that she needed to stay inside. Our daughter was only a few months old at the time. Headed home the streets were already getting vacant. It was really wierd and felt like a disaster movie. Being a geek, we had the tv going, i had the video feed from Sky News in Britain on my computer and was on IRC talking to people everywhere getting news. Amazing how much things hav - Jason Shultz via twhirl

Life-changing event in small, subtle but significant ways. Example: up until 9/11/01 I used to carry my cellphone in my backpack/briefcase. Didn't have my cellphone on my person when the news of 9/11 hit. Realized how important cell phone communication is (and I also had Nextel push to talk then) but only if the device is with me. From then on, I wear a phone, always. - Bundini

I was reading the words of the first plane crash but not comprehending the news when my sister called from Germany. She asked if I understood what was going on. Then the second plane crashed and with it a feeling of tremendous sorrow. - Cassondra Schindler

On 9-11 I was at my fraternity watching the news, saw it on TV. Called off of work and grabbed a couple of friends and ran to the Red Cross and waited in line for 5 hours to give blood. - Mark Chandler

In Ireland. remember it well. I heard on the radio that a plane had crashed into first TT, maybe 1pm. So I turned on Sky News. We presumed it was tragic accident... at first. I couldn't watch after the Pentagon stuff, I had to go do stuff on computer on account of my nervesm, which are bad. Then my sister shouted out that the 1st tower was falling. I had to go to work: nobody did any work over here that day -- watching the news. The one person I know who did anything was a friend of mine working on a site in Manhatten. He worked all day. It didn't register with him at all, or the other guys on site. He did his days work, then walked over the bridge home. The most Fucked up day ever. I'll never forget it. I went to the pub l8r-- cupla American tourists there, frothing at the mouth. To a man, we all identified with them. 'Go Get the Bastards'. Peace out Jowyang ;) - john conroy

My chemistry teacher heard some commotion in the hall, left, and returned and had trouble continuing lecture. Then, the intercom announced the second plane to hit the towers, class stopped and the TV turned on. - Derrick Stolee

7 years ago, my wife and I were living in London, having moved from New York 6 months previously. I worked at home and heard about it when my wife called from her office. I turned on the BBC and saw the Towers fall. I was a consultant then, having worked in both the World Financial Center and 7 World Trade Center for years. I was worried for friends and former colleagues, as well as for my father who worked in the area. That evening, we got together with another expat couple who lived in the same building, sharing the experience. I remain pretty traumatized by the whole event. - Will Nourse

I had a meeting in Richmond VA and drove down there that morning leaving at 7am and because I drove listening to CDs, had no idea what was going on till I got to my meeting just before 9am. Walking into the lobby, it was one of the most surreal things to see everything happening on TV screens that people had brought out into the hallways. I was supposed to fly that day so I called everyone to say that I was OK and drove back to D.C and was sent on a detour by armed Humvees/soldiers guarding the city. - Abbas Haider Ali

I watched it with my own eyes. I heard it with my own ears. My senses were buried in it. I left NYC for good 7 months later. It greatly changed my perspective on life and what was important. My story: http://tinyurl.com/5rcmp6 - Liz Polay-Wettengel

I rarely watch television. The morning of 911, <a href="http://www.scripting.com/davenet...">Dave Winer's blog</a> reported the attack. I can't find the original post, but I think it went "Holy shit, a plane just crashed into the World Trade Center." I cut on the TV in time to see the second plane do its damage. The image of crumbling buildings is etched into my memory. - Jay Cross

I was supposed to be in the WTC for a meeting that morning and got lucky. Wrote this letter about it a week later: http://salimismail.com/... - Salim Ismail

Thought I would share this too - having flown from Dulles to Raleigh, three of us in the airport rented a car to get back to the DC area. We arrived back at Dulles at about 5PM or so to pick up cars, and I was absolutely stunned at how quiet it was - no people, very few cars, too surreal. - jcunwired

7 years ago, I was living/working in Nashville. I had a 45 min commute and was listening to the radio, so towards the end I started to hear reports of a plane hitting the WTC. By the time I got to work, I was still only getting a glimpse of the bigger picture b/c it was all still developing and we didn't have a TV at the office and I was having issues getting online. So... I headed to a press check and that's when I first saw TV reports and it became clear this was no accident. Still surreal. - Nick Ayres

I had just started high school a few weeks before. I went to my second class of the day and almost all of my classmates were talking, but I had not yet heard, and our teacher was not willing to say what she had seen. We got about 5 minutes into class before the principal made an announcement. I had no idea of the scale until I saw the video on CNN - I figured it was another Beechcraft-gone-awry incident. The rest of the day gave a pause to appreciate everything I have, and that has carried on since. - Kiel

My first class was weight training, where we had the TV on the whole time, but to some ridiculous music channel, not anything related to news. Right at the end of the period, the music abruptly stopped and a special news bulletin mentioned that a small plane had hit the one of the towers. It sounded like a small prop plane. By the time I hit my locker and made it into the next class, the true size and nature of the plane was being disclosed and we continued to watch as the second plane hit. - Logan Hart

I was walking between marching band and my next class when I heard the news on the radio. I made it to the student union in time to watch the second plane hit, then skipped my next couple of classes as I watched everything unfold and talked to my wife on the phone. - Jered Hofker

I'd desultorily turned on the local-ish news channel as background noise (I was in upstate NY) during breakfast before heading to class. I watched the first plane and, too shocked to think about changing my plans, turned it off before the second because I had to start walking to university. The things I remember most after that: (1) people texting their families to check in because the phones couldn't handle calls and (2) the moderator of an ML I was on doing a "roll call" to make sure everyone was okay . . . this was a global ML. - Janine Southard