The day promised to be busier than normal. I had a computer lab orientation in the moring and an important university event to work that afternoon at Angelo State, where I worked as a multimedia coordinator, trainer, and helpdesk analyst.
I arrived, as usual, around 8am that morning and took my place at the Helpdesk, going through email and checking on trouble tickets. About 10 minutes later, my friend/co-worker Jan walks through the lab's double doors, coffee in hand and looking slightly flustered. "Today's already been a crazy day -- Chad's wife had a miscarriage and a plane flew into the World Trade Center."
Oh n... What?!
She quickly told me about Chad and his wife, and then she explained what she knew about the plane. Our thoughts about what had happened in New York were mostly
What a horrible accident, and we immediately pulled up IE and typed in CNN.com. The page did pull up. Ok, msnbc.com. Nothing. ABC.com. NBC. CBS. Nothing. Finally, BBC.co.uk slowly loads on Jan's screen.
Something about a second plane.
I walk quickly down the hall to my friend/co-worker Purnell's office. Purnell is the multimedia admin for the university, and I knew he had access to satellite video feeds.
Did you hear about the plane that hit the WTC this morning, I asked him?
Yes.
A second one just hit the other tower.A second plane ... that was no accident.
I leave Purnell working to pull up a satellite video feed. I went back to the helpdesk, where Jan fills me in that the Pentagon had been hit, another plane was missing, and a rumor of an explosion at the Mall in DC.
I don't remember answering phone calls that morning. It was kind of a surreal feeling. Hearing rumors and telling people what happened. I remember standing in the hallway by my lab telling a friend what had happened, and a random student walking by heard what I was saying and looked at me and said, "You're kidding, right?" He walked away with a look of shock on his face.
My next memory is of standing in the computer lab, beginning my orientation. It felt strange to say 'good morning' given the events of the day. I remember acknowledging this to the students, saying something about how I knew they probably had a lot on their minds given what was going on, and that I just had a few things to show them, and that I wouldn't keep them long.
Not too long into my orientation, apparently every tv monitor in the building was turned on to the satellite feed Purnell was pulling. Including the monitor in my lab. I turned to look, and I watched the live feed of the first tower fall, as I stood there in front of the lab full of students. I turned back to the students, asked if there any questions (which there weren't), and I let them go. However, most, including myself, stayed and watched the coverage. In fact, everywhere on campus where there was a tv, there were groups of students standing around, watching silently.
I didn't know anyone in New York or Washington or Pennsylvania. I write this to remember. I write this because I remember.
