Replies

I am a computer programmer in Austin, Texas. I'm also a retired U.S. Air Force navigator. I have a pretty standard routine on workday mornings. On the morning of 9/11/2001, I started my short commute to work. About 7:50am I drove through McDonalds and got a coke, as I often do. I was listening to an audio version of the book "Masters of Deception". My mind was only half on the book as I was planning a busy day at work. I was scheduled to fly to Korea on Friday to develop software on site for a major customer. The more code I could write before I left, the less time I'd have to stay in Korea.

At 8am I switched to Austins news station, KLBJ-AM. The announcer was talking excitedly. "A plane has hit the world trade center!"

I am a private pilot. Only a few days before I had flown into Houston. I noticed very tall antennas very close to Hobby Airport, their tops in the clouds. I formed a mental picture of the WTC towers projecting into low clouds. I thought "I hope it wasn't a Cessna or Piper". When the announcer discribed a large fire I thought that most likely a commuter airliner had somehow gone off course. When you are flying in solid clouds its not hard to go off course. I thought about the American Airlines B757 that hit a mountain in Cali a few years ago.

Minutes latter the radio said "another airplane has struck the other tower!". My mind groped for an explanation. One airplane I could handle. One airplane was a tragic accident, but not outside the realm of experience. I couldn't account for two. About 8:10 I got to the office. We have one TV in a conference room near the entrance. I looked over the shoulders of the crowd and saw a picture of the twin towers burning against a perfectly clear blue sky. That's when I realized for certain that we had been attacked.

My employer is very hard nosed about working during working hours, so most people were at least sitting at their desks, but a lot of radios were on.

I went to my cube and was trying to work, but I put on headphones and continued to listen to Klbj. I recall writing this single line of code:

BOOL bVswrLimit = TRUE;

Then the third plane hit the pentagon. I have friends there. At that point I just started web surfing for information. I exchanged email with a number of friends, sharing rumors. I began to get physically ill. I was monitoring FAA web sites and was shocked yet again when they ordered all aircraft to land. I recall getting frustrated that President Bush did not go straight back to D.C. About 11am I told my supervisor that I was useless, and I was going home. We briefly discussed my trip to Korea, I told them I'd still go (the trip was canceled the next day). I almost started crying during this conversation.

I went home and just sat in front my TV and computer, trying and failing to soak it all in. I finally fell asleep around 2am.