The Lessons Learned

[jducoeur]

Okay, let's take a minute and indulge the morbid game of the day.

My most vivid memory of five years ago was stepping into the men's room for about 15 minutes and just shaking, because I was completely certain that there had to be a biological attack following. It just didn't make any sense otherwise: it was insanity to mount an attack of this level and then just stop -- surely this had to simply be a softener for something that would do real national damage. At a fundamental level, I didn't get the point of terrorism qua terrorism; really, I still don't get it. I think I'm happier that way.

And then I came out and went back to work. Horrible though it was, my life really hadn't changed much, the product wasn't going to code itself, and the eight of us at the company tacitly agreed that we were still sinking or swimming together, and a company-wide day off wasn't something we could afford. So life went on pretty normally, save for being a little sadder than normal over the lives lost to that insanity. Which, I think, was and remains the right lesson of the day...

Comments

[msmemory.livejournal.com]

My first interpretation of the radio news was that some hotshot had decided to give his girlfriend a scare by piloting a private aircraft between the Towers and missed. I wish it had been that simple.

I remember talking with Kymus about whether it would be better to jump, or to stay, if one were on the upper floors. What means of death would you choose, if you knew it were certain?

And the one specific thing I did in response to the attacks was to buy a second cat carrier, so if we had to flee we could take both cats with us.

[alexx-kay.livejournal.com]

I came into work a bit late, trying out some new medication for my first (and so far only, thank ghu) attack of kidney stones. I noticed the message light on my phone blinking when I got up, but, oddly, couldn't get through to my voicemail. When I got to the office, a bunch of strangers were hanging around our common area, watching our television. The TV had just announced that the FAA had grounded all airplanes in US, which I felt sure I must have mis-heard -- I literally couldn't believe it. I tried to work (not very effectively; the drugs dulled the pain, but also my brain). Gradually, as people and news filtered around, I realized what had happened. By noon, the boss told us all to go home and be with our loved ones.