CNNs 9-11-01 As It Happened

I'm watching "CNN's original TV coverage of 9/11/2001 in REAL TIME."
Seen through the prism of five years the uncertainty and panic of that day come through clear as a bell. I remember that morning too well, sitting at home that day glued to the television. At the time while I lived in Wisconsin we were getting the network feeds from NYC; my wife is a Yankees fan. The commentators dealing with the second airplane striking the WTC then shortly afterwards the Pentagon on fire, and the White House being evacuated. None of us knew it at the time but the people on United Airlines flight 93 were planning their desperate attempt to retake their plane.

We all kept waiting for the next shoe to drop, the next attack, more bad news. I told my wife then that someone was going to pay for this, more than they could bear. Its 8:55am, and Osama Bin Laden's name was mentioned for the first time. Few Americans that day knew who he was, now we all know his name, curse him.

Its 9:00 and the first (South) tower just collapsed. Scores of policemen, firemen, WTC workers fleeing down the stairs, and others, died at that moment. It was then that it became apparent to everyone that there would be great loss of life.

I sat in my living room all day, watching the news coverage knowing that this was a historic day. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor most Americans found out about it on radios or read it in the newspaper. That day, in real-time, we saw it happen ourselves. Though we didn't know it at the time, United Airlines flight 93 had already been flown into the ground by the terrorists after they had realized the passengers were going to retake the plane.

Just thinking about all of this and watching the five year old video while remembering the events of the years since, now the second WTC tower has collapsed.
Reading one of my favorite blogs today, a post by Laughing Wolf at Blackfive points me to this;

Breaths

"There are no words."