Where Were You?

17 years.  It's hard to believe it's been 17 years since that tragic day in September.

I'd like to type something fresh and new.  Some kind of story or information that you've never heard or seen before.

I can't.

You would think at some point this date would become a distant memory, but it seems like September 11th comes around every year and all those memories come rushing back.

I was working afternoon drive on Y105.  I slept in that morning since I had been out doing whatever the night before.

I climbed out of bed and went into the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day.  My usual routine was to turn on the radio and stand in the hot water until I woke up.  That day I turned it on but all I heard was talking, not music.

At first I thought the radio got switched from FM to AM.  Nope.  The switch was fine.  While the radio kept talking to me I started to turn the dial up and down, trying to find some kind of music.  Nothing.

That's when I heard what the voices were saying.

"A plane crashed into the tower."

Suddenly it occurred to me that something big was going on.  I went out to the living room and popped on the TV.  It was everywhere.

And there I sat... for hours.  I was hypnotized by what I was seeing.  Watching the whole thing unfold.

Eventually I made my way to the radio station.  For a place that was usually lively and fun the mood was very somber.  For days we simulcasted our AM station so people could hear the news.

I still think about that day.  All those lives lost.

It's unusual for a radio person to not have anything to say and I still find myself speechless.

I know it's cliché to say it, but thank someone today.  A police officer, a firefighter, someone in the military.  They do daily what many of us could never do.

God bless America.

~CMF