_/11 Anniversary Day

[Ganma]

Today's the day. 10 years ago for 9/11 and 6 months for 3/11. Post your 'where were you' stories here.
I was at home on both occasions. I watched the towers topple on TV in real time and felt the shakes here in Tokyo 6 months back.

[Marked Trail]

Today's the day. 10 years ago for 9/11 and 6 months for 3/11

We need to refocus the hunt-for-Osama to a HUNT FOR THE TEPCO TERRORISTS!

[Coligny]

We need to refocus the hunt-for-Osama to a HUNT FOR THE TEPCO TERRORISTS!

see you in 10 years

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

9-11: Watching Charlie's Angels with my kids...went into work as the first tower collapsed and didn't get back home for about a week.
3-11: Insane asylum

[sublight]

9/11 - Was probably riding the Keio Line home from Hachioji when the first plane hit.

3/11 - At my desk at work (Tokyo), 6 floors up.

[Iraira]

9/11- Had gotten home about 15 minutes beforehand, and whatever TV show I wasn't watching, cut to video showing one the towers on fire. They were saying that a plane appeared to have crashed into one of the towers by accident Within a minute or so, the next plane hit. Clearly no accident.

3/11- At my desk, 3rd floor in Toranomon. Scrambled down the stairs to the street after realizing that this wasn't some piddily little yawn or burb. The cars on the street were bouncing up and down. Weird thing was later watching the tsunami on my monitor. After all the Hollywood CG movies, the real thing looked fake.

[dimwit]

9/11 Just got home from work, turned on NHK, saw them babbling on, so I changed the channel to CNN just in time to watch the plane hit the South Tower.

3/11 Don't feel a thing. Got back home, turned on the NHK watched them babbling on, so I turned to CNN just in time to watch the tsunami come in.

[Blah Pete]

9/11 was in Ibaraki drinking with a customer. Got back to the hotel about midnight and saw footage of the towers on TV. Thought it was a preview of some new disaster movie and CG of planes hitting the towers/collapsing so I really didn't pay attention.
Found out the next morning that i had a hangover and the footage was the real thing.

[Bucky]

9/11 was eating breakfast watching The Today show when they mentioned there was a fire in one the World Trade towers and it was on fire. As they went to the live shot of the towers, the second plane crashed into tower 2. At that point I went and got Mrs. Bucky and our 3 kids up and told them that they better come watch as this was something BIG.

3/11 was in bed asleep when we got a call from Bucky Jr. #2 that there was a big earthquake in Japan. Came downstairs flipped on the TV and watched the carnage.

[CrankyBastard]

9/11, 3/11 ......mmm, I was either doing something so important that I didn't notice or something so unimportant that I don't remember.

[IparryU]

9/11 going to school... saw the airplanes hit the towers on TV and thought it was a joke... got to school and no one was there... not a fucking sign or nothing. went back home and turned on the tv to find out that that shit was real...

3/11 was shagging and thought that the booze I drank was spiked... so i stopped shagging and then realized that it was a fuggin earthquake... didn't know how bad it was... but when I went to shibuya it was packed... i thought some famous j-idol were there... but it turned out to be that nothing was moving...

sorta retarded when these dramatic situations happen... but i dont hear gun shots or people screaming... so wtf

[Coligny]

Ok... so I will play the rules...

9/11 I was a the Mc Do champs Elysees

(there http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Mc+Donald+paris+&hl=en&ll=48.872577,2.290606&spn=0.015257,0.040791&sll=48.86974,2.32893&sspn=0.06103,0.130463&vpsrc=6&t=m&fll=48.874256,2.300391&fspn=0.015256,0.032616&z=16&layer=c&cbll=48.872572,2.298786&panoid=8teRSHEHrB8FktqXs2gkAg&cbp=12,38.47,,1,4.65)

Which is quite rare since like every Parisian the two places I avoid like a plague are the Eiffel tower and the Champs d'Elysees, I was munching on some chicken nuggets with BBQ sauce with a second serving in my backpack for the cat diner which was also not common since it was not a friday but a tuesday. Came back home business as usual... checked fark and saw the shit was hitting the fan pretty hard. Went to the local supermarket to store on flour butter and noodles... and spend 2 days under my desk watching CNN and checking fark... (if there was any logic, all actions would have to be achieved in the first 24/48 h since after that the planet would be literally in a state of curfew). 2 or 3 month after the army deployed crotale SAM around our nuclear powerplant... I still don't know if it's a late communication and it was done on the spot or if they really waited 3 month displaying a level of stupidity unseen since the Maginot line...

3/11 Wuz dere with you guys...

[Mike Oxlong]

The American one: was at Gusto or Skylark family restaurant with some Japanese friends having some food and drinks. They pointed out what was on tv, and I thought it was a movie until the second one hit and then you just go numb. Got satellite tv the next day.

The Japanese one: was walking around the touristy marketplace here with a friend visiting from Canada, and a shopkeeper told me that there was a really big tsunami coming. He was really worked up, so I asked if it was coming here. He wasn't sure, but then explained about the big earthquake off Tohoku and that the wave was like six meters or something. Got home a couple hours later and was glued to my computer for days.

[Samurai_Jerk]

9/11 - I had only been back in the US for about amonth after a stint on JET. I was living at my dad's place in Seattle so it was still early morning there. My dad burst into my room and said, "Turn on CNN! The blew up the World Trade Center and the Pentagon." I was still half asleep and confused. When I turned on the TV the channel it was set to was playing a documentaty about PETA. My first thought was, "Holy shit! Those PETA nutjobs blew up the WTC and Pentagon!" Then I realized that didn't make sense and realized my TV was on the E! channel. I switched to CNN and immediately knew it was bin Landen. I was really worried because I grew up in NYC and had a lot of friends working in the financial distict. Unfortunately one who I had known since junior high (I went to his Bar Mitzvah) died in the towers along with about 700 of his colleagues many of whom were friends of friends. Fortunately no one else did. A couple of them had very close calls.

3/11- My experience was pretty similar to Iraiira's. Only I work in Mita and was on the 5th floor. When I got to steet level I remember feeling like I was standing on a floating dock. The boss closed shop and we went to a pub down the street and watched the carnage of the tsunami unfold on TV. At one point the Minato-ku sirens went off and we were worried there might be a tsunami shooting up Tokyo Bay. Luckily there wasn't.

[gaijinpunch]

9/11: Decided to go to bed early (it was a Tuesday here) after getting fuck all done at work that week. (Huge party weekend). Was awoken at about 1AM by my boss who was in Europe telling me to be at work by 6AM. Stayed up the rest of the night watching the news, wondering if my mother (AA flight attendant) was okay, as well as my then girlfriend (who was in NYC at the time).

3/11: In my 1-room office, shitting my pants.

[Akage]

9/11 - Was catching the bus from the DC suburbs, heading for the subway, on my way to my job at The Discovery Channel. People on the bus with cell phones were whispering to other bus riders about something, but I was too busy reading a book to pay attention. Also ignored the announcements in the subway stations about unattended baggage. When the train went above ground in Maryland I noticed a column of smoke rising up from either the White House or Pentagon region... wasn't sure. When I got to my office people showed me the TV footage, and we were all sent home for the next few days. I had to stand near the door asking everybody exiting the building if I could catch a ride out to Virginia.

3/11 - In my office in Sasebo. Spent the later part of the day texting and emailing my friends in Tokyo to make sure everybody was okay. That night I made a map for my friends and family in the states to help them understand how far away from danger I was.

[Coligny]

3/11 - In my office in Sasebo. Spent the later part of the day texting and emailing my friends in Tokyo to make sure everybody was okay. That night I made a map for my friends and family in the states to help them understand how far away from danger I was.

So it was yours:

[osopolar]

9/11 - in class.. someone runs down the hall yelling a plane got hijacked.. a few of us make it to the highest part of the one of the buildings on campus and watch it all happen from a distance.. it was eerie.

3/11 - in the office, building moderately swayed (small building in Osaka) windows and door frames creaking, the works. called and checked up on family and friends here. like most was plugged into the news, and relaying information that wasn't reaching relatives back home.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

I think this map gives waaaaaaay too much credit to Mericans' global awareness....I'd be interested to know how many Mericans can actually pinpoint the U.S. on a world map.

[IparryU]

I think this map gives waaaaaaay too much credit to Mericans' global awareness....I'd be interested to know how many Mericans can actually pinpoint the U.S. on a world map.

my old boss (USMC Captain) forwarded this to everyone in the firm one day after the IT bubble just to raise some spirit and get everyone laughing again (IT bubble pop hit us hard).

Get a map infront of some Japanese kids and be amazed... they either know the globe like they made the map themselves or they can only find Japan on a Japanese map and locate Tokyo... tried this with my niece and nephews and my youngest nephew was pretty good and was making fun of his elder brothers/cousin as they were struggling with Japan, Australia, NK/SK, and China...

But Yanks in general... i mean... goddamn... how could you not know where major cuntries are...

[gaijinpunch]

But Yanks in general... i mean... goddamn... how could you not know where major cuntries are...

Have you been to America lately? You would answer your own question.

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

In all fairness, having unleashed my anti-Merican tirade following a weekend of being drenched with endless self-pity (and that by no means should suggest I condone the disgraceful actions of Sept. 11, 2011), I have severe doubts that my fellow cuntrymen Down Under would score significantly better if asked to pinpoint countries on a world map.
Sorry Mericans, but sometimes it's too hard for me to resist taking the piss....

[Greji]

In all fairness, having unleashed my anti-Merican tirade following a weekend of being drenched with endless self-pity (and that by no means should suggest I condone the disgraceful actions of Sept. 11, 2011), I have severe doubts that my fellow cuntrymen Down Under would score significantly better if asked to pinpoint countries on a world map.
Sorry Mericans, but sometimes it's too hard for me to resist taking the piss....

Completely understand Hair, you being from that cuntry marked on the map as "pussies", it's easy to understand why you don't know where the fuck you're at. For tomorrow's lesson, I will teach you what a kangaroo is and what it is not to be used for.....

[Screwed-down Hairdo]

For tomorrow's lesson, I will teach you what a kangaroo is and what it is not to be used for.....

Actually, just between you and me, I kinda like the arrangements I've currently got with Skippy & Co. You know, the old "ignorance is bliss" routine...once you work out how to get the bloody tail out of the way, of course...

[Samurai_Jerk]

I still think this map is better: