Wait…Planes Hit The World Trade Center?
It’s weird to look back on the twenty years since 9/11. It’s even weirder to think that I know people that don't remember what life was like before.

I was a 21 year old university student. That morning, I was supposed to be reading for class, but fell asleep. When I woke up, there was a small rock group performing and I really liked them. I remember that one of the guitarists played some really cool slide guitar riffs, on a few songs. Then, all of a sudden, the music stopped. I remember thinking, “What the fuck?! The music was just getting good.”

So I was trying to return to my reading, when I began hearing that “planes crashed into the World Trade Center.” Maybe, my brain was a little drowsy still, but it just didn’t make any sense. I honestly thought that it had to be a small private plane. Did it get lost? How could they not see The World Trade Center? I think that a TV was tuned to the news, when I, finally, realized that…no…these were huge passenger planes.

I remember calling home on a payphone and I might have had to borrow some change to call. As was his habit, my dad had the news on and confirmed that a large passenger plan did crash into The World Trade Center. I vaguely remember everyone around me just look at each other with looks that screamed, “What the hell is going on?!” This wasn’t something that just happened. Was this another Pearl Harbor?

I remember going to class. The university decided not to close because they felt that it would be better to stay, so that we could be there for each other. I mean how do you go to class without wondering if there would be further attacks? Many students, including me, were pissed off that the university didn’t close. In hindsight, I could have gone home. However, there were instructors that used attendance to calculate final grades. Since I was a very average university student, I didn’t feel that I could afford to lose points, so I stayed.

I couldn’t tell you what it was like to finally get home. At that time, I had yet to get a phone. I can only imagine how both my parents and I were relieved that I was home. Between not knowing what was going and going to class that day, there truly was no place like home.

So What’s Next?
For a little while after the 9/11 attacks, I remember that there was a lot of uncertainty. For example, around that time, I was working in Lincoln Park. One day, I went to work after class. A co-worker told me, “I heard that there were riots in Dearborn.” I looked at her and said, “No…there weren’t. I just came from class. Everything’s fine.” I don’t remember hearing this very much, but this was just an example.

If not on the day of the attacks or maybe a few days later, I remember a buddy hanging out between our classes and one of us said something about the draft. As a history student (my minor), I couldn’t help but compare 9/11 to Pearl Harbor. Back in 1941, we were attacked; then, we declared war; and, the draft followed. Would the same thing happen? Now, we know that it didn’t, but we still worried.

Here We Remember
About two years ago, I made what has been my only trip to NYC. My wife and I went to a few different places. One of them was The 9/11 Memorial & Museum.

I wouldn’t say that I looked forward to going, but I felt that I had to go. With having watched footage over the years (usually around the anniversary), I expected that it would be a heavy experience. However, I had no idea exactly how heavy that it would be.

As my wife and I made our way through the museum, I made it a point to see each piece and read the accompanying plaque or description. The photo slideshow, at the top of this post, is of photos that I took. They included a melted firetruck and a piece of staircase used during the evacuations.

I’m a guy that can openly show my feelings, so it’s not like my wife has never seen me tear up or cry. However, this was an entirely different situation. Little by little, I could feel things getting to me. Eventually, I started sobbing. I made sure not to make a scene, but my wife asked, “Are you okay?” I supposed that I was as “okay” as I could have be. As emotionally challenging as it was, I was able to complete my visit.

So, while I may recommend for people to visit The 9/11 Memorial & Museum, I would, also, warn them that it’s can be an emotionally charged experience. Consider that I wasn’t directly affected by those day’s events.

Over The Last 20 Years
In hindsight, I’m old enough to remember how things were prior to 9/11. Here are a few examples:

Prior to to a flight, you used to be able to go up to the gate to say goodbye. My folks did this back in 1997, when I went on my first flight (10 day trip to France and England).
Prior to a few incidents not limited to Richard “The Shoe Bomber” Reid, prior to boarding, you didn’t have to take to take off your shoes.
The emergence and/or importance of databases and some of their flaws: For example, there is something called the National Drivers Register. I just found out that it was created in 1982. Back in 2008, when I went into a MI Secretary of State office to renew my license, I found out that I was unable to because of a suspended license in New York. No…I have never lived in New York nor tried to get a license there. While some other guy with my name, middle initial, last name and same last four of my SSN in NY (this doesn’t sound like any fraud or identity theft) is the one with the suspended license, I had to write to the NY DMV to get a letter essentially saying that I’m not that guy. I still haven’t been able to clear this up. Since then, every time that I need to renew or replace my license, I carry the letter from the NY DMV. Once, another state (where I have never resided) came up. Typically, the processes dealing with my license, requires calling somewhere in Lansing.

Getting “randomly selected” to be searched at the border: This isn’t usually so bad, when I fly, but it usually is when crossing the US-Canada border. In the beginning, after running my passport through their system, the vehicle, where I’ve been a passenger, has been asked to pull over presumably to be searched. One of the first times involved an overzealous agent giving my wife the third-degree over a CA license plate on the front of her car (irrelevant in MI, which only requires a valid rear license plate, which she did had; she used to live in CA, which did require license plates on the front and rear).

On my very last time returning from Canada, my wife, son and I were detained on the Detroit side of The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. I kid you not, when I say that for my situation, I think that maybe half a dozen agents were involved. There was one agent at a computer with our documents but other agents came over (maybe to help?). Nobody told me what was going on. I was hardly asked any questions, which may have helped clear me faster. When I knew that I was cleared and released, I asked the one agent, if there was anything that I could do, since this kept happening and wasted everyone’s time. I don’t remember that they said anything viable. I do vividly remember him saying that, if they really thought that I “was the guy” that they would have drawn guns: a very close paraphrase. I just thought, “Good God. I’m glad that it didn’t happen, so that I didn’t have to explain to my son why Daddy “randomly“ gets extra attention.” As you can imagine, after hearing what that agent said, I stopped entering Canada because I’m not only afraid of guns being drawn or that I, erroneously, wouldn’t be allowed to return or deportation proceedings initiated. After all, I’ve been dealing with this for around 14-15 years and nobody’s been able to find me a viable solution nor permanently note whatever file that I may have indicating that I’m not the other guy.

Where Do We Go Now?
So, this has been an interesting twenty years. On the rare occasion that I compared stories with co-workers or acquaintances, it’s fascinating, when they say how they were in elementary school or that they were a little kid. I envy them because, most likely, they don’t remember much about 9/11. In my lifetime, I remember the Oklahoma City Bombing, the Columbine High School Massacre and now the 9/11 Attacks. So, while I don’t live in a state of perpetual fear, my reality is one of possible building evacuations, school lockdown drills (now, my son has had to do them) and additional security steps when travelling. For those of us old enough to remember, life isn’t as carefree as we remember.

I can’t discuss the various repercussions or consequences stemming from 9/11 because it’s not something that I feel qualified. However, in this post, I wanted to share my story and a bit about how I’ve seen that life has changed and how I’ve been indirectly impacted.

In closing, I’d like to share something that I remember shortly after the attacks. I remember that, no matter where many of us were on the political spectrum, we were united in our collective trauma. We were Americans. I see, where we are now and think of how far apart we are now. I wonder if that togetherness was ever real. Even if it wasn’t, how much better would our world be if we had that?

WHAT DO WE HAVE TO SHOW FOR THESE 20 YEARS?

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