“I got on the subway at 9:15am, and one woman on my uptown B train told me she saw a plane fly into the world trade center. I didn’t understand—I thought it was perhaps a small plane, and it clipped the top. At the next stop a man got in who had also seen it, and he was a bit more descriptive. He didn’t know there had been two planes, but he described the explosions, the smoke, people running down the streets, so I knew it had to be serious. When I got to work I watched the towers on TV—it was horrifying. But something still didn’t click, as I still turned on my computer, and opened a pack of instant oatmeal as if it were any normal morning. Patrick, Amy Gross’s assistant, counted how many of us were there (seven), and debated whether we should go home. When we heard the Pentagon was also hit, we all ran for the elevator.
I walked home at around ten. It was a strange walk because some people had heard and some had not. The ones who hadn’t heard were laughing, eating, taking pictures of Times Square. The ones who had had the same dazed look on their faces. Trucks were at the side of the road, blasting the news on the radio for people to hear.
When I got home, I realized that right next to the Empire State Building may not be where I should be, so I grabbed my cell phone and headed uptown toward Central Park, where I figured I would be safe. I walked up Fifth Avenue. At about 40th St, another explosion sounded. I looked into the street and noticed two women crying—one blond woman about my age who was shaking and hysterical, and one older, classy-looking woman who was wailing up to the sky, “Why, God?” I led the former to the sidewalk and hugged her. She didn’t know anyone in the towers, she was just scared. She walked with me for a while, and then we decided to go to her friend’s house, which was on 38th and 2nd. Her name is Sarah, an actress who had just acted in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. She bummed a cigarette from a stranger and we shared it, proving how nervous I was.
At her friend’s house I called Jake and arranged to meet him at his place. I also saw the news—both towers had collapsed in that time—and had a much-needed cup of coffee. Sarah and I exchanged numbers, and I started for Jake’s.
It was a long walk to West 3rd. Every few minutes there would be a person totally covered in powdery white soot, and I had a perfect view of the ominous gray clouds. The sound of sirens was everywhere, and a constant stream of cop cars and fire trucks headed downtown. Once in a while there would be someone crying or running.”
