09-08-2020, 01:41 PM
I was on a job site in a big building downtown (Cincinnati). It was my last year of college and I took a part time job as a helper for Heating and Air Co. that I did on my days off from school (Tues and Thurs).
It was pretty wild, as this place was being completely remodeled, so there was no one in this huge building expect about 20 guys working in different areas. Obviously there weren't any TV's nearby.
One trades guy from another company had a small radio, and he was basically relaying back any news or updates to the various people working. But everyone kind of had there own stuff to do, and you had about 4 different companies there doing misc stuff (HVAC, Electrical, Carpenters). So you didn't really know anyone other than the people you worked with. It's not like we could all just huddle around this dude's radio all day.
So I really didn't know a whole lot until I got home that night. Obviously I knew the initial plane hit, and then the 2nd. But there were so many different reports relayed back (2nd and 3rd hand) about maybe the Pentagon being hit, etc., that you didn't really know what was what.
I often think back to that day just as a reminder of how much the world has changed. I couldn't really follow or understand what was happening until about 6 o'clock that night. At that time I had a cell phone that was basically used for emergencies only that I kept in the car. There were no smartphones or texts, or any of that.
It's really strange to think about now, just how disconnected we really were. Probably the biggest story of my entire life and I spent a good 8 hours not being able to follow it. What I knew was relayed back to me from some dude i didn't know, who was listening on a battery powered radio, a floor up from me.
Obviously when I got home that's all we watched. I still lived at home with mom, who's now passed. Thinking back, the best word to describe all of it was surreal. It really felt like a day that was pulled right out of dream.
It was pretty wild, as this place was being completely remodeled, so there was no one in this huge building expect about 20 guys working in different areas. Obviously there weren't any TV's nearby.
One trades guy from another company had a small radio, and he was basically relaying back any news or updates to the various people working. But everyone kind of had there own stuff to do, and you had about 4 different companies there doing misc stuff (HVAC, Electrical, Carpenters). So you didn't really know anyone other than the people you worked with. It's not like we could all just huddle around this dude's radio all day.
So I really didn't know a whole lot until I got home that night. Obviously I knew the initial plane hit, and then the 2nd. But there were so many different reports relayed back (2nd and 3rd hand) about maybe the Pentagon being hit, etc., that you didn't really know what was what.
I often think back to that day just as a reminder of how much the world has changed. I couldn't really follow or understand what was happening until about 6 o'clock that night. At that time I had a cell phone that was basically used for emergencies only that I kept in the car. There were no smartphones or texts, or any of that.
It's really strange to think about now, just how disconnected we really were. Probably the biggest story of my entire life and I spent a good 8 hours not being able to follow it. What I knew was relayed back to me from some dude i didn't know, who was listening on a battery powered radio, a floor up from me.
Obviously when I got home that's all we watched. I still lived at home with mom, who's now passed. Thinking back, the best word to describe all of it was surreal. It really felt like a day that was pulled right out of dream.
