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My daughter had a homework project in the 5th grade - Interview someone you know about 9/11. (She was born in 2004) -- The day was very normal. The day before was even more normal. I went in a little early on Tuesday though. I had a meeting with my manager about my staff. Someone opened the door to our meeting. That was NOT usual. No one ever opened the door to a meeting, but this time they did. "Go to the roof, you won't believe what's happening. A plane flew into the World Financial Center!" My mom, your grandma, worked in the WFC. That was scary. I went to the roof. Like everyone who heard the news my first thought was - Why did a Cessna (a small 2 to 4 person plane) fly into the World Financial Center? When I got to the roof I was relieved for a moment because it was the World TRADE Center. The hole was really big. I was on 14th street and that hole looked huge. How could a Cessna make such a big hole? I wasn't relieved anymore. I realized something really bad happened. I had the idea that your grandma was probably OK down there so I started to worry about work. I worked for a Travel Agency. I worried about that, and our internet connection. I tried to call your mom. She was on a train INTO the city. She was giving a class at the Empire State Building teaching a program called Power Point. Your mom hadn't been in the city for a while. She was mostly working on Long Island. She picked some day to come in! The cellphone network was completely saturated. Everyone was trying to call someone. All the phones were messed up. With your mom over 20 blocks away I made my way to the street. I saw Kenny, your brother's Godfather, and I handed him my phone. I said, "Kenny call my mom, and Lynda until you get them. I'll be back in a while." I wanted to get to your grandma downtown. Even though she wasn't in the World Trade Center, I was worried. Kenny promised to keep calling. Plus, I probably threatened to fire him! As I walked downtown all the cars were stopped. Some police were moving, and some fire trucks but everyone else stopped. They were all listening to Howard Stern. I remember thinking that was weird, why weren't they listening to news radio? Howard Stern was saying, "You know who did this. You know!" I remember thinking, "I have no idea. Why would a private plane fly into a building?" Then I saw the second plane slam into World Trade Center Two. I started running. I got to about Chambers Street. That's about half a mile and the NYPD would not let anyone past. I figured out how to get around them. They kept saying, "You're going the wrong way!" I had to get to my mom, and my dad! (And "crazy" Uncle Richie - they were all right there.) Kenny got your mom on the cell phone somehow. They both decided that with all that was going on the Empire State Building could be next so mom made her way to my office. I was pretty close to the towers when one fell. It was a horrible noise. It sounded like screaming. It was just the worst sound you ever heard and then it was white. I had no idea where I was, or if I was even alive. You couldn't see anything, you couldn't breathe and it was quiet. The weirdest quiet you ever heard. As it cleared the screaming started. The sirens started. I was sure everyone I knew down there was dead. I didn't know what to do. You couldn't go any further. Then the people started running uptown. I ran with them. I didn't know what else to do. Grandma had put all her employees on a ferry just before the tower fell. Then she was covered in the dust. She's really small. Some people ran over her. They never saw her. She had a huge boot print on her chest and shoulder. A very big person had trampled her. She got up and started running with everyone else. She made it up to us on 14th. Your mom was there, I was there and then finally grandma. Your grandpa Tom stayed 7 stories below 1 Wall Street where his job at Bank of New York was. He got a commendation a few weeks later for being some of the people who kept the ATM systems running the whole time 9/11 was happening. We all went home later that afternoon on the Long Island Railroad. They had to run it, there was no other way out of the city. We got your brother from Carol, Kenny's mom, she picked him up. The city was empty for days after 9/11. Mayor Giuliani asked everyone to stay home. I went in on the 13th anyway. The thing no one really talks about is how the city smelled. It was a weird smell. It was like electricity and death. That's what it smelled like. Like a toy train set and a dead cat. It was really bad. I couldn't do any work. No planes were flying. No ships were sailing. The whole country seemed stranded. Your Grandma Elizabeth and Grandpa Sal were at our house for weeks. I went to the city every day and helped the Red Cross set up networks, and computers at Chelsea Piers. It wasn't until days later we realized that there was no one to rescue and no one needed blood. Everyone in those buildings who didn't get out, was dead. That's hard to even write. But that was 9/11. That's how it was for me.

I recently learned that Steely Dan did not write a song about Morley Safer nor did they implore him to "take me by the hand." Don't care, still hate Steely Dan.

Did a thing today...

Oh, you were telling us the date you were going to fail your team and get kicked out of the playoffs.

With @RippleFiber down I’ve become something of an engineer with my @Starlink mini

Pedal Board 072026

. @vurnt22 still inspiring me

It feels like the only person not talking about @CaitlinClark22 is Caitlin Clark

Me all week

Do you remember what a banger this theme song was? youtu.be/s6gNo4-1r6k?is=LtFu…

My wife when I've been scrolling and laughing for two days

I’m very happy for your recent success @elonmusk but I could really use that 1.6 million you owe me.

We should just start laughing at them. #everyone

Mythos is not a bad name for a model but it would be better if Anthropic switched to using famous Claudes. Monet, Debussy etc. The final model that achieves AGI would obviously be Van Damme

Mac SE/30 booting up youtu.be/8rxcfxDSAoM?si=tX7y…

Republican women - Tammy Faye Bakker was a warning not an aspiration. #lessismore