I was sitting in the parking lot at my son's elementary school with the car radio on. I had the day off from my job at United Airlines. We were going on a field trip to Cagle Dairy in Canton Georgia with our second grade kids. My neighbor and I were carpooling behind the 2 buses, as were a host of other parents.
It was a beautiful day, I was so glad I took the day off. My neighbor ran into the school to drop off something for her son before the buses loaded up. So I was alone in the car when I heard my talk radio station interrupt and say that a plane had struck the world trade tower, I knew something was wrong. The announcers said the day in New York was clear and the skies were blue. It just didn't make sense. My neighbor got back in the car and I told her what I had just heard, then the radio said a second plane hit the building... she started screaming and crying. She is from Long Island... she said do you know how many people are in those towers?
We started the caravan of parents following the two buses to the farm when parents started calling the school freaking out about wanting their kids at home. I remember feeling like if there were anywhere in the USA that was safe, it was rural Canton, GA! I felt like we should take our second graders to where it was normal and safe and they should not hear or see what was on the news.
By this time the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania had planes that had crashed and the airlines were trying to account for all their planes to see that no other's were hijacked, and had them all land.
The school had the buses turn around and headed back. The buses pulled off an exit to let everyone know the field trip would be re-scheduled, but it was being cancelled.
On the way back my tired went flat. I had picked up a nail when we pulled off the road to turn around, I guess. I got the spare on, dropped my neighbor back, at the school and went to get my tire repaired at Dallas Tire.
I sat in the Dallas Tire waiting room watching the footage of the planes hitting the buildings again and again on the TV... people running from the falling tower's dust and debris, the first responders and all the chaos. A truly HORRIBLE day.