It's over......................

I know it's not really over, it will never be really over, but today.......today something amazing happened.

They finished One World Trade!

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/05/10/world-trade-center-spire/2149449/

................................

It was a beautiful morning, I, as usual overslept. When I finally made it out the door I rang the office.

"Good Morning Gene"

"Morning Tat"

"I'm running a little late"

"No worries (everyone wonders where I get that, its from him), take your time"

The weather was amazing. New York has these beautiful fall days. It's cold, but not freezing. The sky can be clear and bright and so blue. The sun beams and the clouds speed by. This was one of those mornings. As I hoofed along Astoria Blvd to the N train I turned up the radio. The headphones permanently attached to my ears hummed along. I liked to listen to morning radio, Elvis Duran to be exact (they just brought his morning show to Atlanta, its a really stupid morning show but I was only 31 so cut me some slack).
As I climbed the stairs to the elevated platform with some stupid bit blathering in my ears, something happened.

The DJ stopped talking and stated a plane has just hit the World Trade Center. I looked to my left, downtown Manhattan was just beyond my view but I could see smoke. I boarded the train and called Gene.
My office was on Park Ave South, it faced downtown, my window had a direct view of the towers.

"Gene!"
"Everything is ok, it's a horrible accident but everything is ok"
"Ok, have you called SCOR?" (our largest client on the 23rd floor of Two World Trade)
"Not yet"
"Ok, I'll call from the train"
"see you in a minute"
"see you"

And that's what it was, a horrible accident. Planes hit buildings in NY. They just do, it's horrible but it happens.

I continued on the train dialing the Scor offices with no success.
Good, they are probably evacuating, just as a precaution.
As the train turned into Queensboro I could finally see the towers. There was a gaping hole and smoke was pouring out, this was not a small plane, this was a really bad accident.
Then it happened......................
an explosion or something.............................
I didn't know, but fire shot out of the other tower.
I'm sure there was reaction of the people around me but I don't recall that. I just remember the words in my headphones. It was John Bell, he was a DJ, he said
"A second plane has just hit the World Trade Center............
this is no accident...............we are under attack"

The train was moving toward the tunnel, a sudden panic came over me as I realized what was happening but there was nothing I could do.
I sat there and breathed and looked out the window.
As we entered the tunnel to Manhattan the view outside went black and the voices on my headphones turned to static.