Annie
Diamond Member
- Nov 22, 2003
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Good god, seems like a couple of months ago. I remember EXACTLY what I was doing that day.
I had only been back to school about a week and a half, full time. That summer preceding, I'd spent in Los Angeles, CA at a grad class for teaching the Constitution. The summer had been SO boring newswise. I'd planned that we were going to 'debate' the electoral college, considering the recent election results. We'd started, the Wednesday, before the Tuesday....
It was the summer of Gary Conduit and Monica's handbags. Also, maybe only of atttention to me, being in CA while my folks and kids were in Chicago area, of the 'deaths from heat' in Chicago. (the next year, France would far eclipse the Chicago problems.)
That particular Tuesday, I'd gotten to school about 6am. Turned on my 'puters and checked the news. Turned on the television, but wasn't 'really watching.' Around 7, went outside, a beautiful day! It was so wonderful, clear blue sky, that one couldn't help to appreciate. I thought it a beautiful day, good enough to 'ditch' school. I even thought to myself, IF I DIDN'T HAVE TO TEACH, I'D WANT TO GO TO THE ARBORETUM AND LOOK FOR SIGNS OF FALL...'
Around 7:30, went into classroom to get ready for the day. Students started filtering in, some for 'jobs', others for 'help.' About 7:50, there was a 'boiiiing' from the computer. (They knew, (meaning the kids,) we are friends, she'd been a teacher at this school, before me.) The kids called my attention to: "Hey, Mrs. R is calling you out." I responded to the IM, which was, "Turn your tv to CNN, something is going on at WTC." "Tell me what the F is going on..." Truth to tell, I didn't know what the WTC was...but I did as my friend asked, she didn't have access to tv, she'd heard the beginning on radio on her way to school. There I was, with 3, 8th graders and 2, 7th graders, watching the first tower burning, while CNN said a 'small plane' reportedly hit...I was im'ing my friend, when one of the kids screamed, Ms. D! look! We watched the 2nd plane hit. I said, "Oh, shit!"
Up to this point, I'd been 'reassuring' the kids, that we 'didn't know what was going on' perhaps it was a pilot that had 'gotten lost' or 'had a heart attack.' With this, no excuses, war! Attack! Told friend and why I was signing off. Turned off TV and went for principal. School hadn't started, the bulk of the kids were still outside, she told me to gather the middle schoolers and turn on tv, but close my doors. Take other middle school teachers with me, but I should lead. They were happy to defer. We watched the Pentagon, and Penn get 'hit.'
Some of the lower grade parents came and got their kids, the school is less than 2 miles from an O'Hare runway. The Middle schoolers watched the news til school was dismissed, at 2:40. The 4th grade teacher, against principal's directive, also kept tv on, many of those kids were seriously affected by what they saw. They were too young and the teacher could not reassure them adequately. The rest of the 'little teachers' 5th down to preschool, went about their regular day, I don't know how, but they did. I think they had the harder time, as some of the parents came to get their children and the teachers knew what had happened, though they knew nothing about what was going on from 8 am until lunch at 11:30. I knew, up to the minute what was going on.
At home, I had my parents, my Mom's 24 hour nurse, my older son and daughter in college and my youngest son in freshman year of HS. I'd called the high school, to make sure they were keeping the school opened, they were. I figured the kids were ok. Seems the colleges cancelled classes, advising the students to watch tv. The younger was brought into a hall, with other freshman and led by SS teachers and deans/advisors. They too, watched tv all day.
I figured my MOM, after several strokes, couldn't understand, but I was wrong. I came into my home, at 3pm, to find her holding her sobbing Ukrainania nurse, telling her, "Don't cry, we'll get those sons of bitches!" To see a 65 pound, sick, old lady tell a 30 year old woman that the US was strong enough to deal with the suckers that had attacked us, was a bit too much, but reassuring, I guess kinda like me with the middle schoolers,
. My dad, well he avoided all the news, my mom and her nurse's crying-typical male, he was fine, while avoiding the upset. When I got home, I got to hold my mom and her nurse. Not good, after comforting umpteenth teens. The three of us held each other as the news replayed the days events.
The next day at school, we went on...Instead of electoral college, we dealt with national ID's, a hot topic at the time in January 2002....
I had only been back to school about a week and a half, full time. That summer preceding, I'd spent in Los Angeles, CA at a grad class for teaching the Constitution. The summer had been SO boring newswise. I'd planned that we were going to 'debate' the electoral college, considering the recent election results. We'd started, the Wednesday, before the Tuesday....
It was the summer of Gary Conduit and Monica's handbags. Also, maybe only of atttention to me, being in CA while my folks and kids were in Chicago area, of the 'deaths from heat' in Chicago. (the next year, France would far eclipse the Chicago problems.)
That particular Tuesday, I'd gotten to school about 6am. Turned on my 'puters and checked the news. Turned on the television, but wasn't 'really watching.' Around 7, went outside, a beautiful day! It was so wonderful, clear blue sky, that one couldn't help to appreciate. I thought it a beautiful day, good enough to 'ditch' school. I even thought to myself, IF I DIDN'T HAVE TO TEACH, I'D WANT TO GO TO THE ARBORETUM AND LOOK FOR SIGNS OF FALL...'
Around 7:30, went into classroom to get ready for the day. Students started filtering in, some for 'jobs', others for 'help.' About 7:50, there was a 'boiiiing' from the computer. (They knew, (meaning the kids,) we are friends, she'd been a teacher at this school, before me.) The kids called my attention to: "Hey, Mrs. R is calling you out." I responded to the IM, which was, "Turn your tv to CNN, something is going on at WTC." "Tell me what the F is going on..." Truth to tell, I didn't know what the WTC was...but I did as my friend asked, she didn't have access to tv, she'd heard the beginning on radio on her way to school. There I was, with 3, 8th graders and 2, 7th graders, watching the first tower burning, while CNN said a 'small plane' reportedly hit...I was im'ing my friend, when one of the kids screamed, Ms. D! look! We watched the 2nd plane hit. I said, "Oh, shit!"
Up to this point, I'd been 'reassuring' the kids, that we 'didn't know what was going on' perhaps it was a pilot that had 'gotten lost' or 'had a heart attack.' With this, no excuses, war! Attack! Told friend and why I was signing off. Turned off TV and went for principal. School hadn't started, the bulk of the kids were still outside, she told me to gather the middle schoolers and turn on tv, but close my doors. Take other middle school teachers with me, but I should lead. They were happy to defer. We watched the Pentagon, and Penn get 'hit.'
Some of the lower grade parents came and got their kids, the school is less than 2 miles from an O'Hare runway. The Middle schoolers watched the news til school was dismissed, at 2:40. The 4th grade teacher, against principal's directive, also kept tv on, many of those kids were seriously affected by what they saw. They were too young and the teacher could not reassure them adequately. The rest of the 'little teachers' 5th down to preschool, went about their regular day, I don't know how, but they did. I think they had the harder time, as some of the parents came to get their children and the teachers knew what had happened, though they knew nothing about what was going on from 8 am until lunch at 11:30. I knew, up to the minute what was going on.
At home, I had my parents, my Mom's 24 hour nurse, my older son and daughter in college and my youngest son in freshman year of HS. I'd called the high school, to make sure they were keeping the school opened, they were. I figured the kids were ok. Seems the colleges cancelled classes, advising the students to watch tv. The younger was brought into a hall, with other freshman and led by SS teachers and deans/advisors. They too, watched tv all day.
I figured my MOM, after several strokes, couldn't understand, but I was wrong. I came into my home, at 3pm, to find her holding her sobbing Ukrainania nurse, telling her, "Don't cry, we'll get those sons of bitches!" To see a 65 pound, sick, old lady tell a 30 year old woman that the US was strong enough to deal with the suckers that had attacked us, was a bit too much, but reassuring, I guess kinda like me with the middle schoolers,
. My dad, well he avoided all the news, my mom and her nurse's crying-typical male, he was fine, while avoiding the upset. When I got home, I got to hold my mom and her nurse. Not good, after comforting umpteenth teens. The three of us held each other as the news replayed the days events.The next day at school, we went on...Instead of electoral college, we dealt with national ID's, a hot topic at the time in January 2002....
