Reports on friends in the NYC area

**MightyLady77** · September 12th, 2001, 06:32 PM

For those of you who, like me, cannot donate blood for medical reasons, please consider a cash donation to the American Red Cross to help with disaster relief.

The Red Cross will be providing many services over the next few days, weeks and months. All of those services have a cost. We can help by donating money.

Please take a few minutes to call the American Red Cross at 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669). If you have trouble getting through, call your local chapter of the American Red Cross and ask to make a financial donation. They can take a donation over the phone if you use a credit card or check card.

***copied from Top Five list***

RED CROSS DONATIONS

* If you have a PayPal account, send your donation to [email protected], or visit http://www.paypal.com

* You can make a donation by credit card at Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/paypage/PKAXFNQH7EKCX

* You can also pay by credit card at the Red Cross website https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation-form.asp (This site seems to be working about half the time.)
***end copied text***

Your money can help fund food and shelter or cover the cost of, collecting, storing and transporting blood. Please consider helping the Red Cross with a donation.

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MightyLady of the Flame Red Hair
Love is blind, but friendship is clairvoyant.

[This message has been edited by MightyLady77 (edited September 12, 2001).]

**Sycamore Evenstar** · September 13th, 2001, 12:21 AM

Per Bee, glad your day ended with a soft bed, Polly. Hope your apt isn't too much of a mess.

As far as I know my family is OK. My one cousin is a psych social worker who can be anyplace at any given time. She is volunteering at the Red Cross tonight for Crisis/Grief Counseling from 9PM til 9AM--unless she gets pulled for morgue duty. She is experienced, but hates that job...

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**PollyMath** · September 13th, 2001, 12:52 AM

Dear Everyone,

I just lost a huge post that I was typing. I can't face redoing it right now. Let me just say that I am home. There isn't any debris, but it smells like burning. I have closed all my windows in case the direction of the wind changes. There are huge billowing clouds of dust/smoke coming out of the spot where the towers used to be. The dust is contaminated with asbestos, but there has been a notice from the city that it isn't dangerous to breath. I'm still relieved that it is blowing elsewhere.

I called to ask about donating blood, but the hospital said not to come. I agree with Bee about donating money to the Red Cross. Let me add any local agency you have that provides grief counseling.

As for friends and family, well, my family is elsewhere. They are worried about me, but I don't have to worry about them, thank God. They are all saying over and over again that they are so glad I don't work in NYC anymore.

My particular friend who worked at the World Trade Center is fine. I got the e-mail this morning and burst into hysterical sobbing. It was a bit of a relief to be able to cry.

My synagogue has at least one member who is missing, but I don't recognize the name. I hope he is safe somewhere. The office is calling to cofirm the safety of every single member. I am glad to be part of such a caring community. I don't know how we are going to face the holiday next week. Together, I guess.

I am sure that I have lost other friends and collegues. There were a lot of offices in those towers. I may get a list from my law school in the next few weeks or months about classmates.

And, one of the buildings that is now feared to be falling, One Liberty Plaza, is a former office building of mine. I only worked there for a summer, and certainly no one died from there, but who knows what will be happening to the firm and therefore, all their jobs.

I went out to the mall across the street and picked up a few American flags. It isn't really like me to be plastering symbols like that on my windows, but I needed to do something, or rather, to say something. I have one in each of my three windows and a spare that I might take to the office. As I was carrying them home a couple stopped me to ask where I bought the flags. I wonder what the building would look like with flags in every window.

OK. Just wanted to let you know what was up. I hope I can sleep tonight. And I hope all of you can sleep tonight too.

[This message has been edited by PollyMath (edited September 12, 2001).]

**PollyMath** · September 14th, 2001, 01:36 PM

Hi, everyone.

I just wanted to give you an update.

First of all, Bee, you missed me by a few minutes last night. I arrived home soon after you left your message. I tried to call you several times, but the cicuits were over loaded. It is happening a lot these days.

I am about the same. I can't sleep. I can fall asleep, but I can't stay there. Four hours of dosing and waking are about all I have managed the past three nights. I am very very tired. I tend to weep at odd times, but quietly now.

Yesterday, I finally was given an opportunity to do something useful. My new employers are making a huge lump sum donation to the relief efforts. In addition they will match each dollar that the employees donate. Every country where we operate is also setting up a matching program for employee donations. Since we have about 450,000 employees worldwide, this is a very big commitment.

In order to make all this as efficient as possible, we are setting up a public charity (a separate legal entity) in the US to make it all happen. I have been asked to help with the set up. It was made my first priority - I was told to dump everything else to do this. I was in a meeting all yesterday afternoon. I am going back to my work on the project in just a few moments.

Other than that, you should know that the rain here is a real downpour. It must be a mess in the debris. It has washed the dust out of the air, but now it must be like, well, wet cement. I cracked open my windows, because blowing dust isn't an issue now, but it would have been better for the rescue/demolition workers if this hadn't happened.

I kind of feel a cold coming on. Maybe it is just allergies. My sprained wrist hurts more than it did. My back hurts a little. I have some weird impulses like going food shopping at 9:30 at night. Perhaps having a lot of food in the house is a protective thing, though I'm not very hungry. I felt a need to bring food and a t-shirt into the office in case I get stuck here again (very unlikely). I don't understand these impulses, but I'm just giving in to them. They seem harmless enough.

Well, back to the relief fund work. Talk to you all again soon.

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**Nommy** · September 14th, 2001, 02:48 PM

God Bless all those families and friends lost to this cowardly act of terrorism.

Gos Bless America, please!

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Nommy

**MightyLady77** · September 14th, 2001, 03:00 PM

I've just spent several hours catching up with the posts at Groucho's Babylon5 Calvacade, a yahoo club where many of my online friends from the old comlink chatroom at thestation.com hang out.

One of my friends there has written a series of posts under the title of Catharsis. It is a very moving and poignant description of his experiences Tuesday. JDS works at 1 Chase Manhattan Plaza, 3 blocks from WTC and he was heading up to street level from the PATH train terminal below the WTC when the first plane hit the north tower. His account is well worth reading as he is, as always, an eloquent writer.

I'm glad to know that he has physically survived. I pray that he recovers emotionally.

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MightyLady of the Flame Red Hair
Love is blind, but friendship is clairvoyant.

[This message has been edited by MightyLady77 (edited September 14, 2001).]

[This message has been edited by MightyLady77 (edited September 14, 2001).]

[This message has been edited by MightyLady77 (edited September 14, 2001).]

**Lyta Alexander** · September 14th, 2001, 09:40 PM

I AM THE FLAG OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

I am the flag of the United States of America.
My name is Old Glory.
I fly atop the world's tallest buildings.
I stand watch in America's halls of justice.
I fly majestically over institutions of learning.
I stand guard with power in the world.
Look up and see me.

I stand for peace, honor, truth and justice.
I stand for freedom.
I am confident.
I am arrogant.
I am proud.

When I am flown with my fellow banners, my head is a little higher, my colors a little truer.

I bow to no one!

I am recognized all over the world.
I am worshipped - I am saluted.
I am loved - I am revered.
I am respected - and I am feared.

I have fought in every battle of every war for more than 200 years.

I was flown at Valley Forge, Gettysburg, Shiloh and Appomattox. I was there at San Juan Hill, the trenches of France, in the Argonne Forest, Anzio, Rome and the beaches of Normandy, Guam, Okinawa, Korea and KheSan, Saigon, Vietnam know me, I was there.

I led my troops, I was dirty, battleworn and tired, but my soldiers cheered me And I was proud.

I have been burned, torn and trampled on the streets of countries I have helped set free. It does not hurt, for I am invincible.

I have been soiled upon, burned, torn and trampled on the streets of my country.

And when it's by those whom I've served in battle - it hurts. But I shall overcome - forI am strong.

I have slipped the bonds of Earth and stood watch over the uncharted frontiers of space from my vantage point on the moon.

I have borne silent witness to all of America's finest hours. But my finest hours are yet to come.

When I am torn into strips and used as bandages for my wounded comrades on the battlefield, When I am flown at half-mast to honor my soldier, Or when I lie in the trembling arms of a grieving parent at the grave of their fallen son or daughter, I am proud.

MY NAME IS OLD GLORY LONG MAY I WAVE.
DEAR GOD IN HEAVEN..LONG MAY I WAVE.

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author unknown

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**Wizz** · September 14th, 2001, 10:29 PM

<font face = "georgia">
Published Wednesday, September 12, 2001
The Miami Herald
Leonard Pitts

We'll go forward from this moment

It's my job to have something to say.

They pay me to provide words that help make sense of that which troubles the American soul. But in this moment of airless shock when hot tears sting disbelieving eyes, the only thing I can find to say, the only words that seem to fit, must be addressed to the unknown author of this suffering.

You monster. You beast. You unspeakable bastard.
What lesson did you hope to teach us by your coward's attack on our World Trade Center, our Pentagon, us? What was it you hoped we would learn? Whatever it was, please know that you failed.

Did you want us to respect your cause? You just damned your cause.
Did you want to make us fear? You just steeled our resolve.
Did you want to tear us apart? You just brought us together.

Let me tell you about my people. We are a vast and quarrelsome family, a family rent by racial, social, political and class division, but a family nonetheless. We're frivolous, yes, capable of expending tremendous emotional energy on pop cultural minutiae -- a singer's revealing dress, a ball team's misfortune, a cartoon mouse. We're wealthy, too, spoiled by the ready availability of trinkets and material goods, and maybe because of that, we walk through life with a certain sense of blithe entitlement. We are fundamentally decent, though -- peace-loving and compassionate. We struggle to know the right thing and to do it. And we are, the overwhelming majority of us, people of faith, believers in a just and loving God.

Some people -- you, perhaps -- think that any or all of this makes us weak. You're mistaken. We are not weak. Indeed, we are strong in ways that cannot be measured by arsenals.

IN PAIN
Yes, we're in pain now. We are in mourning and we are in shock. We're still grappling with the unreality of the awful thing you did, still working to make ourselves understand that this isn't a special effect from some Hollywood blockbuster, isn't the plot development from a Tom Clancy novel. Both in terms of the awful scope of their ambition and the probable final death toll, your attacks are likely to go down as the worst acts of terrorism in the history of the United States and probably, the history of the world. You've bloodied us as we have never been bloodied before. But there's a gulf of difference between making us bloody and making us fall. This is the lesson Japan was taught to its bitter sorrow the last time anyone hit us this hard, the last time anyone brought us such abrupt and monumental pain. When roused, we are righteous in our outrage, terrible in our force. When provoked by this level of barbarism, we will bear any suffering, pay any cost, go to any length, in the pursuit of justice.

I tell you this without fear of contradiction. I know my people, as you, I think, do not. What I know reassures me. It also causes me to tremble with dread of the future. In the days to come, there will be recrimination and accusation; fingers pointing to determine whose failure allowed this to happen and what can be done to prevent it from happening again. There will be heightened security, misguided talk of revoking basic freedoms. We'll go forward from this moment sobered, chastened, sad. But determined, too.
Unimaginably determined.

THE STEEL IN US
You see, the steel in us is not always readily apparent. People who don't know us well seldom understand that aspect of our character. On this day, the family's bickering is put on hold. As Americans we will weep, as Americans we will mourn, and as Americans, we will rise in defense of all that we cherish. So I ask again: What was it you hoped to teach us? It occurs to me that maybe you just wanted us to know the depths of your hatred. If that's the case, consider the message received. And take this message in exchange: You don't know my people. You don't know what we're capable of.

You don't know what you just started.

But you're about to learn.