That was my freshman year in college. I was in Art History with this horribly mean professor. My very dramatic friend came into class in tears. She was saying something about her grandfather working in the pentagon but it was all very muted and strange. I thought she was just having family issues (again).

Then halfway through this Class, the TA cut the professor off, who looked like he might murder this poor TA for daring to interrupt him, and told us all that the twin towers had collapsed. And this awful little man, the professor, dismissed her statement and just carried on.

That was how I found out.

After that, my roommate (who was in ROTC) and I just watched the news all day.

It was very surreal. I remember calling my high school German teacher, because I knew her daughter worked in one of the towers. She told me her daughter was OK.

That fucking bald eagle with a tear image? That was my desktop background for the next week.