that day.

Everyone mentions the weather when they talk about 9/11. Try to find a piece that doesn't mention the Indian Summer September day, or the clear blue skies, or the fact that it was the kind of September day that epitomizes back-to-school and fall. I know I'll write about 9/11 closer to the anniversary day, but living in NY 10 years later is kind of surreal. Magazines, lit mags and newspapers are all talking about the 10 year marker. I lived here on the 2nd anniversary of the attacks, and remember the city stopping and the church bells ringing at the time each plane hit. Now, 8 years later, here I am again.

I went to Ground Zero back in 2003 or 2004 when I lived here, and it was odd. I couldn't get over the fact that I was, essentially, staring at a mass grave. The enormity of it hit me that day, and it was impossible not to cry; it was still so fresh. The "Missing" posters were still up at St.Vincent's. Now, everyone is familiar with the pictures of people jumping from the buildings, the fact that death by jumping was preferable to whatever they were facing in the building, is horrifying. Everyone's seen pictures of the fallen and twisted steel and beams, the rubble and the remains.

I'm not sure what to expect on that day this September. Last year I was doped up on painkillers at a hotel, recovering from foot surgery. I didn't leave the hotel room and was sleeping most of the day, so I don't remember news coverage of it. The effects of that day a decade ago linger for all of us, albeit in different ways.

But in the end, I bet everyone remembers what a gorgeous day it happened to be.

Below is an excerpt from NY magazine. The story is heartbreaking. Beverly Eckert's husband Sean was on the 105th floor, and couldn't get out because the impact was below him. Here's part of the story: "...By now we had stopped talking about escape routes. I wanted to use the precious few minutes we had left just to talk....At one point, when I could tell it was getting harder for him to breathe, I asked if it hurt. He paused for a moment, and then said 'No.' He loved me enough to lie. In the end, as the smoke got thicker, he just kept whispering, 'I love you', over and over. Then I suddenly heard this loud explosion through the phone. It reverberated for several seconds. We held our breath; I knew we both realized what was about to happen. Then I heard a sharp crack, followed by the sound of an avalanche. I heard Sean gasp once as the floor fell out from underneath him. I called his name into the phone over and over. Then I just sat there huddled on the floor holding the phone to my heart." In 2009, Beverly died in a plane crash, when Continental 3407 crashed in Buffalo.