Engine 8 Ladder 2

Hard to believe it's been 15 years since the
firefighters at this midtown station
got called downtown to the Trade Towers.
Eight of the 343 firefighters killed that day came 
from this house, including their captain.

[Linking back to Monday Murals
at Oakland Daily Photo.]

ABC Wednesday—I is for "illuminate"

Took this shot a few years ago, and I
believe it was the last time the city did
this to commemorate 9/11.  I was on 
lower Broadway, about a mile or so north
of the original Trade Towers site.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

In Memoriam

This is the police memorial, located on the
esplanade behind the World Financial Center,
not very far from the site of the twin towers.
There are more than 700 names inscribed
here—of all the NYPD officers who have
lost their lives in the line of duty . . .

. . . including the 23 who died on 9/11.

[Today is also Ruby Tuesday. To see more, go here.]

Remembering

This is St. Paul's Chapel, which was a haven of
rest and refuge for exhausted rescue workers in the
hours, days, and months following the collapse of the towers.

It's been a place of remembrance ever since,
and now that the official memorial has
been dedicated—even as new towers are going
up near the site of the old ones—I hope folks 
will continue to come here to reflect on 
what happened that day and on the tremendous 
outpouring of love and support we received 
from around the country and around the world.

photo Hunter — "anniversary"

This sculpture by Fritz Koenig came through

the collapse of the Trade Centers relatively intact, 

and was placed here in Battery Park

exactly six months later.  Found this in Wikipedia: 

 “The Sphere” is 25 feet high and cast in 52 bronze 

segments . . . It was meant to symbolize world peace 

through world trade, and was placed at the center of a ring 

of fountains and other decorative touches designed 

by Trade Center architect Minoru Yamasaki to mimic the

 Grand Mosque of Mecca, Masjid al-Haram, in 

which The Sphere stood at the place of the Kaaba."

Pretty ironic.

[See more on the "anniversary" theme here.]

Skywatch Friday

I usually get back to Brooklyn after work

and don't linger in the city. But if I hadn't been out 

with a friend the other night I would have 

missed this sight—from a couple of miles uptown, 

we could see these two blue beams shining up into the 

night sky from the site of the Trade Towers 

and this shot was taken by City Hall, 

about six blocks from Ground Zero.

[See more Skywatch shots here.]

Skywatch Friday

Given the date of this post, I'm sure you
can guess what was once visible soaring
above the World Financial Center, where
now you can see only sky. Still miss them.
See more Skywatch posts here.

honoring/remembering

Wanted to stop by my local firehouse yesterday.

It's right next door to the food coop, and we've

become pretty attached in the past 7 years. 

This station lost 13 out of 30 on 9/11.

Someone actually said to a friend of mine 

not too long after the fact, "You New Yorkers 

really need to get over it."

Trust me— we deal and we don't dwell, 

but we'll NEVER "get over it."