“From what I’ve seen on the news, I have some technical info for all of you. 4 Buildings have collapsed thus far, WTC 1, 2, 5, and 7. Nearby, two more buildings are thought to be unstable.Together, those 4 buildings probably (this is based on swatches of info I’ve heard over the days, not on specific information or quotes) had a total of ~300 floors, had over 1 million square feet of floor space, and weighed over 2 billion pounds. Not that any of this has any meaning to most of us, other than… BIG. I used to go by those buildings every night when I went running. At midnight (my preferred time to hit the road), they were generally silent. I was always slightly awed by them, by my proximity to such enormous achievements in engineering. I felt privileged to live in the society that had spawned them. Honored, to have an intimate acquaintance with something so permanent and powerful, so symbolic of the city that I loved. This may sound hokey, but that was honestly how I felt. Sharing the night with the buildings and the streets, I was safe and sure of the world around me. In the winter, freezing winds would whip around the corners of these man-made mountains, providing another challenge to my run. Year-round, the area around the towers was a virtual dead zone for many radio stations. Every Saturday night, I grumbled as my Kiss (98.7 FM) club mix hid behind the buzz from the mammoth radio antenna as soon as I was within shouting distance. Anyway. I have yet to hear back from any of the organizations that I finally contacted about volunteering.

“Wish me luck.”

K.T.

Alumni, Punahou School

(contact information withheld upon request)