Someone asked in a MySpace bulletin, "Where were you on 9/11/01?"

I was in the Red Carpet Club at San Francisco International Airport, having arrived at about 5 a.m. Pacific time, waiting to get on a plane to go to Nashville.

I noticed a group of people standing and looking at a small TV above the (obviously closed) bar, and out of curiosity I joined them. The first plane had just hit the WTC and no one was sure yet what was happening.

I stepped away from the TV to get a better signal on my cell phone and called my wife (who works for United Airlines and was in her office already at 5:30 a.m.) and told her what I knew. While we were talking I heard a gasp from the group at the TV -- the second plane had hit.

My own reaction to what was happening seems strange looking back on it. I had little thought of anyone actually dying, though hundreds already had. In my mind it was still early, only about 5:45 a.m., so the buildings must have been mostly empty. But of course it was 8:45 a.m. in New York, and the buildings were not empty. For some time -- probably 30 minutes or so -- I assumed my flight would still go to Nashville (through Chicago) because none of my plans had anything to do with the East Coast. I was concerned about how all this would affect my wife's day and work. Little did I know that it would ultimately impact her work in ways I couldn't even imagine, and that not only was I not going to make it to Nashville that day, but that airline travel from that moment on was changed.

It was chaotic at SFO, and when they finally told everyone to go home (about an hour later) people were still coming in who didn't know about the attacks. I stopped at the monitors on the way out and a man who had just arrived was looking at the screens showing all flights were cancelled. He was upset at his bad luck and wondered out loud what had happened. I told him that terrorists had hijacked at least two planes and flown them into the World Trade Center buildings. He couldn't believe it and was sure I was making it up. Others gathered around as I told him I couldn't believe it myself. Incredulity was everywhere.

My wife's office was (and is) in a United Airlines building near SFO, and she had dropped me off on her way in that morning. By the time SFO was shut down, her building had also been put into secure status, so I couldn't get to her. She was allowed to leave and was able to pick me up at an increasingly crowded airport. No one could get in and everyone inside had to get out. The streets outside the airport were filling rapidly with people, and within another few minutes were completely jammed.

I took my wife back toward her building, though of course I couldn't get her near the door she normally used because of the barriers that been hastily erected.

I made it home in about 30 minutes, listening to the car radio the whole way and watching television reports the rest of the day. I taped many hours of coverage, but have never watched those tapes since.

I'm not sure I ever will.

Next: responses to 9/11.