September 28, 2001 - 9:20 a.m.

NPR, for about two weeks after (how do I call it? 9/11? The Tragedy? I don�t like Attack on America...for my journal purposes that is)...anyway.....all their break music has been somber and slow. This morning on the drive in I noticed a peppy tune. Something with a beat, made ya� want to snap. And probably 95% of the NPR programming right now all centers around IT. Today their was a story about an island community in Maine that is coming to NYC this weekend to perform an original musical about island life in a theater off Broadway. A bit earlier than that, there was a story about how restaurants are suffering.

So I�m thinking, even if we find and eradicate all the terrorists, didn�t they kind of win this battle? They have done more to America than destroy the World Trade Center, surrounding New York blocks, damage the Pentagon, and burn a hole in Pennsylvania. They are effecting the way we live and the choices we make. The leaders of this nation keep telling us to keep moving forward, get on airplanes, shop, put money into the economy, don�t sell your existing shares, and buy more.... This morning a co-worker told me that business is so slow in Vegas that they actually are turning lights off in the mornings. Now THAT is a photograph I want to take!! To be there with Nick and have photos of us on the streets of Vegas at 8am and no blazing lights of Vegas....

I was out with Nia last weekend shopping our hearts out. That was fun, something about spending money to cure the heart of any ills (which would also be the danger...) She asked if I was more aware of planes than I ever was before. I am. Last night while driving home I saw a plane that appeared to be too low in the sky to be that far from the airport, and some lights were blinking that I had never seen before (doesn�t mean that they haven�t always used them, I�m not that observant)...and my heart stopped for a second. It was eerie. I told myself it was OK, and most likely normal.

Nick and I are on �financial lockdown�. We were talking about curbing spending before IT happened, based on the turning economy. But IT solidified our decision. This weekend we are laying out a budget, and I bet it will be pretty lean. You know, I�ve been through recession before. I came out of college in the early 90�s when you were damn lucky to get a job for $18k a year. And I don�t mean some entry level data job or an admin assistant. I mean jobs that now pay about $30k a year. My brother graduated college and got a job, similar to my first job, making more than $30k (I won�t say the exact number, I know he reads this).... I also remember the gas shortages in the 80�s. I remember buying MSB spaghetti, ketchup and butter (that would be Money Saving Brand). So I�m not nervous about the recession really, just nervous about this war in general.

And on that...my thoughts went out on completely different train tracks. TTFN

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