: My 9/11 experience :
As I was hurrying down to catch my subway train yesterday (9/11) I was "pulled over" so to speak by a transit cop and told to step aside to a table. For an instant, I thought he was going to give me a speeding ticket for running down the stairs too quickly. But then it kicked in - 9/11, heightened security and all that. They wanted to inspect my bag.
I'm not quite sure why I got flagged and the two guys next to me did not, but I have my suspicions. First off, I was carrying a large black purse, with plenty of room for explosives. I think if I were a terrorist though, I'd opt for a backpack - C4 is extremely dense and heavy, and carrying it in a purse would get tiring after a while. Plus, it would be more easily misplaced or waylaid.
The second reason is that I was running - I suppose it's a natural suspicion that people running are agitated in some way. But the pace in this city is such that everybody moves fast - I've gotten used to running for things, and it seems even my natural walking pace has quickened. For example, in Houston, everyone rides the escalators, and it's rare for someone to walk up or down a moving escalator. Here, they have a standing lane and a walking lane on any escalator wide enough to accomodate two people side by side, and there is a constant flow of people walking. Once I saw a man standing on the left, and the people came up behind him and asked him to move to the right so they could pass. That sort of thing would never happen in Houston, but it's just one example.
Third, I suppose that I look somewhat ethnic (to the contrary from how I feel, since I grew up in a mostly white neighborhood) and maybe I could be mistaken for an Arab, especially since I'm not tiny as most Asians are. So I went over to the table and they took my bag and swabbed the handles with a pad soaked with a solution that detects molecules of explosive material. They ran the swab through a processor and of course it came back negative, and I was on my way. I caught the subway train just in time, but to not much avail - I missed my connection to the commuter rail train and had to wait for 20 minutes at Penn Station for the next one to leave.
The other thing that happened yesterday that reminded me it was 9/11 was on the commuter train. At the end of the line as I was approaching my station, a fireman comes up to me in full dress uniform, shakes my hand and asks me how I'm doing. I said I'm fine, just a little tired. He said that's okay, I looked great, and I thanked him. That was it.
In other news, I posted a personal ad on Craig's List just for fun, to see what kind of people I would attract. The ad was fairly straightforward and sincere, and I got seven responses. The one that cracked me up came from someone who seemed barely literate, and conceited to boot. It started off "I women seeking women. I just wanted to introduce myself so we (more...) could talk and get to know one another, but I don't know if my membership allows you to email me or not, I'd have to look into it."
"I women seeking women"? Sounds like Bigfoot-speak to me! And she signed it, "Your new girlfriend." Needless to say, that one wasn't worth responding to. This is the first time I've ever placed a personal ad in my life, but I've thought about it from time to time. Apparently, I'm much less inhibited than I used to be. I would never think that it would actually result in anything serious, but it's fun just seeing the kinds of people who write back.
I'm not quite sure why I got flagged and the two guys next to me did not, but I have my suspicions. First off, I was carrying a large black purse, with plenty of room for explosives. I think if I were a terrorist though, I'd opt for a backpack - C4 is extremely dense and heavy, and carrying it in a purse would get tiring after a while. Plus, it would be more easily misplaced or waylaid.
The second reason is that I was running - I suppose it's a natural suspicion that people running are agitated in some way. But the pace in this city is such that everybody moves fast - I've gotten used to running for things, and it seems even my natural walking pace has quickened. For example, in Houston, everyone rides the escalators, and it's rare for someone to walk up or down a moving escalator. Here, they have a standing lane and a walking lane on any escalator wide enough to accomodate two people side by side, and there is a constant flow of people walking. Once I saw a man standing on the left, and the people came up behind him and asked him to move to the right so they could pass. That sort of thing would never happen in Houston, but it's just one example.
Third, I suppose that I look somewhat ethnic (to the contrary from how I feel, since I grew up in a mostly white neighborhood) and maybe I could be mistaken for an Arab, especially since I'm not tiny as most Asians are. So I went over to the table and they took my bag and swabbed the handles with a pad soaked with a solution that detects molecules of explosive material. They ran the swab through a processor and of course it came back negative, and I was on my way. I caught the subway train just in time, but to not much avail - I missed my connection to the commuter rail train and had to wait for 20 minutes at Penn Station for the next one to leave.
The other thing that happened yesterday that reminded me it was 9/11 was on the commuter train. At the end of the line as I was approaching my station, a fireman comes up to me in full dress uniform, shakes my hand and asks me how I'm doing. I said I'm fine, just a little tired. He said that's okay, I looked great, and I thanked him. That was it.
In other news, I posted a personal ad on Craig's List just for fun, to see what kind of people I would attract. The ad was fairly straightforward and sincere, and I got seven responses. The one that cracked me up came from someone who seemed barely literate, and conceited to boot. It started off "I women seeking women. I just wanted to introduce myself so we (more...) could talk and get to know one another, but I don't know if my membership allows you to email me or not, I'd have to look into it."
"I women seeking women"? Sounds like Bigfoot-speak to me! And she signed it, "Your new girlfriend." Needless to say, that one wasn't worth responding to. This is the first time I've ever placed a personal ad in my life, but I've thought about it from time to time. Apparently, I'm much less inhibited than I used to be. I would never think that it would actually result in anything serious, but it's fun just seeing the kinds of people who write back.
