911- I'm not the only one who went Cuckoo.

Since Bellhop has recommended Penelope Trunk, I've read a little bit of her archives every day. I enjoy her advice, her humor, and her candor.

One night, I went to one of her blogs from the beginning. After reading her "First Hand Account of 9/11." I couldn't sleep. I was horrified. The images of Trunk under all those bodies and drinking out of a toilet wouldn't leave my brain. It amazed me that she was even able to write about it.

I thought about my day in Minnesota on September 11, 2001. And of course, that day wasn't as tragic for me as it was for Penelope Trunk. I was working at Wilcox Furniture as a bookkeeper/salesperson. Natalie was almost three, and I was seven months pregnant with Allison. I was watching the news while getting ready for work when I heard about the first airplane going into the World Train Center.

At first, I thought about what a horrible accident that it was. After the second plane hit the World Train Center, I started to realize the world was going crazy. After the next two planes crashed, I wondered when it would end.

I began watching T.V. all the time. I needed to know there wasn't another attack. I needed to know what was going on in the world at all times. I'd fall asleep to the news and would wake up if J. Bird turned it off while I was sleeping. Even in the hospital after having Allison, I ended up leaving the T.V. on because I needed to know my children are living in a safe world.

At this time, Jason and I were in the middle of buying a different house. Our first home was on Main Avenue in Red Lake Falls, had a total of about 900 square feet, and cost us a mere $21,000. Our next home, the one we live in now, was about 1800 square feet on our main level, on 12 acres of land. I started having nightmares of feeding my family chicken feed for supper.

I know I am not the only one who went a little cuckoo after 9/11. More people started driving around town with American Flag decals in their windows. Country music started singing more songs with the theme of "America is so Awesome ." Sure, I'm proud of veterans in parades, but sometimes, the whole "United We Stand" theme started creeping me out. Sometimes, I think we go a little overboard on the whole patriotic theme. A little patriotism never hurt anyone. A little nationalism? Not so much.

Eventually, we moved into our home in the country. J. Bird wouldn't hook up a T.V. in our bedroom, and I learned to sleep without watching CNN or Fox News. We even started a garden. I started canning tomatoes and spaghetti sauce and the nightmares started to fade.