i see signs around the neighborhood:
"Unite Tonight- be outside at 7pm, wherever you are, show we care about each other"

not much explanation, don't know who, doesn't matter, can't be a bad idea, I'll be out.

soon after, ran into a pal, almost literally. he was walking in the middle of Ave A, I stopped as we got close, said hi, and he started to cry. He's just walked from midtown. we walked towards his apt on 3rd, and he eventually started to explain what a tough day he's had. He's a grade school teacher, school started back up, with a meeting this morning on "grief conselling" for the kids, and then they had to tell parents to leave, so kids could have a "normal day" - meanwhile, they had lots of questions, lots of worries, and still midtown was going thru it's own crises - alarms, false bomb threats, and, as he put it "I had to be the adult all day" - on his way home, down 1st Ave, he passed Bellevue and Beth Israel hospitals, where people are putting up xeroxed pleas regarding their missing loved-ones. He exclaimed "I can't do this" - helpless, I just listened, told him I'm around, any time, call...etc etc.... there will be a lot of this, and we have to do what we can for each other, and I know he'll be back at school tomorrow, as much as he's dreading it. Even if he can't make it in tomorrow, that's ok, too; he needs to take care of himself, and we all need to take care of each other.

Mom left a message on my machine; I havent heard the voice of any relative since that breif call from my sister on tuesday afternoon; and she'll be calling back in a few, I hope. I hope not to cry, but I know its okay if i do.