First off house keeping: "This Week in BachmannLand" will return next week. Out of reverence for 9/11, I decided to run something that is better suited for the day. Tomorrow will begin the guest appearance of David Silverman, President of American Atheists. Okay, now that stuff is out of the way, onto more sober things.

I have known for a long time I was going to do a 9/11 comic. I mean face it, this series is about politics and that is what 9/11 became. I couldn't find any of the character's voices to tell a story, so I used mine. Why I would be on a flight from Wisconsin to New York, who knows, but that is my 9/11 story. Often times Michael is my surrogate. But he would have been about 6 when 9/11 happened. His father being ex-airforce (I know, I haven't revealed it.) and a veteran of the first Iraq war, and I am not, I couldn't figure out what to write. I figured this would be my chance to tell my story.

I remember how excited I was about September of 2001. I was to see Andy Stochansky 5 times and Eddie from Ohio once. I am a live show junkie. I was averaging 1 show a week back then. Sadly I don't have the money to do it anymore, I really miss it. Andy Stochansky had a crazy schedule where he played the same clubs for the month. I know 1 was in Philly area, 1 was perhaps Boston. The one that mattered was his shows at The Iron Horse Music Hall in Northampton, MA. 

The Iron Horse is an amazing venue which I have been to hundreds of times and never saw a bad show there. 9/11 was a Tuesday, on 9/13 Andy Stochansky had written a new song inspired by 9/11. "One Day" was a great song, however, I am linking you to a different song because I forgot which song it was. (I think it was "One Day") but I like this song better, House of Gold.

I had a freind who not only worked blocks from Ground Zero, but her office was in the building of the Anthrax Attacks. She saw EFO was playing on Friday and she asked if she and a friend could come up to visit, get out of the city and see the show with me. At EFO had on that Thursday night played a candle lit show. The club was in the section of Manhattan that still had no power weeks after the attack. The room was lit by candles and mostly filled with fire fighters and construction workers who worked at Ground Zero. They played "Oh my Brother." They saw these burly firefighters and construction workers crying in arm and arm listening to the song. After the show they told them that the firefighters call each other "Brother." The song about loss and the sacrifice they made changed the meaning to this song for me and the band. After they finished playing the song, there was a collective sigh before the applause came.

9/11 is important, and even though it has been cheapened by Republican politics, let us remember the sacrifices we have made. What are your memories of 9/11?