Watched MSNBC's 9/11 Footage This Morning, Couldn't Help Myself

I didn't want to watch it, the footage from 9/11. I sort of happened into watching it.

Morning Joe was on the TV in the kitchen and, while I was reading the newspapers and nursing my third cup of coffee, I was surprised to see MSNBC re-broadcast the original footage from Sept. 11, 2001 as it unfolded on live TV. And I couldn't bring myself to turn it off.

I gasped at the same places at which I originally gasped when I watched the Today Show eight years ago, especially the moment when my then-3-year-old son and I saw the second airplane crash into the twin towers. I got the chills and a sickening feeling in my gut as the towers collapsed and eyewitnesses told Katie Couric and Matt Lauer about the horrors they'd seen on the streets of New York.

I recalled the intense feelings of uncertainty and fear when, at one point on that fall morning in 2001, people weren't sure if there'd been bombs planted in buildings around New York and Washington, D.C., whether there'd been a bomb at the State Department and exactly how many airplanes had been hijacked. I flinched when I heard the voice of the late Tim Russert, providing updates from Washington.

I kept MSNBC on all morning while I worked and felt as though I was peeking inside of a time capsule, one we open once each year.

Above you'll see an AP photo of the location where the towers once stood. Ground Zero. Still reminds me of an open wound.

Image credit: Matt Lennihan AP via MSNBC.

'thirtysomething' DVD Release Garnering Lots O'Attention

Everybody's got thirtysomething fever. I tell ya . . .

The thirtysomething gang of seven reunited on the set of Good Morning America to talk about the impact of their insightful, moving drama on pop culture as the first season of the show has now been released on DVD this week.

NPR's Talk of the Nation featured five members of the cast in a lengthy interview. It's a really great chat which I recommend.



A writer likened the Melissa Steadman character to a pre-cursor to Carrie Bradshaw. Hmm. . .

The Los Angeles Times mused on the Baby Boomer juggernaut.

The Washington Post, in reviewing the DVD set, said the show "still works remarkably well as a piece of relatable, well-acted and adult television, a program that -- contrary to popular opinion -- was more than just a whinefest."

The New York Times had a long Q&A with thirtysomething crew members, saying the show "perfectly captured the intimate details of the baby boomer lifestyle in ways no network series had previously, and sparked intense debate about its merits."

Entertainment Weekly gave the DVD set an A.

The Associated Press interviewed several of the stars (see below):

Suburban Mom's Political Fix: WH Spokesman Tells Reporters What Biden 'Meant to Say' on Swine Flu

Who didn't see this coming? The White House's awkward backing off from what Vice President Joe Biden said on the Today Show this morning, that he wouldn't go in any confined area like an airplane or a subway while the swine flu is spreading.

You had to feel badly for WH Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, having to stand there at the podium, on national TV and, with a straight face, BS his way through this quagmire, where the president tells everyone to remain calm, wash their hands and stay home if sick, while the vice president says he for one isn't gonna get trapped in some subway car potentially loaded with people carrying the swine flu.

ABC's Jake Tapper asked Gibbs about Biden's statements and Gibbs talked in nonsensical circles saying that what Biden was really saying was that if you feel sick you should take precautions. To which Tapper replied, "With all due respect . . . that's not even remotely close to what he said."

"I'm telling you what he meant to say," Gibbs said as the reporters guffawed. (Link to the question and answer here.)



Meanwhile, in another development on the swine flu front, the Associated Press reported that a White House aide and his family are being tested for the flu. "A member of the U.S. delegation that helped prepare Energy Secretary Steven Chu's trip to Mexico City has demonstrated flu-like symptoms and his family members have tested probable for swine flu."

Evangeline Lilly talks 'Lost'

The Associated Press snagged an interview with Lost's Evangeline Lilly, who plays Kate, where she discussed upcoming episodes (hinting about how Kate handles parenting Aaron), interesting tidbits about shooting the show (Josh Holloway who plays Sawyer had to shoot the first five episodes while barefoot in the jungle) and about how she loves Lost's character development and relationships, but isn't a huge fan of the sci-fi twists like time traveling.

The video includes scenes from future episodes, including one where Kate is talking with the lawyer (we don't know the identity of his client) who says she's been ordered by a court to surrender a blood sample to prove she's not Aaron's mother. (Link to the video is here.)