What’s normally a 15-minute commute by car, takes close to a hour by bicycle, but it’s a perfect day out, so I opt for the exercise.

I had started cycling earlier in the year, after a bad asthma attack had hospitalized me. I soon found that not only was bike riding good cardio, but it also allowed me to see things I normally wouldn’t at 60 miles an hour, and it also allowed me an opportunity to think, rather than vegging out to the radio.

This particular day, I marvel at how blue the cloudless sky was, how cool the morning air was, and how quiet the rolling hills of the back roads I road were. Today is the perfect day and nothing could spoil it.

I roll into the parking lot of my office at 8:45 AM. I’m sweaty from my ride, but fortunately the gym I belong to is right next door.

I shower, get dressed, and stroll into work at 9:00 AM.

Everyone is frozen in front of their workstations.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

“Haven’t you heard?” Someone replies. “A plane flew into the World Trade Center!”