We'd like to hear from all our forum regulars and newcomers, just to reassure ourselves that you're okay. Whether you are from NYC or anywhere else in the world, please post here while we all try to pick up the pieces from this week's tragic events. Thanks! Varian

Oops, forgot to make my own entry. All is well here in northern Illinois aside from deep emotional shock and dismay. The skies are eerily quiet and empty with no planes flying for a second day.

Everybody over here in the UK, are in complete shock Varian. I'm unable muster up the enthusiasm to do much, apart from await news of any survivors. I have spent today travelling into London, to sign the Book of Condolence within the US Embassy, and was able to talk and share my feelings with many people whilst there. It is one thing to hear foreign Leaders of State on TV, saying that they stand shoulder to shoulder with the US...but I would just like to say that all the ordinary folk, from every walk of life within the UK feel that too, and offer their support. Martin

No plane here either (Somerset county, NJ). They are still canceling flight in Newark, closed for investigation as far as I know. Everyone I know here is close enough to NYC to know someone there. The mood overall is very focused and somber. For those who dont know, I come from France and I have been living here (NJ) for three years now. I am taking this as hard as everyone else.

Thank you, Martin. Glad you're okay, Laurent.

I can't speak for all french people, but i'm sure what is same like me : my condoleances at alls famillys toutched by this tragedy. God bless all american people. Georges.

Thank you, Georges.

Hey there WE are ok here mate and we all are thinking of you and yours over there mate we will stand hand to hand with you if we are called to do so. And our hearts and souls are in deep thought over what happend to your fellow countrymen cheers dolly

Thanks for checking in, Dolly.

Varian, I have to return the thanks to you for keeping this forum alive in the current climate. I find it extraordinary difficult to work on new images or do anything else than listening to the news. Vue or Poser suddenly seem to futile since tuesday.

Laurent, I can certainly appreciate the difficulty you describe. I hardly know what to say at all to these events. Mike is still offline since Tuesday afternoon, worried about his family members who were in NYC. I typically spend more time in this forum than practically anything else, so I feel very connected with everyone who is regularly here, and I hope we'll be hearing from more and more voices as the hours pass.

Well, I and my family NYC are okay. Doesn't look like we have lost anybody. But it's too early to tell. You can smell the fire everywhere in the city. The people are handling it well enough. There's a grimm determination not to let this get us down. We're going places, doing things. The services are doing a great job. Even the mayor has set his acrimonious part aside and is doing a superb job. -------------------------------------------------------- I'd just like to take this opportunity to thank everybody. Your support and prayers mwan a lot to us. We are conforted in the knowledge that we do not stand alone.-Fernando.

So good to hear from you, Fernando; we're glad you and your family are alright. The TV is currently reporting there are two more buildings in that area in danger of collapse, and they're evacuating the area again. (No one is in those buildings, of course, but on the ground.)

Varian, I think this is good move you're making. Very touching. I'm in Sacramento, where other drastic events of the last three weeks have negatively affected the local psyche, but which, horrifyingly, pale in comparison to the events of two days past. My wife, who works in the stock market, came home in shock Tuesday. Even though she has never been to New York, she daily exchanged dozens of telephone calls, e-mails, and faxes with very many people who worked in the WTC, at Morgan Stanley and other firms. Yes, rather therapeutic, Varian, much needed right now. Sadly, there may be other occasions just as tragic to come. Larry F

Good to hear from you, Larry and glad you're okay. California may seem distant from NYC, but each of the hijacked planes were scheduled for LA and San Francisco...really, the "affected area" goes well beyond the country's borders.

I am still stunned by the images I am seeing on TV, I don't think I have ever felt so helpless or upset in my life. Jody

It's good to see you posting here, Jody.

Heyas... Coming from OZ and still mostly in shock and disbelief that this is happening. A lot of friends had loved ones within the area, so our hearts, our minds and our prayers are with them and their families also.

Best wishes to you as well, Beck. Good to see you here.

I'm in Southern Maine and my family and I are ok. Still pretty well shocked that something like this could happen. I just hope that the loss of life is as minimal as it can be. I don't know what else to say; having a tough time putting thoughts into words. Rich

It was such an outrageous act, I think we're all having a hard time getting our minds around it. Few words are okay, just glad to see them from you, Rich. And -- here's some good news: Mike has been able to make it back online. He's been in touch with his folks and they're alright. He is understandably shocked and upset as the rest of us but otherwise okay and will probably be posting himself soon.

Hi, Also my condoleances (from the netherlands) at all families touched by this tragedy. We here is holland are also very shocked about what happens and our minds are with you all. Angelo ps. And thank for the news about Mike and his parents. I am glad they are alright.

Ahh, Varian. I am VERY glad to hear that. Thanks for the info. :)

Thanks for your thoughts, Angelo. Bloodsong and Brandi have also been posting, albeit not in this thread as yet. Good to see their names popping up, though. :)

Well I suppose I would be the newbie to this forum at least . Down here in South Carolina it's more of the same . We really don't notice the lack of air travel to much but everyone seems to still be in a state of shock . Myself , I think I'm past the shock and well into anger mixed with a deep sadness . I just want to say to all New Yorkers that I am extremely proud of the way you all have handled it . All I can say is whoever planned this AND thier backers had better start running , because in my life I have never heard our politicians talk like they are now and that can't be safe .

New or not, we're glad to see you here, Mark. Jackson and Daffy34 have also been posting. Smallspace and gebe made posts earlier. I'm hoping we'll be able to account for all the regulars soon.

I'm joining to Koncz (Georges) to adress all americans , in my name of french citizen, my whole heart and all my thoughts. And I want to express my admiration for the solidarity from NY crew, and all the USA. It's a great vertue. And it looks like the Renderosity community shares this vertue. I'm proud of that. Someone said, in one forum, that artists have a different sensibility that makes them like life. I think it was never so true than in this sad time. That's why, even if it's hard or looking like futile, we must continue to produce images that celebrates life and beauty. Creativity is something that terrorists will never be able to destruct. I wish the best to all americans... Oh, I'm really glad that Mike's parents are OK. I hope to see news from himself very soon Claude

Thanks so much for your words, Claude. Joerg Weber is another who has been posting recently.

I'm in Tokyo, I am shocked by this unbelievable tragedy. There are many US force base in Japan, all of them were on highest alert till yesterday.(It's 10:30 Fri JST) I'm glad to hear that Mike's parents are OK, too. Hatsumi

Sad to hear about what happened in America. Most American here in Singapore I met and seen are very depressed. My prayers to all affected and hope all things would come to a proper end. Bill Tesign

Hatsumi and Bill, thanks for checking in. We appreciate your good wishes.

flew out of ny on monday, was doing business a block from the towers, my old company had a office on the 91st floor of the 2nd tower, as of today, only 3o out of 190 have checked in. i really dont promote violence, but this is a line that should not have been crossed, millitary is one thing, as it's their job (still wrong though) , but normal, everyday people is another thing. i hope the best for mike and anyone else who lost friends family.

Good to hear from you, Erin, and glad you weren't there at the wrong time. We wish only the best for those still among the missing. So many are out there, even now, trying to sort through the rubble in the hopes of discovering more survivors. To add to the list of Vue-ers still with us, Genny and Crescent are posting.

Well, today is the first day that the city was back to "normal"... By that I mean, people were out, there was traffic in the street and a lot of businesses were opened... However as I walked around, there were a couple of places where the people had been evacuated from their buildings because of bomb threats... Luckily, none of them were true... I for one feel better today, I was fortunate I did not lose any friends or family in this disaster... Just Sunday I was at the WTC, I had not been there in a long time... I went to shops there, walked around the grounds and thought about what a great place this was... Looking back in hindsight, that might have been an unconscious farewell to the place... I later walked up Liberty Place and Liberty Plaza and onto Broad street... I tell you, in my mind, having lived here for a long time and knowing that part of town well, I still see those places as I knew them, not as they are now... I've seen soem of those pictures on the web and I know where the photographer is standing, i know which way he's pointing the camera cause I see what's there now and I know what used to be there...

I live in Tacoma, WA. About as far away as possible from the damage and still live in the same country. Yet my heart is still heavy and in shock over the enormity of what is going on. Not just the damage and deaths caused, but the escalating reaction that this has sparked. In many ways, I am frightened, and yet, resolute... God Bless

Paul, thanks for the update on your condition and for sharing your experiences and feelings. Through the power of television, I was watching live coverage when the towers collapsed. As the first began to go, I could see it happening and understood what was happening before the reporter speaking knew. He was talking about the fires and saying "there's some more smoke now", and I was thinking no, not just smoke, that whole thing is coming down -- and so it did. Incredibly the second followed not long after. The utter and stark contrast of "now you see it, now you don't" has been replayed on TV now a hundred thousand times. Each replay is still astounding. I can only imagine what that "before and after" must be like in person, to those like yourself who know the area as home.

Steven, thanks for checking in. We're glad you're here.

Sorry to be so long checking in... It's so strange. The numbers didn't get to me. It's impossible to digest numbers that large. The video of the planes hitting and the buildings going down didn't get to me. Hollywood has done too good a job. My senses have been numbed to that type of imagery. The video of the people jumping off the WTC towers didn't get to me...again, Hollywood has made this type of image too common in my brain... ...however... ...when I heard about the man who, knowing he was about to die, called his mother on his cell phone to tell her he loved her...everything all of the sudden clicked into place and I found myself in kneeling on the floor in tears. As other stories of individuals started coming in, I found myself more and more affected. It's funny how the little pieces of this whole enormous disaster could affect me so much more than all of the huge overall events. I think it must have something to do with the way my brain works. Now I see that this isn't a great big tragedy...it?s over 5000 personal tragedies. I'm devastated. -SMT :(

personally, all right... a minor tropical storm approaching.. but no big deal. on the family front... no idea yet... though my immediate is safely far away from all this.. aside from that, I've heard via my wife from Sharen & Mike from SAMS3D, they're still with us 8 ) and slowly one by one people are re-making contact.... from what I understand the phones are still a tad clogged etc..

Steve, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I think when something this huge occurs and happens so fast as this did, it is hard to grasp the "large picture" of it. Those smaller things are easier to relate to, like watching a firefighter, exhausted and strained, suddenly burst into tears ... I think if you're human, you're going to feel it with him. Thom, yes Sharen and Mike have been making a few posts, and there are others too posting without having made it to this particular thread yet. Good to hear from both of you.

Thanks for this Varian. So glad to hear about Mike's family. Everyone I've met here in Hampshire UK has been touched by the events in the US this week. People mention it then go silent. It all goes beyond words. May God comfort America. Mark

I live less than 25 miles from the Pentagon, and was rather fortunate in that none of my friends who used to go to the Pentagon regularly were still working for government contractors. DC, however, is still in lockdown; there are armed forces everywhere. They are not getting in anyone's face or anything like that; the reports are that they are quite friendly and talkative, but they're still out there with guns and such. One of my friends is a Marine... he's been ordered to call in before 10am every day for orders when and if his unit is activated, which seems only to be a matter of time. My sister is stationed in Okinawa, and her unit has been ordered to stay on base, though due to her location I don't think that she'll be involved, and if she is, her MO is logistical. So far, though, we're all ok over here.

Just heard from my friends that live 3 blocks away from the WTC. They spent 3 days stuck in their house without electricity, water or gas. My friend was on his way to his office, a couple of blocks past the WTC. He just made it back to the front steps of his house as the cloud of debris reached him. Someone pulled him into the building. My friend is quite disabled. It's a miracle he made it back.

Mark, thanks for checking in. You are so right about it all going "beyond words." Rakesh, glad that you and your family are okay. One can only hope that the need for soldiers in the streets will pass before too long. It must be surreal. Fernando, thanks for sharing that amazing story. So glad he made it to safety. Flywaver, Absinthe, Gabi, Cozmic, MandK, genny, bhitney, Rynn, Lynn (Fredericks, of E-on Software) and e-on (Steve Bell of E-on software) are among additional members who have been seen posting again this week.

I was so sad this last days that I even did not switch on my computer for 48 hours. And this means some thing for me, as I'm completely addicted to it and even working on it. My life passes between CNN and CNN and CNN, hoping they will announce a miracle that they found a surviver in some gallery or anywhere under the debris. That's the true. But otherwise I'm fine. Today in my kitchen, I cut my finger with a knife. It was painful and fingers always makes run lots of blood. My first idea when it happend was to think to all the americans in the fire and the dust and under the stones and I said to myself that cutting in a finger is really nothing, nothing at all. For the moment, I'm following every event happening in New York and cannot really think to something else. We, in Europe, are so much concerned by all this and are so grateful to the americans, because maybe we would not be free today if they where not here to deliver us at world war II. My sons (35 and 33) are both working in 2 different american firms in Paris and are very much concerned also. My elder son and his wife just came back from Miami September 10. One of the firms had a 34 jears joung manager in one of the hijacked planes. Last wednesday (as every wednesday) I meet my friends (all women). Normally we have lots of fun, but we passed the whole evening speaking about what happend in USA. I think, nobody can pass over this cruel event. I have some very loved friends in Daly City (CA), they are fine, but affected, of course. Good bless you and us. I hope for all of you you have not lost a loved one in this horrific thing. Guitta

Thank you so much for those warm thoughts, Guitta.

Sorry it took me so long to check in, but I've spent the last few days trying to recover and catch up with all the posts. I left on vacation the 1st to visit with hubby's kids and ex and then went on to Texas to visit my son and his family. That's where I was when all this hit. It shocked us all and there was the added concern of how I was to get home since all my flights were canceled. I made it home Friday evening (the rental car agency was so wonderful, they only charged me an additional $44 for the extra 3 days I had the car I was supposed to return on Wednesday) and have spent the weekend either catching up on the news or sleeping. I think I'm still a bit stunned by all this, as it's so overwhelming when I stop to think about it. Kate (who doesn't post here as much as she used to)

Good to hear from you, Kate, and glad you were able to make it home at last. Nice of the rental company to give you a break, too. :)