Monday Lockdown

So, Monday morning of this week began like any other Monday morning. I got up, stumbled downstairs to start a pot of coffee, made the kids their breakfast, and lunches for Eric and I. Dropped L off at school, took J to the Ortho, then on to school and waltzed into work about 9:45 am after stopping at Starbucks for a java jolt.

So I get to work, check in with my boss, settle in with my coffee, space heater and about 50 unread emails. My plan is to dig in to my emails, and then finish up a project that I started on Friday of last week for my boss. About 30 or 45 minutes later, I hear the crackle of the loudspeaker throughout our offices, and the security guard comes on. "Please go into your offices, lock your doors and remain there until further instructions are provided." Um, excuse me, is this a drill? Apparently not.

So, at first we all kind of peek our heads out of our individual office doors with questionable looks on our faces. We quietly ponder what this could mean for a few minutes, and then find out that one of my co-workers down the hall has a nifty little police scanner app on his iPhone, so several of us head down the hall to see what the deal is. "Shots Fired, police on scene, wherabouts unknown...etc...etc..." Okay, so there has been a shooting in my building and we don't know where the shooter is. EEEEEKKKKK! We all hang around staring out the windows checking out the various police units, swat vans, ambulances, fire trucks, and eventually news crews and helicopters, that are starting to surround our building.

We are on lockdown for over an hour, and then we receive a message that everything is all clear, but to avoid the lobby area east and west exits from the building, we must use the basement exit into the parking garage if we need to exit the building. Apparently, a man shot 2 owners of an investment firm 11 floors below where my office is, and then shot himself.

I make a point to avoid going downstairs for the rest of the day, hoping that all the blood, gore, police tape, and all other evidence of the violence that has taken place is gone by the time I leave. The remainder of the day, everyone in the office walks around in a fog, and I seriously doubt that any serious work is done. No one can believe what has happened, so close and so surreal. Anyway, when I leave the office at 5, I step off of the elevator and to my immediate right, I see police tape and a cleanup crew mopping up and scrubbing blood off of the marble flooring in front of the security desk. This is what I was trying to avoid, but it's right there plain as day: evidence that there was an unstable shooter in our building earlier in the day.

It haunts me on the way home, I can't wait to pick L up from preschool and get home to see my husband and son. Meanwhile, the two men that were shot are in the hospital in stable condition, but the gunman is at another hospital in serious condition, and reports from the news media state that he may not make it. I pick L up from preschool, give her a big hug and kiss. Then I throw the diet down the toilet and make a quick stop at the local pizza place to pick up some pies for my kidlets. They have been asking for pizza for a couple of days, and this was the perfect opportunity to appease them. I didn't feel like cooking after the grueling day, and I wanted to see smiles...and it worked. Eric did not get home until later that evening...I hugged him tightly too.

I thank God that no one else was injured by this person, and that the individuals that he went after were not more seriously hurt. This experience has taught me to appreciate things all the more, and though it may sound cliche, I will cherish every moment with my loved ones.


WOW....I haven't blogged in a really long time. No time like the present, right. Hopefully I will keep this up now. Lots of changes coming in the next couple of months, might as well document them.

Toodles!