Possible explosion at the finish line for the Boston Marathon?

[Catrin]

Oak, thank you for sharing what you saw yesterday. So glad you and your DH are fine!

[Jolt]

I still can't believe this happened...Oak, glad you and your DH are safe and that people were helping each other. Prayers for all involved, and hoping they quickly find whoever committed this horrible act.

[maillotpois]

Wow Oak - I had no idea you were there til I opened this thread this morning. So glad you guys are ok and your post was beautiful.

[azfiddle]

Oak- so glad you and your DH are safe, and thank you for sharing the positive things you saw.


It is impossible for rational people to truly understand how the irrational mind thinks- and the sociopathy that underlies the ability to plan and carry out such devastating, horrible events.

We need to be buoyed up by the way that both trained professionals and caring strangers acted to help afterwards.

[goldfinch]

What you said Oak reminds me of this quote:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”
― Fred Rogers

[hirakukibou]

I am really glad that you and your DH are fine, Oakleaf. Glad too that Crankin and Shefly are accounted for. I was luckily not at the marathon this year. Yet, it feels strange that an event that I grew up with has been marred in this way. What a stressful 24 hours. So far, knock on wood, all my peeps seem to be safe. I must admit that I am sort of in a daze; however, as a Bostonian I am amazed at the outpouring of well wishes for our city and people.

[Jolt]

For those who haven't seen the news yet, THEY GOT HIM!!!!! Hiding out in somebody's boat in their backyard. He's now in the hospital being treated for gunshot wounds and blood loss, and will be questioned once he's well enough. As you can imagine, there's been a lot of celebrating going on in and around Boston...I turned on the news and the first thing I saw was a huge crowd of people cheering in the street.

[Crankin]

Although I live outside of the area that was on lockdown, I am exhausted from following the news all day yesterday, wondering what would happen next. As I was driving north, toward my office, I heard a news person on the radio say that the search was going to be extended north, maybe to NH. I had a momentary second of fright, but it was just momentary.
Many, many people I know well were affected by the lockdown, including a friend from grad school who lives on the same street as the bombers. She was evacuated. I have another friend who lives in Watertown, and while she was not in the neighborhood of the search, she was posting from inside her condo all day; her sister does live inside the perimeter they established and she had SWAT teams in her home all day long.

[shootingstar]

It was necessary to apprehend him.

I feel sad on several different fronts:
For the people who died, who were injured.
For the family of the bombers. (When there is mental illness, marginalization in a family to lead family member to kill others..., it would be upsetting to other family members)
For the death of the lst bomber ....which to me, looked close enough be to a suicide also.

As for the cheering and all that. It's the total opposite ..it's all of the above.

[Crankin]

I am not sure what you mean by the above, Shooting Star. The clapping was for all the hard work of the law enforcement personnel and first responders in keeping everyone safe while trying to apprehend a very dangerous person. This point has been reiterated again and again by every person I've heard speak on the local news.

[Jolt]

Many, many people I know well were affected by the lockdown, including a friend from grad school who lives on the same street as the bombers. She was evacuated. I have another friend who lives in Watertown, and while she was not in the neighborhood of the search, she was posting from inside her condo all day; her sister does live inside the perimeter they established and she had SWAT teams in her home all day long.

Yikes! What a relief it must be for them now that he has been caught.

[Triskeliongirl]

I also think you misunderstood shooting star. I am with Crankin. My daughter was under lockdown. She lives on river street in Cambridge, the site of the police chase the night before. She spent 26 hours terrified and hungry under lockdown, listening to the sounds of gunfire and explosions. The cheers were in appreciation for the hard work of all involved (many first responders had been out there 24 hours straight with no rest), that they finally took him with no more loss of life, and people could safely go outside again, could sleep again, and at least most of them (or course not the wounded) could return to some semblance of normalcy. I am 55 years old, and I NEVER remember a major US city under lockdown like that for that long. They were cheers of relief, which is exactly what I felt when I knew my daughter was safe again.

[SheFly]

Like Crankin, I am outside of the lockdown area, but yesterday was very stressful, regardless. We stayed in most of the day with the doors locked, just in case. MANY of our friends live in the immediate area, including one couple whose house could virtually be seen in every press conference (they live next to the Arsenal Mall). With no public transit and people being told to stay out of the city, the environment was surreal. We did end up going out for a ride, and even, later, out to dinner, and the lack of traffic and busy-ness anywhere on a beautiful Friday was very evident.

I cried last night. I cried for those lost and injured. I cried for those I know personally who were impacted - as runners, as first responders, as those caught in the lockdown. I cried out of relief that the perpetrator had been captured with no further loss of life or injury to others.

I tell you all this to give you a sense of what it was like here emotionally, even for those of us 14 miles outside of Boston. The emotions were raw for a week, and will continue to be for some time to come.

Hug your loved ones. Take time for your family and friends. Enjoy what the day gives you - every day. In the words of my adopted home this week - "stay Boston strong".

SheFly

[Crankin]

SheFly echoes everything I feel. I have always been extremely proud of my birthplace and its unique place in history.
Which is why after 21 years in 2 other states where the "living was easy," I chose to return, so my own children could experience what I did.
And, I'm really glad I did.

[Triskeliongirl]

SheFly echoes everything I feel. I have always been extremely proud of my birthplace and its unique place in history.
Which is why after 21 years in 2 other states where the "living was easy," I chose to return, so my own children could experience what I did.
And, I'm really glad I did.

This impacted me a lot emotionally too. Not just because I had to comfort a daughter through it but it was my hood too. I grew up in a suburb of Boston, was educated in Boston /Cambridge, ran the Boston marathon in my youth. For me it got really personal when the MIT officer was killed. I was a postdoc at MIT, its where I met my husband. It's where my son did his undergrad studies, its where my daughter is starting her PhD studies, in fact it happened right outside the neuroscience building where my daughter will soon be working. My daughter posted on Facebook my phone keeps auto correcting gun shots to fun shots. Indeed what 26 year old should be posting about gun shots! The coolest part was when they were under lockdown and couldn't go out to buy food I told her pool ingredients with folks in the other units in your building and make a wonderful terror Day meal that one day u an tell your children about. And that is exactly what they did. People were applauding because they felt SAFE again.