Last night I was still at work, along with three co-workers, trying to finalize a Captain Chaos project. My first thought was that a train was going by, but then I realized I was on the third floor of a building far away from the train track. Captain Chaos, an L.A. native burst out of his office, "It's a big one, folks!" Gentle Man hurried over to a doorframe. I huddled near a cubicle divider. It felt like the room was gently rippling. Nothing fell off the walls or even shifted on our desks, just a rolling motion. Even after the big rolls ebbed there were tiny ripples that continued.
My phone rang, "Did you feel that?!" Jrex exclaimed.
"Yeah, we were all huddling for safety. Are you at home?"
"I was just about to leave to head back into lab for something. I think I'd better stay home for at least another 20 minutes or so, Muttola is whining and wandering the apartment freaking out. I just thought it was the train, but then I realized there was no horn. Um...we are planning on moving back east, right? I'll take a blizzard over an earthquake anytime."
The Californians in the room at work were all excited, "That was a good one. What fun!" One coworker tried to call his Mom and had trouble getting through on the landline though his cell phone ended up working. "That was big"
I said to them, "I HOPE that was a really big one, cause if it wasn't, I don't want to know how much worse it could get!"
One looked it up on line and called out, "It was a 5.6!"
"What!? That's not high enough!" They laughed. Mocked my pain. Sigh.
Then we all went back to work. I'm starting to understand why most Californians just shrug and say, "Oh, you get used to it" when I ask about earthquakes.
Not that I'm used to it yet!
7 comments:
Well, you are an official Bayarean now. Congratulations.
Oh, I couldn't handle that. My husband and I are both so paranoid about natural disasters. Every time something happens down South lately, we look at each other and say, "Yeah, but Virginia's really safe; they never have any of that." We're probably jinxing ourselves.
I'm glad you posted...I've been wondering all day about you guys, assuming you're safe, but hoping you'd post...
I'm with Jrex - I'll take a blizzard over an earthquake any day! Ofcourse, where I'm headed, neither of those will be expected. Come to think of it, other than a lot of really hot days, and the occassional big thunderstorm, I'm not sure there's any form weather/natural craziness!
Wow. I have to say that's pretty cool. I'll never forget the time we moved to an area right on the New Madrid fault when I was a teen. I was in chemistry class and had just turned off the Bunsen Burner when the floor started moving. The building ended up with foundation cracks, so we got to go home. After that, my family filled a trash can full of earthquake supplies, as well as a box of some supplies for our vehicles. But as long as we lived there, we never had any more adventures like that.
But I'm with you....blizzards are more fun, and a little easier to plan for.
holy... I remember the ONE time I experience an earthquake... things fell off the wall. It was considered a 'little' one. I did NOT like that feeling... one bit.
I thought about you two, too, when I heard the report. I was trying to figure out if you were 7 miles north of San Jose. I hoped you would have been taught to stand in the door frame. Do you remember that my #1 daughter went to UCSC just a month before the quake of '89 (during the World Series) It was centered near her and very scary. PS I want you to stay on the West Coast!
Wow, I just realized it's been a while since I really felt an earthquake, so I suppose that means we're due for a noticeable one. I remember the first earthquake I felt after my family moved to California in 1977. Our hanging lamp was swinging and we called the neighbors to ask a lot of questions. Quite a feeling if you're not used to it. Hang in there!
Post a Comment