Say what you will, but...

All of you nature's fury and/or thrill loving individuals can say what you want to, but earthquakes are creepy.  If anyone read my Facebook post yesterday, you know that I had a minor psychotic break during the whole episode.  I can handle many things, given enough warning.  Throw thunderstorms, tornadoes, hurricanes and the like to me and I can prepare with the best of 'em.  But, the earth shifting and potentially opening up to swallow us whole?  Nope!  I am *not* your girl.

I was on the phone when things went awry yesterday.  Sitting in my third floor office with a bank of three large windows, I noticed something didn't quite feel right.  For a moment, I thought that there was a strong wind gust against the windows because I heard a slight roaring/moaning sound.  I looked out the window and didn't see anything (of course).  But, I got the sensation that we were moving.  It was almost as if someone was standing behind my chair and rolling me back and forth, though not what I would consider a violent movement.  I really didn't know what to do.  I hung up on the lady on the phone and now I cannot remember if I actually said out loud that I would call her back or if it was merely in my brain.  I got a bit panicky and quickly went out of my office to confirm that I was not just having a dizzy/sick spell.  Wouldn't you know it? Every office and cubicle on my little hallway was empty.  My phone beeped and I saw an email from Nate saying "holy s*** we just had an earthquake".  In a way, I was relieved that I was not, in fact, imagining things.

The stories just flood on from there...But, the entire afternoon's events with all the stories, media coverage and the like just left me with such an uneasy feeling.  Of course, it pales in comparison with the ones that strike CA and such on a regular basis.  And the one in Japan?  It was 60,000 times the sensed magnitude of what we felt here.  My brain cannot even comprehend.  That said, if you are a resident of the east coast as I have been my entire life, this sort of thing doesn't happen here.  It's freaky.  There's nothing you can do to prepare.  In the few seconds that I felt it, the only words that come to mind are "confusion" and "helpless".  Put that on a grand scale, and I can say without hesitation that I would be unable to handle it.  I would be the person running around screaming and someone would have to punch me in the head to knock me out cold if I didn't faint first from the fear.

So, if the "big one" does come and you are standing nearby, you have my permission to just go ahead and clock me.  But, make it count.  It could save a life.  (namely, mine..:))