Guest guest Posted April 29, 2003 Report Share Posted April 29, 2003 > Wow last night I experienced my first earthquake. Around 4 in the morning > dh and I woke up with the house rattling. Ah, yes, when I lived in Panama years ago, I was in an earthquake. It was 5.5 on the Richter scale, so it was too small to do any really serious damage but big enough to terrify me. My father was teaching for a couple of semesters at the little extension that Florida State University (where he taught in those days) had in Panama. We were only there for a few months so naturally we kept our house in Florida and rented an apartment on the third floor of an old wooden house on stilts from military housing in WWII (this was in 1970). There were earth tremors all the time. You could really feel them on the top floor of a house on stilts. I'd lie in my bed at night and there would be a second that I felt as if I were floating -- that was the tremor. But the earthquake was different. First the dogs barked, very noticeably before, and then the whole house shook. My mother had been in an earthquake before and she shouted for us all to go and stand in the archways, the strongest part of the house. It was over in seconds, I am sure, but it felt like hours. I was terrified. I had been enjoying Panama; I was amused by the newspaper, delivered free to all Americans, that quoted Teddy Roosevelt saying that he had not intention of creating a separate country in the middle of the State of Panama; I liked the jungles and the Canal and the parakeets that sat on the telephone wire outside our kitchen window; I liked the round green hills that looked as if they had been drawn by a kindergartner. Now however I wanted to go home immediately after the earthquake. Nowhere seemed safe when the earth could shake underneath you like that. We turned on the radio and sat and listened to it for I was sure I would never sleep again. The radio was playing a song that I had never heard before and have never heard since about " the fault line runs deep. " Salli Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 29, 2003 Report Share Posted April 29, 2003 Neat story Salli. (My father spent time in Panama with the millitary.) Again, the earth is an amazing thing! I am still awe-struck. (SAHM in GA) MSN elizabethloht@... n 33, mo, no formal dx Phoebe, 11 wks Remembering my earthquake > > Wow last night I experienced my first earthquake. Around 4 in the morning > > dh and I woke up with the house rattling. > > Ah, yes, when I lived in Panama years ago, I was in an earthquake. It was > 5.5 on the Richter scale, so it was too small to do any really serious > damage but big enough to terrify me. > > My father was teaching for a couple of semesters at the little extension > that Florida State University (where he taught in those days) had in Panama. > We were only there for a few months so naturally we kept our house in > Florida and rented an apartment on the third floor of an old wooden house on > stilts from military housing in WWII (this was in 1970). > > There were earth tremors all the time. You could really feel them on the > top floor of a house on stilts. I'd lie in my bed at night and there would > be a second that I felt as if I were floating -- that was the tremor. > > But the earthquake was different. First the dogs barked, very noticeably > before, and then the whole house shook. My mother had been in an earthquake > before and she shouted for us all to go and stand in the archways, the > strongest part of the house. It was over in seconds, I am sure, but it felt > like hours. > > I was terrified. I had been enjoying Panama; I was amused by the newspaper, > delivered free to all Americans, that quoted Teddy Roosevelt saying that he > had not intention of creating a separate country in the middle of the State > of Panama; I liked the jungles and the Canal and the parakeets that sat on > the telephone wire outside our kitchen window; I liked the round green hills > that looked as if they had been drawn by a kindergartner. Now however I > wanted to go home immediately after the earthquake. Nowhere seemed safe > when the earth could shake underneath you like that. > > We turned on the radio and sat and listened to it for I was sure I would > never sleep again. > > The radio was playing a song that I had never heard before and have never > heard since about " the fault line runs deep. " > > Salli > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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