I have lived in California for a combined total of roughly 5 1/2 years and as most people know, California is known for earthquakes.  I felt my first earthquake about a year after we moved to San Diego – sometime in 2004.

Coincidentally,  that first earthquake I felt happened the day after I was asking all kinds of questions about what one is to do if there is an earthquake.  I had lived in San Diego an entire year and hadn’t felt a single shutter, but also realized I had no idea what I was supposed to do if I did.

The next day, I was sitting in my office and all of a sudden, I felt like I was falling out of my chair, I heard a low rumbling and my computer monitor was shaking.  It took me a minute to register what was happening and at nearly the exact moment I thought earthquake!, I heard my manager yell down the hall for everyone to get in their doorways.

I wasn’t scared – not even the slightest bit.  I don’t know why since the only information I had about earthquakes was from movies like the aptly named, Earthquake, 10.5 and Aftershock.  None of these movies featured slight tremors, they used the best special effects available to them at the time to create an unbelievably huge earthquake.

I stood in my doorway with a stupid grin on my face while my co-workers maintained a more stoic appearance.  Afterall, most them were California natives – they knew what could happen and fortunately, it didn’t.  There was another aftershock that day, but only minimal damage to a couple of store fronts.

Feeling an earthquake was one of those things that I couldn’t even fathom what it would be like until it happened.  It was the same sense of wonder I had when I found out I was pregnant.  I couldn’t imagine what it was going to feel like to have a baby kick me from the inside. 

There were a couple of earthquakes today – neither of them felt by me.  I can’t say that I like feeling the earth move under my feet (you got that song in your head now, don’t you?), since they can obviously be extremely dangerous, but on those slight little tremors where there is no damage or injuries, I feel like I missed out on Mother Nature’s free little amusement park ride.