After waking up at 4pm due to a headache and weak constitution I was welcomed an hour later by an earthquake. I have a habit of counting how long an earthquake lasts so I counted
1....2...3.... while staring up at the ceiling and watching the light sway above me
20...21....22.... this was getting a bit long and the intensity wasn't stopping
43....44...45.... maybe I should get under the table and duck and cover like I learned as a kid in California
62....63...64.... this is making my headache so much worse
76...77... I'm starting to lose count but an earthquake that lasts this long can't be good news
S rushes back into the house and turns on the TV. There's a tsunami warning. Seriously? I can't quite believe what's happening so I grab two things: my laptop and my dog, Momo.
We drive the car to the other house and make sure that everyone is in a vehicle and ready to escape. From there we drive toward the mountains and get stuck in traffic 3/4 of the way there. Still dazed I look out the window at the line of cars--how long does it take before a tsunami hits? Some people are on foot, carrying backpacks and valuables. One old man walks by with nothing but a rice cooker and the clothes on his back. I think to how I left both my wallet and passport at the house.
After waiting for somewhere around an hour and listening to the radio announcer repeat over and over (in Japanese) "This is a tsunami warning, please relocate to higher ground. Please run away to higher ground. Do not ever stop running", we finally decide that it is probably safe and head home. The juxtaposition of the continuous warning and the site at home was stark. Our home was completely undisturbed and dry.
News reports state that the earthquake was magnitude 7.3 off the coast near Sendai (about an hour away) with a possible tsunami reaching 2.9 meters. However, the actual tsunami was 1 meter and did not travel very far. The shadow of the 3.11 earthquake and tsunami still looms over Japan as warnings and precautions are taken, perhaps even more than necessary.
1....2...3.... while staring up at the ceiling and watching the light sway above me
20...21....22.... this was getting a bit long and the intensity wasn't stopping
43....44...45.... maybe I should get under the table and duck and cover like I learned as a kid in California
62....63...64.... this is making my headache so much worse
76...77... I'm starting to lose count but an earthquake that lasts this long can't be good news
S rushes back into the house and turns on the TV. There's a tsunami warning. Seriously? I can't quite believe what's happening so I grab two things: my laptop and my dog, Momo.
We drive the car to the other house and make sure that everyone is in a vehicle and ready to escape. From there we drive toward the mountains and get stuck in traffic 3/4 of the way there. Still dazed I look out the window at the line of cars--how long does it take before a tsunami hits? Some people are on foot, carrying backpacks and valuables. One old man walks by with nothing but a rice cooker and the clothes on his back. I think to how I left both my wallet and passport at the house.
After waiting for somewhere around an hour and listening to the radio announcer repeat over and over (in Japanese) "This is a tsunami warning, please relocate to higher ground. Please run away to higher ground. Do not ever stop running", we finally decide that it is probably safe and head home. The juxtaposition of the continuous warning and the site at home was stark. Our home was completely undisturbed and dry.
News reports state that the earthquake was magnitude 7.3 off the coast near Sendai (about an hour away) with a possible tsunami reaching 2.9 meters. However, the actual tsunami was 1 meter and did not travel very far. The shadow of the 3.11 earthquake and tsunami still looms over Japan as warnings and precautions are taken, perhaps even more than necessary.
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