[Kaderin Triste]

I heard there was a bit of damage and a power outage for the town that the quake was centered near. Other than my cats still being on edge, I don't think there was any damage where I'm at. It was definitely unmistakable as a quake though.

One of my friends was pretty excited because he loves natural disaster type stuff.
And in retrospect, it was kind of neat. Scary as all hell because my mind immediately jumped to "the building's gping to collapse", but kind of neat.

[Den]

Yeah, the 9/3/2016 quake, where I am, was enough to shake my bed, and stop the grandfather clock on the main floor. Reason I thought I had imagined it was because anxiety tends to make my legs shake if I'm in bed and it's acting up badly (last time it happened was due to a medication reaction) enough that I shake the bed. It wasn't really scary or anything, and the cause of it was fracking-related.

[Kaderin Triste]

Ah, I can see how the bed-shaking wouldn't really bother you in that case.

[Den]

Yeah. I thought to check the clock after the shaking stopped, but then I fell back asleep, came down a few hours later, and that's when I found out I hadn't been imagining things.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

I've been through a couple little ones. Since I grew up on the Pacific coast I've had earthquake procedures drilled into my head since kindergarden.

The reason for not standing in a door frame is the potential for being injured by the swinging door, since it can move. Standard drill procedure was to take cover under a sturdy piece of furniture, use one hand to hold onto it by a leg or something (because they can move), and put your other arm behind your head over your neck. When the shaking stops, count at least one minute (maybe two) to see if there are any aftershocks following. Then bolt for a big open space. Keep shoes by your bed for that purpose.

I haven't encountered anything more than rumbling and shaking furniture, myself. When I was living towards the interior, we had one quake that felt like a giant had punched the house, just one big *THUD* and my stepsister yelling WHAT THE %@*# WAS THAT!?" Apparently those were from the oil and gas activity in the area. Take enough stuff out of the ground and the gaps left behind would occasionally collapse as the Earth settled again.

[Kaderin Triste]

But uh...my one doorframe doesn't have a door... >.>
This was our first "big" aka:one we could feel quake in the area in 12 years, so the whole keeping shoes by the bed thing generally isn't something anyone even thinks about.

Oh wow....yeah, the idea of earth caving in isn't pleasant. Bet it can make some decent quakes. O.o

[Coda]

As mentioned earlier, the door frame thing is obsolete advice. It was valid for houses built before modern building codes because door frames were reinforced by virtue of having to have a door put into them. Anything built since, like, the 1960s is constructed in a more earthquake-resistant fashion, and you're in more danger from stuff on the walls falling down (or from YOU falling down) than you are from the walls themselves falling down, so you're better off taking cover under a heavy piece of furniture that will block the debris.

[Espy]

Though, the door frame thing /does/ lead to silly (in retrospect) stories, like my high school physics teacher (then in college) huddling in the door frame with his ass-naked roommate during the Northridge earthquake, which, incidentally, was five days after I was born :|

[XoGizmooX]

I (not sure what to do) would probably put a pillow over my head to stop head injuries and get in a fetal position in a hall or somewhere away from things above me


I've only had one I've went through in Texas and it was tiny and I literally was watching tv in bed and the bed was vibrating and I was o. O wth and it was only for a few seconds so no damage and nothing even fell or moved

It's our TORNADOES that get bad

[Quiet Man Cometh]

Anyone on the West Coast around here is nicely in that 'Ring of Fire" scientists like to talk about. There was some fear mongering over "the big one" when I was little so I was concerned about quakes for a time but it's largely worn off now. We all have earthquake kits, and a friend of ours who lives on an area around here that's below sea level has an axe and inflatable boat in his attic (at my mom's insistence).

[Coda]

Speaking of fire, my boss lives about ten miles from one of the huge wildfires. He was complaining about smoke in his eyes.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

Yeah, the fires have been bad. They're up here, too. One of my in-laws lost his house. They just had time to let the horses out, hook-up the fifth-wheel and drive off.

[Espy]

Originally Posted by Coda

Speaking of fire, my boss lives about ten miles from one of the huge wildfires. He was complaining about smoke in his eyes.

The ones down in Santa Barbara?

[Kaderin Triste]

Originally Posted by Coda

As mentioned earlier, the door frame thing is obsolete advice. It was valid for houses built before modern building codes because door frames were reinforced by virtue of having to have a door put into them. Anything built since, like, the 1960s is constructed in a more earthquake-resistant fashion, and you're in more danger from stuff on the walls falling down (or from YOU falling down) than you are from the walls themselves falling down, so you're better off taking cover under a heavy piece of furniture that will block the debris.

And, as mentioned earlier, this whole "doorframe issue" was caused by incorrect information passed along by school teachers approximately 20-ish years ago and in a state that seldom has earthquakes strong enough to be of any major note. The previous earthquake of any real note happened 12 years ago and I never felt it.
Having also been previously corrected on proper earthquake etiquette, I will know for the next big quake...in 10+years.

Gizzie: Ohhh...I would hate to live in a place that gets a lot of tornadoes! One of my friends loves them and really wants to stormchase in Tornado Alley. I will never ever go with him for that though.

[Quiet Man Cometh]

It's kind of interesting to see how relative the idea of danger is between locals and not. I can say I'd be scared of living in a high risk tornado area, but then, here I am in a high risk earthquake area and when people say as much I'm more or less "meh."

Speaking with my Australian roommate in uni at one point was something like
"OMG poisonous spiders! How do you EVEN!"
"But bears! I mean like BEARS!"

*Note: poster does not actually say "how do you even?"

There are quite a few animal encounter stories that float around the family, and one earthquake story, that being my brother who managed to sleep through one.

[Lawtan]

...the nearest fault line is over 150 miles away, if I recall, and isn't that active...so I don't experience much earthquake-wise.

*Offers hugs and food for kitties*