In the Wake of the Quake

Tuesday, August 23, was a strange but good day. Shawn had off work for bereavement. I made us a huge breakfast, including scrambled eggs, bacon, pancakes cooked in bacon grease and topped with brown butter syrup. The boys each ate a ton of pancakes! By the time I got to the table, there was hardly a thing left. I was shocked! I made a big pot of coffee, knowing I would need the caffeine to stay awake that evening for class.

One thing that I've learned about Shawn is that he needs his alone time, especially if he doesn't feel well or if there's something that's bothering him, etc. So he decided to mow and do some yard work, and I knew that was also to take some time to be by himself. I kept the boys inside with me. Eventually Caleb went down for a nap, but Joshua insisted he wasn't tired and I allowed him to have quiet time where he looked through books at his desk.

As I was feeding Ryan on the old rocking chair in our office, it began to shake. And not just a little quiver, but really SHAKE! I thought maybe Caleb had gotten up and I somehow missed him. I looked behind my chair. Nope! No Caleb. But, the shaking woke an almost-asleep Ryan. I asked Joshua if he felt the shaking. He said that he thought Daddy might have put the garage door down. Looking back, I see how clever this thought process was. The room does rumble slightly when the garage door goes up and down since the garage is right below it. I was trying to remember if I'd ever been on the rocking chair when the garage door was moving - I couldn't really remember. So, I thought maybe Joshua was right. Between that and my coffee, maybe it was just me shaking? I wasn't sure. It was a strange feeling, though. I thought maybe this old nasty chair was finally falling completely apart under my weight. Then I went on facebook later and realized it was... AN EARTHQUAKE!!!

Shawn missed the earthquake because he was pushing a vibrating mower. But, I didn't! I felt it! And so did many of my friends and family. What a strange feeling! From what I understand, the quake started in VA (or as some folks would say, along the Obama FAULT - ha!) and was a 5.8 on the Richter scale. I called my Mom who was at the beach to tell her, and she said she saw cans falling off the grocery store shelves. Bizarre feeling!

That afternoon, I rushed to get ready for school on time and left about 4:30, which it still took me over an hour to get to York. UGH! But, at least this time I was on time and prepared. The earthquake was all the rage as students were arriving and telling me where they were when they felt it, etc. This class went much better. And even though it was still a LONG night, I felt better about the evening. Only three more to go!

Shawn's family came just as I was about to leave, and they all went to dinner together at Hoss'. From what I hear, Joshua was a complete ham. Both older boys love time with Mamaw & Papaw, Aunt Erica & Aunt Missy, and Daddy. Ryan will be right there with them soon enough! He ate well for Daddy, too, again - which is a huge relief to me as I'm teaching.

So, all in all, Tuesday was a good but very strange day - I'd say even shaky!