Last Week {drama}

Last Tuesday there was an earthquake. In Maryland. I was standing by a coworker’s desk when the vibration first started. She looked up at me and asked, “What is that?!” I replied with surprise, “That’s an earthquake.”

I never thought I would say those words while in Maryland. Never. I mean, I knew it was possible to feel an earthquake here, but it’s incredibly rare. It really brought back memories of Taiwan. I still dislike earthquakes and still think it’s a surreal experience.

Very few of my coworkers have been in an earthquake before and had no idea what to do. If you’ve always wondered what to do and what not to do, check out http://www.ready.gov/. It has very good information. Another good resource for learning all about earthquakes is earthquake.usgs.gov. Happy reading!

Rusty was already home from work on Tuesday and was relaxing on the couch taking a siesta. It’s disorienting to be woken up by an earthquake when you know what it is, but he has never been in an earthquake before. So yeah, he was very disoriented. He very aptly described the experience by exclaiming, “The house was jumping out of the ground!”

Next we all began prepping for hurricane Irene. I made my non-perishable goods shopping and to-do lists. Since I was off Friday, I planned to be at the grocery store when they opened at 6:00 am.

At 4:30 am on Friday, the phone rang. It was Rusty calling to tell me that he had been in an accident…someone had run into him and he flew off the road. He was ok but he wasn’t sure about the pick-up truck. He was waiting on the police to arrive and would call me later.

I lay back down for a few minutes, trying to wrap my head around what just happened. Then I got up and got myself dressed and ready in case I needed to drive up and get him. I sat on the couch, worrying until he called again. The police had arrived and he was waiting to see if he could drive his truck or if it would have to be towed. I told him I was ready to drive up to get him if need be.

Then I sat on the couch and worried some more. And some more. I heard a car door slam and looked out but didn’t see the truck or Rusty. I heard the noise again and opened the front door. He was home! I let him walk in and set his stuff down before I tackled him in a hug. After I held him for a minute or five, I asked him what happened.

It was just after 4:00 am and it was raining. Rusty saw lights on the left and thought someone was going to pass him. Instead, a truck slammed into his door, pushing him towards the shoulder at 55 mph. He hit a small dip in the grassy shoulder before driving up an embankment and launching into the air. The truck came down hard on all four tires and started sliding on the wet grass. An electrical pole loomed just ahead in the glow of the headlights. Rusty desperately tried to brake and steer away from the pole, but the truck’s momentum and the wet grass did not allow for either.

Miraculously, he missed the pole and only clipped the plastic on the support wire. You know the wires that come down to the ground and form a triangle? In fact, the truck slid in-between the pole and the wire. God must have been steering the truck to manage that. I mean, really! Wow. The truck continued to slide on the grass for a good 100 feet before finally stopping. Thank you, God, for keeping my husband safe! I’m incredibly thankful. Most of the shoulders on that stretch of highway are lined with trees, not grassy fields. I’m so thankful! The truck is still at the auto body shop. We don’t know yet if it will be fixed or totaled. It’s pretty old, so our chances aren’t very good. We would like to have it fixed, since it’s just a beat-up old work truck.

In spite of the accident drama, I was still able to complete our hurricane preparations for the next day.

Water, check.
Ice, check.
Non-perishable foods, check.
Batteries, check.
Radio, check.
Flashlights, check.
Candles, check.
Matches, check.
Pick up stuff outside, check.
Exhaustion, check.

And on Saturday, Irene made her presence known. The rain and the wind were fierce. We lost power at 5:40 pm and got it back at 7:40 pm…only to lose it again about 45 minutes later. We watched the storm in silence for a while, trees bending and branches falling. I turned on the radio and we listened and chatted by candlelight.

Eventually we went to bed, but I had a hard time fall asleep. Every time I would get close to slumber, another tree branch/limb would hit the house. Or Rusty would snore (he was super exhausted so he had no trouble sleeping). And then, around midnight, the smoke detector decided to beep and indicate that it was time to change the battery. Are. You. Kidding. Me. In the middle of a hurricane?! Good grief! Try changing the battery when you are that tired. Talk about a comedy of errors.

The next morning we looked outside to see what had transpired. Some neighbors had lost trees, but all ours were still where they belonged. Thank you, Lord! We helped neighbors cut up and move fallen trees for a few hours until the power came back on. Hallelujah! I certainly didn’t expect it to come back on that early. We still have our own yard to clean up...and that should only take forever. Fabulous.

That was too much adventure for one week. I'm ready for some normal days again.

But there is a tropical storm out in the Atlantic...uh oh...