things that go shake in the night

i have no solid understanding of the science of earthquakes...but i do know that if the house shakes enough things will fall down...right? the safety booklets say to hide under something sturdy like a desk or table...but what if the only stable thing close to you is your futon? that's exactly what i hide under this morning when the earth decided to shake and shiver. there are many earthquake safety procedures, but i am usually too frozen with fear to remember any of the tips i have read or heard. it's hard to describe the feeling of an earthquake...do you remember at the end of grease when danny and sandy swish and sway on the shakey machine? well, it's kinda like having your house thrown onto the shakey ride. japanese friends say i will get used to the feeling...i doubt i am ever going to get used to the feeling of my apartment suddenly turning into a sailing boat on the choppy 'land'. i comfort myself with the thought that regular, small to medium shakes and shimmers are 'relieving the pressure' and warding off 'the big one'. i really have no idea if this is a scientifically sound theory...but it keeps me somewhat sane.

p.s authorities suggest that residents practice a survival walk from their workplace to home, preparing for the unthinkable...many survival walks taking up to 17 hours.



taken from Japan Today:

Wednesday, February 16, 2005 at 16:00 JST

TOKYO — An earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale shook the Tokyo area and much of eastern Japan before dawn on Wednesday, jolting many residents out of bed and causing minor injuries to at least 27 people in a fresh reminder of Japan's seismic dangers.

The quake registered at 4:46 a.m. with the epicenter in Ibaraki Prefecture, about 130 kilometers northeast of Tokyo with a focus 40 kilometers underground, the Japan Meteorological Agency said.