Firstly I want to thank yu all for your concern and comments, very heartening and I have missed you all very much.
To say that I was scared at 12.51pm on Tuesday 22 february 2011 would be an understatement. I thougth we had got used to the way of life that was a few shakes here and there, with the odd biggie...not so. And now I have the luxury of doing it all again, tomorrow it will be the 6 month 'anniversary' of ur 7.1 earthquake. I'm hoping Mother Nature will let it pass without comment. The 6.3 saw me having to clamber over things in my office, a colleague had to garpple with my door to open it and we shot thru like corks outta a champers bottle for the stairs, which were covered in dust and bricks which had falled into the stariwell from the neighbouring building. I picked a fine day to wear my new shoes with the F*** Me heels!! I have scapes and bruises all over my legs and arms from the trip oput of the building but I managed to get my camaera and take some photos in the minutes after it all before grabbing my car and heading home (along with half the city) as my two girls were at home alone - having a teacher only afternoon at the high school meant they had been let out of school at 12.15pm. They must have been terrified, but the Scowly One got her sister our of the house and they went to check on neighbours before waiting for one of us to some home from the relative safety of the front yard.
I'm really tired but will post a photo of what I first saw when I was brave enough to enter the house, I HAD to rescue the one remaining bottle of Deutz champers form my birthday....
The house is badly damaged but we will rebuild and we will get on with it. There is little point doing anything else! :-)
16 comments:
I've order a very stiff drink for you. Great to hear from you.
I reckon wearing Your F*** Me heels on that day was appropriate given you and so many others went through F***in' Hell.
Heartfelt thanks to the great shaker in the sky and a plea that, in future, he rattles his beads somewhere else.
Saj! I am so relieved to have word from you! To see that idomitable, albeit bruised, spirit coming out fighting with a bottle of champers in one hand and a certain finger raised to the sky in the other. I have so many things I'm wondering about your situation (where are you staying? do you still have work/workplace to go to? how is Ernie? the rabbits? the liquor stores? how much work to do on the house? are the girls going to school? etc. etc.) BUT I am just so happy to see this flare you've sent up that I will not burden you with questions but only wrap you up with love and encouragement like a big cozy red shawl. You're in my thoughts every day. xo
Just to glad to hear you are OK and that your family are OK. You had us all worried for while there! How's the rabbit hutch? Is it still standing? ;-)
Ooooh. Your gonna need a bigga hoover. So glad to read your up beat post here Sarg. You at least appear to be in fairly good spirits. Huge relief to hear that you and the girls and the animals, all escaped physical injury.
It must have been truly terrifying. I’ve only had one very brief experience of an earthquake tremor in Greece some years ago, and of course it was of no comparison what so ever to your tragic quake – but it shook me up for a bit (seriously - no pun intended by the way) with its ungodly noise and power.
The thought of what you have all experienced sends chills down my spine. Glad to see your roofs not in your basement, although you must have all been in a serious state of fear and tension at night, with the worry about further after shocks and the resultant damage to your weakened property structure.
I’m pretty sure I’d be camping outside with the pussy cats even now. I admire your collective courage and resolve to ‘get on with it’. All power and best wishes to you all for now. Thinking of you daily. xx
So good to hear from you! I'm so relieved you and your family are safe, which is the most important thing. I am so sorry about your house, but as you say, that can be rebuilt. Hang in there and continue to count your blessings while moving forward with the rebuilding process which I hope is speedy and smooth.
Love the line, shot thru like corks outta a champers bottle. Thank goodness your sense of humor is still well intact!
Ditto all of the above !
Now, did any glasses survive or are we going to have to drink that out of the bottle ???
What a relief to hear/read you.
Wishing you all much patience, strength and good mood.
Glad you're doing OK - and keep that positive attitude!
dude! you know, things obscenely normal and dull here, we rely on you for the action. wishing you lots of champagne in your jam jars xxx
Nice havin' ya backski.
jesus, sag, what a trauma, nothing short of that. you are very brave, that is so obvious. when you mentioned your daughters being home without you i shivered.
you deserve two new pairs of shoes. three even.
with love
kj
p.s. i have to apologize for not inquiring about your safety and stopping by before now. i didn't put it together. the world becomes small for me in blogging and i think you could just as well be one of my favorite neighbors.
i am very glad you and your family are okay.
Oh good, there you are! Glad you managed to salvage the important champers.
I guess life becomes very unreal when it kind of all falls apart like that.
Missed you and worried about you but was glad to hear from Pixie that you were OK.
Thanks again, your visits here are much appreciated. I'm still tidying up and we have had some nice aftershocks, lost water again and now have it again!
We're currently living in our Hobo Shack (Quake Chic decore) and doing what we can each day. The kids will be bussed across town from next week to attend a school for half a day and when a decision is made about our work building we will know if/when we can go back to work, in the interim I am doing what I can from home.
The cats and rabbits are fine and are no longer being viewed as an alternative food source.
The house will either be able to be repaired or demolished - some bucketarse assessor will make that call "sometime" and we just do our thing while we wait.
It's all good, we're lucky to be here to complain about it. xx
Wow, an eye opener for us here in tame old UK.
Really good to see you OK and still managing to link comments with a good ol' drink.
Bet you felt like 'Every day tipples'
I know I would.
John x
So glad you and yours are okay.
wish there was something, some actual *thing* that we could all do to help.
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