All Shook Up

We had an earthquake on Sunday night. 5.0...well, it was first reported at 5.0, then down-graded to 4.7. Either way, it was un-nerving.

We are in Southern California. And, though I've lived nearly my whole life in this area, I will never get used to the earth moving under my feet. People may joke about it, laugh it off. But nothing can give you a more unsettling feeling than that.

I've experienced many earthquakes. I can remember as far back as...well...I think it was 1972. It was nighttime and I was scared. I vaguely remember my mom spending the rest of the night with me in my bed, calming my fears (or possibly hers). So when Sunday's 4.7 hit and my kids felt insecure, I could definitely relate.

Since that early memory, there have been many more that have made the news here in California. But none were as frightening as the 7.1 quake that hit the San Francisco Bay area (I believe it was 1989). As irony would have it, that was during a 2 year stint when I was living about 20 minutes from downtown SF. Most quakes do little, or no damage. However, this one was different. It really did make the routine of life come to a halt. Stores ran out of products. Roads were closed. Bridges broken. Freeways crushed. People actually lost their lives. There were no jokes then.

That was 20 years ago. I was young, on my own...responsible for no one else. I clearly saw the need to be prepared with food and water. And so, the experience did help me become proactive in emergency preparedness, if only for my own sake.

Enter marriage. Enter parenthood. Enter diabetes.

No longer am I on my own. I have 4 other people I need to consider. It's time to re-prepare our household. Time to re-stock water and food. C's pump supplies just arrived Friday. Time to stop cutting it so close. Time to stock up on extra insulin, test strips, glucagon, prep wipes, lancets, JUICE. It is not unimaginable that stores could close, the mail system be delayed. I guess this was a little wake-up call.