Shake, Rattle and Roll

Any of you who were in the NYC area on September 11, 2001 will understand why I and several of my colleagues had a near panic attack yesterday.  Earthquake is not part of the language on the East Coast.  We know they exist, however, because we are not 111 years old, it did not at first occur to any of us that the shaking of the building was actually a quake.  A collapsing building we might have believed but an earthquake?  Can't be.  Until the official word came that yes, that is exactly what it was.  While it is possible but highly unlikely that we will ever experience the feeling again here, in retrospect I am thankful in a wierd sort of way that I did get to know the feeling.  This is not to say I ever WANT to know the feeling again but just that it sort of gave me a perspective on what to expect.  We learned a lot too.  We did commit the one major crime it seems of taking to the streets when we should have found a nice cozy spot under our desks.  Hard to do if you are in a panic mode - which is the second major mistake to make.  I realize that folks on the West Coast are putting out a bunch of mock criticisms of us Easterners but honestly I don't know how they cope with the constant threat of these disasters.  I guess this is yet another example of that old saying that you would always choose your own problems over those of others.  It could be because mistakes and heartaches always teach or it could be that...........IJTWLI