So yesterday was the a gorgeous day. The icky humidity was gone, we woke up to temperatures in the 50's and a gleaming blue sky.

About 20 to 30 minutes  before 2 PM, my cat got really whiny. She sat at the window and cried. Then she went down the stairs to the door and cried. Finally she went and hid under the bed.

I was at my desk trying to get some work accomplished when it happened. We live near Quantico, so to have the windows rattle isn't unusual.  That was my first thought, Quantico was really going at it.  Then, I thought maybe Dale had some kind of big truck at his construction site outside. Then I realized, freak, it's an earthquake!!! I jumped out of my chair and ran for the door jam. Then I thought, I'm on the second floor, maybe not so safe! So, I dashed down the stairs and out the door and away from the building. Everyone who was on the property was abuzz.  What was it?  Was it an earthquake?  Jennifer, who lived in CA for a long while, said she'd never experienced anything like it out there.  Rachael wanted me to check the internet, but I'd left my phone in my apartment.  So, I reluctantly went back up the stairs and Googled earthquakes.  It took me to the USGS and the fact that the quake had been a 5.8 and was centered near Mineral, VA.   In Virginia? A 5.8? I knew Mineral was somewhere out 522 toward Culpeper.

Facebook blew up with exclamations of  "was that really an earthquake?" And the news people were all completely rattled (like my pun). Rumors abounded, the weirdest one, the Washington Monument was leaning. It turned out that there is a crack at the top of "the national pen," as I have heard kids called it, and it's closed for the time being. As the day went on we heard of damage in Culpeper and even an apartment complex in DC that was structurally compromised. At my house, as far I can tell the only impact on my place was a drawer and a cabinet thrown open. Of course, the exodus from DC was hellacious, but like that would be surprising at all.

Then I got an e-mail from Pete.  They evacuated his building. In Pittsburgh! Really?  The red circle on the news just grew and grew.  It was felt from GA to Chicago to Nova Scotia.

Then last night at about 8 PM, the first aftershock. It was just a second, but definitely was there. It was 4.2. And I was pretty sure I felt one after I went to bed last night.  The news confirmed it, 12:45 AM around a 3.

I know people who live on the west coast that think we're being silly to freak out so much about this quake.  But holy heck, nothing like this has happened here since the 1800s!  Definitely not a disaster, just a little shake up to an otherwise normal day.

Monticello

Yesterday afternoon when I got to Charlottesville, I decided I would head over to Monticello and take some pictures. It's my second time visiting the house. Thomas Jefferson was an amazing man. Fluent in seven languages, a scientist, an architect, an inventor, a visionary.  There's certainly no one like him in government today. Here's a few pictures I took on the grounds.  The gardens are beautiful. First the flowers....

 Now the veggies!

I didn't know that's what asparagus looks like!

And look who greeted me on my way back to the house!

I'm a Traveling Woman

Part of June and all of July has been life in motion for me. It started with a couple trips to Baltimore for work, which also allowed me to see my best friend Kelly.  Then I got to travel to Texas and Oklahoma for Emily Simpson's wedding.  Emily is the middle daughter of my former boss. I love each of those girls so much and I was so glad to get to see them and spend some time with them. I also got to hang for five days with my dear friend Cindy and some of her family. Cindy left me to move to Spokane like four years ago. I  miss her smile and laugh so much.

I spent the first 10 days of July in Charlottesville, dog sitting. I'm starting to be able to navigate around town without my GPS.  I was home for a couple days and then went to Pittsburgh for my family reunion. It was nice to see my aunts and uncles and cousins. It's sure a reminder that time is forever on the move though.  I remember when I was the amongst the young crowd and now my cousins and I are all showing that those days are past us. I also got to spend some time with my best friend from high school and go to a Pirate game with my twin brother Pete. PNC Park is a stunning field, but it was the first time it felt brimming with excitement. The Pirates are winning this season for the first time in a long time. I still don't really know any of the players names like I did back in the 70's and 80's, but it was fun to watch them win in extra innings after a lengthy rain delay.

Then I came home for a couple more days and headed to Wilmington, NC to visit some friends. It had been seven years since I'd seen the Jeremias family and even longer since I'd been at their home in Wilmington. Boy, was that choice a mistake. It was so good to bask in the joy of their company. Got to say, I think I could live there: the opportunity to go to a beach every day if you wanted, a quaint downtown area, friends close by, and most importantly, a Target. ;-). I came home for a couple days and now I'm back in Charlottesville, chilling with the puppies.

I am really grateful to have a job where doing this is so possible. I have been able to work my regular hours and just take a couple of my vacation days to make this happen. I've even been able to keep most of my guitar students and lead worship on Sundays. I think for the most part, after this week, August will be stationary, but I have kind of liked being a traveling woman.  Anyone want a visitor?