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.