the day the earth did not stand still

so, toronto had an earthquake today.

it was only a 5.0 on the richter scale, which is moderate and would likely be uneventful in many parts of the world. but it sure was freaky here in my apartment.

i was sitting at my desk when it happened. at first, there was a bouncing feeling, as though someone or something REALLY heavy was jumping up and down in the hallway outside. but the building is made of concrete so, when the bouncing sensation didn't stop after a few seconds (i.e., i realized it wasn't a big construction truck rumbling past), i stood up. it kept going.

then my windows started creaking, as though super-strong winds were blowing against them. then my front door started doing the same thing.

the bouncing stopped and changed to more of an undulating feeling, as though the whole building was swaying. i looked at the water in my water jug and noticed it swaying side to side. then i noticed my curtains were all doing the same thing, in unison.

i actually said aloud, to no one (i was alone), "this is an earthquake!"

my heart started pounding a little -- having never felt anything this dramatic before, and being on the middle floor of an apartment building, i wondered what i should do. sure, it might stop within seconds, but what if it went on or got worse?

i quickly got dressed (it had been a pyjama day up to that point) and all movement had stopped by the time i was done. in total, it lasted maybe 30 seconds.

but i still wasn't sure if it had actually been an earthquake, or if there had been some kind of construction-related incident down the street at a new condo development. so i flipped on the 24-hour news channel about one second before the anchor announced "breaking news!" and launched into an excited exclamation that southern ontario had just been shaken and stirred.

about a minute later, my mom phoned. "did you feel the earthquake?!" she asked. she, too, had turned on the same TV channel and had seen the report. she said the house started shaking, but that she was the only one awake to witness it. (dad and mr. poo was both sound asleep, and neither was roused from his slumber by the vibrating floors.) it's been the top story in the news here all afternoon, outdoing even the G20 summit in terms of coverage, and will likely be the lead story for all the 6pm broadcasts.

anyway, i don't actually have anything insightful or profound to say about the quake. i just thought i'd record my experience.