We experienced an earthquake that measured 1.8 on the Richter scale today. I know it's no big whoop, especially for people who live in earthquake zones and get hit with 5, 6, and 7 quakes. But it sure scared the heck out of me. I was sitting at the computer trying to catch up with some DA correspondence this afternoon, when I heard this very loud, explosive rumbling; the house shook a lot, and made creaky noises throughout; I could really feel it for about 6 seconds. The napping cats were suddenly on high alert, scared and ready for action. The birds stopped singing.

At first, I thought there was either an explosion nearby, or we were being attacked again (the impact of the jet hitting the Pentagon on 9/11/01 was similar to the effects of the quake today)--or just maybe it was an earthquake. I called the police and asked what was going on; they had no idea, but said they had already received many calls from other people reporting the same thing. Then I read the AP news blurb online which reported a quake felt by people all over northern VA--a 50-mile radius. The epicenter was in Annandale, VA (near where I used to live and go to school). The quake occured about 6 miles beneath the earth's surface. We live a good 12 miles from Annandale, so the "wave" must have passed beneath us.

This was quite an experience! Luckily no one was hurt and there was no property damage (according to the evening news). We didn't even lose power.

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