The Earthquake

Did I ever think I'd feel a tremor from an earthquake while sitting in the comfort of my S.C. den?  NO.  Absolutely, no.  Well, I did today.  Just before 2pm I was sitting in a recliner with my feet propped up.  Suddenly, I felt the recliner moving a bit, sorta like a gentle ride at a carnival.  I looked at the unoccupied recliner across the room and it was rocking.  I looked outside to see what might be causing this and nothing.  I don't know what I was expecting to see . . . maybe trees bent in half from a strong wind . . . but nothing.  Then I realized that maybe, just maybe I'd felt a tremor.  I immediately jumped on Facebook b/c if anyone else felt a tremor, it would be posted.  At that moment, no one had posted about it.  But then Chad called from work and said his desk shook and his coworkers couldn't believe what happened.  He called back one minute later and said he read on the internet about an earthquake in Virginia that registered 5.8.  Wow.  I felt a tremor from an earthquake that far away!  Next time I got on Facebook, of course, numerous people in S'ville felt it as well as friends in N.C. and Georgia.  It was a very weird feeling to know the earth was so shaken that I felt it here. 

Just a few minutes after the tremor, I heard a loud noise from the backyard.  This is what I saw when I walked outside.

Yep, Tom's pergola (that he worked so hard to build for me) was damaged by a huge limb.  I realize that the limb was at least partially rotten, but I'm convinced that the tremor jarred the limb enough to make it fall down.  My first (and hopefully ONLY) earthquake damage.  Notice the popup camper in the background?  Chad asked how it faired with the limb incident.  I told him it was just fine.  He said, "Well, that camper has survived both a tornado and an earthquake."  All in a span of 3 months!!!!