January 17, 1994, 4:30 am - I was asleep. Everything was fine. It was MLK Jr Day so I was planning on sleeping in.
January 17, 1994, 4:31 am - All hell broke loose. Earthquake! Growing up in California, I had experienced many earthquakes, but nothing like this. This was the most violent, jarring shaking I'd ever experienced. We always talked about the "Big One" and as far as I was concerned, this was it. I was immediately woken up and it was all I could do cover my head and hope for the best. There would be no attempt to get in a doorway. I was getting pelted by everything in my room. My hat collection was hanging on the wall above my bed. They all fell on top of me. That wasn't the issue. I had baseballs on shelves across the room. They went flying all over the place. I also left my closet door open so everything from toys to sports equipment came flying out. To this day I will never sleep in a room with an open closet. And my cactus fell and exploded. That made me sad.
Meanwhile, the power went out immediately. I can't really explain how I knew that, but I could just tell. And to make things worse, the moon had just passed the new moon phase, so it wasn't big enough or bright enough to light up anything. Now it was dark, I was getting hit by everything I owned, and I had no idea when the shaking would stop. It felt like it shook forever and the sound was loud and violent. It was like you could hear the earth screaming out in pain. And over the loud roar I heard my house, cracking and moaning. I heard what sounded like light bulbs popping. It turned out to be my Lego's crashing to the floor. I was convinced these would be the last sounds I would ever hear.
And then the shaking stopped. What felt like ten minutes was in fact only ten seconds. It was the longest ten seconds of my life. When it finally ended I heard my parents screaming. They were yelling to make sure I was OK. And then there was an aftershock. More violent shaking. More fear. I was still in my bed, scared. I gathered myself and tried to find my flashlight in the dark and among the mess on my floor. My parents were screaming again, this time because our dog was stuck under the dresser. And none of us had a working flashlight. I found mine, but it was dead. We all had flashlights by the bed in case of an emergency like this, but when you don't check them regularly the batteries die and they are useless when you actually need them. Not exactly the time you want to come to this realization.
My dad managed to lift the dresser up enough to get my dog out and then went to the garage to get a working flashlight. This proved to be a mistake in judgement. The kitchen was a war zone with dishes and condiments everywhere. We would find out later that my dad fell and cut himself on the way to the garage. He finally came back, got us all, and got us out. And then for some reason he went back inside. He had cut himself really bad and was in shock. I don't know that he knew what he was doing. When we got outside everybody else in the neighborhood was out there as well. It was really dark outside. My mom was screaming for someone to help my dad and get him out of the house. Two of my neighbors went in and got him out. When we finally went back in during the day, there was blood everywhere. It looked like the Manson family came through.
I grew up in a great neighborhood and we spent the rest of the morning out in the street with all of our neighbors. This was before smartphones so all we really knew was that there was an earthquake, it was bad, and we were alive. We eventually found out the quake was centered in Northridge, about 15 miles from us. For those who aren't familiar with earthquakes, that's really fricken close. Estimates for the size of the quake were as high as 7.4, which, again, for those who don't know, is really strong. In time, it was determined that the quake was actually a 6.7. Still really strong, and combined with the fact that it struck in a highly populated area meant bad news.
The power was still out but we slowly got more and more news throughout the day. And we were able to call family out of state and let them know we were OK. I remember talking to my grandma in New Jersey. She wanted us to leave California. For as vividly as I remember the 10-30 seconds of the quake, the rest of the day is kind of a blur. Honestly, I think I was still scared.
As night began to fall on that first day, the power was still out and the kids were afraid to sleep inside. I think the adults were too. Many of us set up tents in front yards to sleep in. That actually made things feel fun. It was like camping. My parents slept in their car, with the dog. My dog was pretty traumatized too.
We woke up the next morning and the power was still out. School was cancelled, though. Sometime around mid morning, the power came back. I realized this when I saw a neighbor's porch light on. We started to try to get things back to normal. That really wasn't going to happen. We came to find out that there was major damage to freeways which meant my parents would have a hard time getting to work once they were allowed to go back. We also found out that my school suffered severe damage and would be closed indefinitely. And we were hungry.
Thankfully, the In-n-Out truck came to town. It was really the only place in town we could go eat. I think that's part of the reason why I love In-n-Out so much. It's comfort food to me.
Over the days, weeks, and months after the quake, we all coped differently. School was out for a little over a week for me. Those in high school had to deal with more delays and even bigger headaches. During the break one of the parents on the block found these giant coloring posters in a tube and bought one for each of the kids on the street. It gave us something to do. For me, it gave me another world to retreat to. My poster was of a giant castle hall complete with treasure and a throne.
Going back to school was surreal. Some buildings were still closed and any loud sound triggered jumpiness. The first few days were filled with stories about that morning. It was kind of therapeutic to talk about it with other people.
Before the quake I would come home after school and do my homework until my parents came home. There was no way I was going in that house by myself now. So I went to a neighbor's house for the first few weeks. And I colored my poster. I remember sitting in my friend's driveway coloring everyday for weeks. That was my coping mechanism. I retreated. This was the first time I remember doing that. Now I do it all the time. I retreat into my own private world. I'm not sure how healthy that is.
We all talked to therapists after the quake. Many kids acted out and had a hard time dealing with the after effects. I just went to my castle. And slowly things got back to normal. We cleaned up everything in the house. Everything eventually got fixed. Although, the inch and a half gap between my house and the pool deck that was a result of the quake was cool to drop things into. And my dad ended up cutting a tendon in his hand that morning. He still struggles using his pinky finger on that hand.
But at the end of the day, we all lived. And whatever lasting effects remain, I can take solace in that. After 20 years, this day remains a pivotal moment in my life. It's hard to believe it's actually been 20 years. I don't know that I can really express the impact this day has had on me. I've shared this story numerous times and it chokes me up every time. I know in some ways it has made me stronger and in some ways has made me weaker. But more than anything else, it has made me who I am today. I know this was a long post, so thank you for reading.
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