Today is an anniversary date in my life that I could live without. Actually, it’s so bad that the other day Noel asked me, “Isn’t the anniversary of Grandpa’s passing about this time of year,” the day after that anniversary, and I felt guilty about forgetting that. (My Grandpa passed away on 19 February 2004.) …
Category Archives: Christchurch Earthquakes
Aftershocks
I’ve said in previous blogs about the earthquakes we went through in Christchurch and Canterbury and New Zealand that, on the last anniversary (or maybe the one before) that I was “over it”. And it did feel that way until a few days ago. The earthquake near Mexico City on 19 September 2017, and the …
“Look for the Helpers…”
Being 11 September here in New Zealand — even though the infamous 9/11 happened on 12 September 2001 here — some of my news feeds are showing images and sharing articles about the anniversary of 9/11. Every year, I feel something different. Having been through our own set of natural disasters — the initial quake …
6 Years After the 22 February 2011 Quake
I felt somewhat guilty that I seemingly pushed the sixth anniversary of the 22 February 2011 quake to the back of my mind. As I mentioned in my last post, I seem to be living day-to-day lately (being “present”), and this has caused problems like, well, everything seemingly sneaking up on me. I need to …
My Topsy-Turvy Week – Week of 13 February 2017
So, the week finishing today has thrown me a lot of different emotions. A diagnosis, a major fire, a victory, a good-bye, a frustrating day, and, finally, a “down” day.
Five Years after the 22 February 2011 Quake
We really didn’t need the earth-shaking reminder on Valentine’s Day that the fifth anniversary of the devastating 22 February 2011 earthquake was coming up. Somehow, it (literally) shook my confidence that everything was settling down again, and the ground below me could be trusted like it had been before the 4 September 2010 quake and …
5 Years Ago Today: The Darfield Quake
We’d just returned from lunch with my parents in quiet suburban Chicago. I’d left my iPhone at home because it was early in the morning in Christchurch, New Zealand, and I figured no one would call at that hour. Checking my phone, I saw there were several missed calls from a few different people; something …
A Funny Story about Phoebe and the Earthquakes
One of the best ways of dealing with grief and the passing of someone beloved (whether that be a friend, family member, or pet) is to think about the good times. There are plenty of funny and amusing stories Noel and I could tell you about our cheeky cat Phoebe, who we sadly had to …
2 Years Ago Today, Our Lives Were Turned Upside Down… Again
I woke up in the middle of the night. It was one of those half-awake, half-asleep moments, where you seem to be somewhere between dreaming and waking. After the 22 February 2011 quake and subsequent aftershocks, I hadn’t been sleeping very well at night, so waking up several times a night was more normal than …
When Life Gives You Lemons…
In the second, larger 13 June 2011 earthquake, two of the large decorative concrete panels came off our work building. That, in turn, made the engineers unsure how the building would perform in another large earthquake (and since we were on the third quake above 6.0 at the time in a rather rich aftershock sequence, …
