Five Years Ago Rock & Roll at Costco
Hi ho, MMMLogerinos!
The DH was out of town and I had to find the brother of MMMM a very late birthday prezzie. I had shopped all the stores then went to Costco to pick up some other necessaries. I found some great stuff, threw it in the basket and was cruising around the book tables out in the middle of the store, which proved to be the very best place to be, save outside of the store.
At 10:54 a.m. February 28, 2001, the 6.8 Nisqually earthquake hit south of Olympia. There in Costco I felt the first roll and looked quizzically at a woman across the table from me. She dropped her books and ran like hell. I gazed up as the bumping roll shuddered through the place and watched those huge hanging lights swing in a big arc. Another woman knelt beside the low book table, eyes closed as if in prayer. It was then, when it stopped rolling that I bailed for the front door, pushing my cart, if you please. They made me leave it and yes, there were still those checker people at the door. I hurried out into the parking lot filled with people standing ten feet from the doors, staring at the late exiting folks. Everyone wore the same wide-eyed expression and they were stone silent. Then the cell phones came out as people hustled for their cars. I joined the long line of traffic snaking out of the lot and onto the street where the lights didn't work. It all went pretty smoothly with people driving sensibly and courteously. The biggest hold up in my five mile drive home was people weren't taking the freeway and clogging the side streets. Yet there were many over passes to get under and folks weren't about to stop under them. So it was one by one stop outside of the over pass, zip under it to the other side, stop then go in turn. Took me a couple of hours to get home. My cell phone still didn't work, but the land line at home did. I determined that if I were caught out of my home in a quake again, I'd think quickly and bail for the door. That is my plan.
Yesterday, February 28, 2006, the DH was out of town. I had to go to Costco to return some stuff and left the house early go I could get there when the doors opened. I arrived too early as it didn't open until 10:00 so went to Starbucks for a mocha. Back to Costco where I sat in Gold Victory, drank coffee, wrote and listened to the radio. In the store at 10:00 sharp, goods returned and I cruised about the place.
I really enjoy Costco because of the vast variety of good stuff on all those aisles and shelves stacked twenty feet high to the roof. The patio furniture and garden supplies are a special favorite and I can spend a bunch of time there, and did. I think I was standing in the tool aisle and looked way up top of those loaded shelves for some reason. And that horrible feeling hit me--Run! There was no reason. Nothing shaking, rolling or moving. I didn't hear a P-wave. I just felt the need to get out of there and made for the checkout, paid and hit the lot. The clock in the car read 10:59 when I got in. The radio said that today, February 28, was the five year anniversary of the Nisqually Quake. Crap, and there I was in Costco again at the exact time. What a deja vu! Though yesterday I did act on my plan to get out at first hint of shake, but my intuition was logging onto that Costco experience five years ago, apparently. Right place, wrong time--works for me!
Ciao, ciao, MMMMMMMmelinda
The DH was out of town and I had to find the brother of MMMM a very late birthday prezzie. I had shopped all the stores then went to Costco to pick up some other necessaries. I found some great stuff, threw it in the basket and was cruising around the book tables out in the middle of the store, which proved to be the very best place to be, save outside of the store.
At 10:54 a.m. February 28, 2001, the 6.8 Nisqually earthquake hit south of Olympia. There in Costco I felt the first roll and looked quizzically at a woman across the table from me. She dropped her books and ran like hell. I gazed up as the bumping roll shuddered through the place and watched those huge hanging lights swing in a big arc. Another woman knelt beside the low book table, eyes closed as if in prayer. It was then, when it stopped rolling that I bailed for the front door, pushing my cart, if you please. They made me leave it and yes, there were still those checker people at the door. I hurried out into the parking lot filled with people standing ten feet from the doors, staring at the late exiting folks. Everyone wore the same wide-eyed expression and they were stone silent. Then the cell phones came out as people hustled for their cars. I joined the long line of traffic snaking out of the lot and onto the street where the lights didn't work. It all went pretty smoothly with people driving sensibly and courteously. The biggest hold up in my five mile drive home was people weren't taking the freeway and clogging the side streets. Yet there were many over passes to get under and folks weren't about to stop under them. So it was one by one stop outside of the over pass, zip under it to the other side, stop then go in turn. Took me a couple of hours to get home. My cell phone still didn't work, but the land line at home did. I determined that if I were caught out of my home in a quake again, I'd think quickly and bail for the door. That is my plan.
Yesterday, February 28, 2006, the DH was out of town. I had to go to Costco to return some stuff and left the house early go I could get there when the doors opened. I arrived too early as it didn't open until 10:00 so went to Starbucks for a mocha. Back to Costco where I sat in Gold Victory, drank coffee, wrote and listened to the radio. In the store at 10:00 sharp, goods returned and I cruised about the place.
I really enjoy Costco because of the vast variety of good stuff on all those aisles and shelves stacked twenty feet high to the roof. The patio furniture and garden supplies are a special favorite and I can spend a bunch of time there, and did. I think I was standing in the tool aisle and looked way up top of those loaded shelves for some reason. And that horrible feeling hit me--Run! There was no reason. Nothing shaking, rolling or moving. I didn't hear a P-wave. I just felt the need to get out of there and made for the checkout, paid and hit the lot. The clock in the car read 10:59 when I got in. The radio said that today, February 28, was the five year anniversary of the Nisqually Quake. Crap, and there I was in Costco again at the exact time. What a deja vu! Though yesterday I did act on my plan to get out at first hint of shake, but my intuition was logging onto that Costco experience five years ago, apparently. Right place, wrong time--works for me!
Ciao, ciao, MMMMMMMmelinda
posted by MMMelinda at 7:02 AM
