I have lived my whole life in Southern California and I’ve felt quite a few earthquakes in my time living here. The biggest one I’ve been involved in was the Whittier Narrows earthquake which was a 6.1 back in 1987. I was 10 years old at the time and my 5 year old brother and I were staying at my Grandmothers house the quake happened in the morning while we were all still sleeping. Both my brother and I were on beds that had casters so they could be rolled when the earthquake hit our beds moved around quite a bit. I ended up on the other side of the bedroom and so did my brother it was pretty amazing how much it shook. After watching the news we found out that the 3 story parking structure at “The Quad” was leveled luckily no one was injured since the stores there were not so early in the morning.

Fast forward 23 years later to March 16th 2010 and at 4:04am we had more seismic activity which woke me everyone in my apartment complex including me. I went to bed kinda late after watching TV and falling asleep on the couch. I crawled into bed at 1am and only had a few hours of sleep when our bed began to shake violently. I heard kids screaming across the courtyard and Caitlin popped up out of bed with a fright. Jen and I got out of bed and rushed into the bedroom to check check on the kids. Jessalyn (4) woke up but quickly went back to sleep. Caitlin (15) work up and was quite shaken up stating “I’m too scared to go back to sleep”. I had work in the morning so I told her everything was going to be all right and I went back to bed. I wasn’t about to go to bed without knowing the magnitude of the quake so I went to Twitter and the trending topic was “Earthquake” which I think was still ranked under “Justin Bieber” or something. Anyhow All my twitter friends flocked there to update their statuses stating if they felt it or not.

I then went over to the USGS “Did you feel it” website and posted that I indeed felt it and answered their 10 or so questions. Not many people posted to that site 3-4 minutes after the event so it was kinda cool to be one of the firsts to do so. After that I tried my best to go back to sleep.

Below are some postings from various websites that I copied from WWU.edu and Wikipedia so save you the trouble or finding them yourself.

From Wikipedia: Whittier Narrows earthquake

On Oct. 1, 1987, at 7:42 a.m., the Whittier Narrows earthquake struck, the epicenter six miles (10 km) north by northwest of Whittier. The seismic event, which registered 5.9 on the Richter scale, resulted in eight casualties and massive damage to uptown Whittier’s historic buildings. In the years following the earthquake, the city’s deteriorating uptown business district, which suffered substantial damage in the earthquake, became the focus of renewed development, which has met with opposition from many Whittier citizens. Out of the rubble of the earthquake the Whittier Conservancy was formed in 1987 in an effort to stop the demolition of many historic buildings and residences after the disaster. The city also created a Historic Resources Commission to oversee the approval of historic designations and Mills Act proposal.

From WWU.edu: Partial Collapse of Parking Garage, Whittier, CA, 1987 Earthquake Earthquake of October 1, 1987, Whittier Narrows, California. Partial collapse of the May Company’s three-level parking garage at Quad Shopping Mall in Whittier. The structure, built in 1965, is located at the corner of Whittier Boulevard and Painter Avenue.

Here is what I posted last year:

I also started looking for online resources to help us out one of which is having our Deluxe Passes blackout dates on our iPhones. To pull this off on our Mac’s in iCal we “subscribe” to google calendar that has all these times listed. You can do the same on a PC using Outlook, check out the icons below to inport the Deluxe Pass blackout dates:

So click the links above and import the calendar into your Outlook or iCal or even carry around the dates as a calendar on your iPhone or Blackberry!

My wife Jen posted a list generated from FindYourSpot.com that asks you a few simple questions then figures based on your answers places that you may want to live. I thought I’d post mine as well:

Medford, Oregon   Gateway to the Pacific Northwest
This gorgeous spot boasts the West’s only operating water-powered grist mill, located on the banks of Little Butte Creek since 1872…Population: 190,000  |  Average Home Price: $238,000  |  Precipitation: 19″  |  Snow: 8″

Eugene, Oregon   The Emerald City
This Oregon city is home to the Hendricks Park Rhododendron Garden, famous all over the world for its beautiful blossoms…Population: 142,000  |  Average Home Price: $226,000  |  Precipitation: 48″  |  Snow: 7″

Anchorage, Alaska  City of  Lights and Flowers
Cries of “Gold” echoed through this town in 1882 after prospectors hit paydirt at nearby Crow Creek…Population: 271,000  |  Average Home Price: $247,000  |  Precipitation: 15″  |  Snow: 71″

Frederick, Maryland   Where The Past Comes Alive
This Maryland city’s Great Fair is one of the nation’s oldest county agricultural fairs…Population: 56,000  |  Average Home Price: $305,000  |  Precipitation: 36″  |  Snow: 21″

Denver, Colorado   The Mile High City
At an elevation of 5280 feet, this Mile High City boasts world-class skiing within a short drive…Population: 557,500  |  Average Home Price: $280,500  |  Precipitation: 16″  |  Snow: 60″

Baltimore, Maryland   The Sparkling Harbor City
This Atlantic seaboard city is home to the National Aquarium…Population: 651,000  |  Average Home Price: $310,000  |  Precipitation: 40″  |  Snow: 18″

Corvallis, Oregon   Heart of the Willamette Valley
This Oregon city hosts “da Vinci Days,” a festival of unique events revolving around art, science and technology…Population: 50,000  |  Average Home Price: $225,000  |  Precipitation: 43″  |  Snow: 6″

Portland, Oregon   City of Roses
This Oregon city has the nation’s largest forested municipal park, the aptly-named Forest Park…Population: 2,000,000  |  Average Home Price: $259,000  |  Precipitation: 36″  |  Snow: 5″

Charleston, West Virginia   The Home of Hospitality
For a taste of yesteryear, catch the boat races at this West Virginia city’s annual Sternwheel Regatta…Population: 248,000  |  Average Home Price: $216,000  |  Precipitation: 41″  |  Snow: 26″

Fort Collins, Colorado   The Choice City
This Colorado town is home to the Sweatsville Zoo, a sculpture park with over 100 works made entirely from scrap metal…Population: 125,700  |  Average Home Price: $243,000  |  Precipitation: 16″  |  Snow: 48″

Ogden, Utah   Where Utah Comes Together
This scenic “Crossroads of the West” is set between Utah’s Great Salt Lake and the magnificent Wasatch Mountains…Population: 77,200  |  Average Home Price: $160,000  |  Precipitation: 17″  |  Snow: 63″

Bellingham, Washington   The Victorian Seaport
The annual Ski to Sea challenge held in this breathtaking port city includes snow skiing, running, biking, and kayaking…Population: 67,000  |  Average Home Price: $300,000  |  Precipitation: 36″  |  Snow: 7″

Bend, Oregon   Oregon’s Natural Playground
This Oregon town’s municipal airport was used for pilot training during World War II…Population: 59,800  |  Average Home Price: $278,500  |  Precipitation: 12″  |  Snow: 34″

Salem, Oregon   The Heart of Oregon
This capital city is the home of the Oregon State Fair, as well as the state’s largest on-going fine arts & crafts fair…Population: 143,000  |  Average Home Price: $200,000  |  Precipitation: 39″  |  Snow: 6″

Missoula, Montana   Cosmopolitan Mountain Town
This eclectic town supports a symphony orchestra, boasts the country’s first Smoke Jumper fire-fighting school, and has its own honorary French consul…Population: 60,700  |  Average Home Price: $177,000  |  Precipitation: 13″  |  Snow: 48″

Seattle, Washington   The Emerald City
The game “Pictionary” was developed by a waiter in this town in 1986…Population: 3,300,000  |  Average Home Price: $435,000  |  Precipitation: 35″  |  Snow: 15″

Kent, Washington   The Heart of Puget Sound
This family-friendly town is centrally located in the heart of the Puget Sound region…Population: 79,500  |  Average Home Price: $240,000  |  Precipitation: 35″  |  Snow: 15″

Provo-Orem, Utah   Living and Learning at their Best
These twin cities in central Utah are home to some of the world’s top collections of dinosaur bones…Population: 189,500  |  Average Home Price: $205,000  |  Precipitation: 12″  |  Snow: 30″

Spokane, Washington   Northwestern Jewel
This Washington golf mecca hosts a Lilac Festival every year; in 1974 it also hosted the World’s Fair…Population: 427,500  |  Average Home Price: $138,700  |  Precipitation: 17″  |  Snow: 50″

Olympia, Washington   The Evergreen Capital
Set on a magnificent peninsula in the South Puget Sound, this spot was originally called “black bear place” before being renamed after nearby mountains…Population: 222,000  |  Average Home Price: $225,000  |  Precipitation: 51″  |  Snow: 10″

Great Falls, Montana   Where the Rockies Meet the Plains
Captain Meriwether Lewis and his companion William Clark encountered a hostile grizzly bear near the waterfalls of this great spot in 1805…Population: 56,200  |  Average Home Price: $145,000  |  Precipitation: 15″  |  Snow: 44″

Idaho Falls, Idaho   High Tech meets the Great Outdoors
This gateway to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons has restaurants, shopping, and a regional park along its Snake River Greenbelt…Population: 51,500  |  Average Home Price: $250,000  |  Precipitation: 10″  |  Snow: 31″

Salt Lake City, Utah   This is the Place
In 2002, this spot became the largest city ever to host the Winter Olympics…Population: 181,700  |  Average Home Price: $185,000  |  Precipitation: 15″  |  Snow: 55″

Billings, Montana   Star of the Big Sky Country
During the Wild West days in Billings, Montana, the cowboys and scarlet ladies of every saloon performed impossible dances atop bars, tables, and in some instances upon atop the pianos…Population: 94,200  |  Average Home Price: $162,000  |  Precipitation: 15″  |  Snow: 57″

Place:

• at a park
• while camping
• at the beach
• in the living room
• in someones back yard
• a restaurant

With some of these activities:

• see people you’ve never seen before and hide from everyone
• only close family and a few close friends
• eat food
• sing happy birthday
• eat cake
• eat pizza
• watch others take a wack at piñata
• watch a baby eat a special cake no one else wants to eat because he put his face all over it

My 32nd birthday is tomorrow and Jessalyn is VERY excited and I’m curious as to what she thinks my birthday will be and what combonation above she thinks will be occurring. I didn’t plan my birthday this year my wife did, my understanding is that she hasn’t told Jessalyn about it since she wasn’t quite sure what the activity would be. It was either going to be a trip to the mountains to see and play in the snow or a trip to Disney Ice to go ice skating. Jessalyn hasn’t done much of the former and has never done the latter. Due to the harsh weather that we have been having here in California it looks like we’ll be going to Disney Ice and have fun ice skating. Lately Jessalyn and I have been reading this book before bed called “Skating with Bears” by Andrew Breakspeare. It’s about a boy that isnt good at skating and sneaks out and night and puts his skates on and tries to learn. These mounds of snow near the rink turn into bears and they help him learn to skate. With us reading this book from time to time she’s been asking me about skating and if I’ve ever done it before. We talked about how I use to go skating yearly and how I also use to roller blade quite a bit. The connection of skating and roller blading didn’t quite work out in her head until one day I put them on and showed her. I’d imagine once we take her ice skating she’ll get the connection even more.

Ice skating and my birthday have quite a history. When I was a kid we would pile in as many friends as we could into the car and drive up to Blue Jay to go ice skating at the Ice Castle. We must have went to the Ice Castle at least 4 or 5 years in a row. In 2001 I wanted to go to the Ice Castle for my birthday and that year after a major storm the Ice Castle was severely damaged when the roof collapsed and they closed the place. A few years later we went ice skating at Disney Ice which looks like is now called The Rinks Anaheim Ice and we’ve been going there ever since. I wouldn’t mind making my birthday all about ice skating, everyone but Jen loves doing it. She typically sits on the side or in the bleachers and watches and takes pictures of us. Some day I’ll get her on the ice!

Consumer Reports released some advice for potential shoppers. Here’s their advice:

Get a receipt or gift receipt. Despite longer grace periods, retailers are becoming more insistent on a receipt in order to get a refund, and they’re more inclined to turn away customers without proof of purchase. Without a receipt, they may offer a store credit for the lowest price the item sold for.

Keep packaging intact. Stores are likely to refuse a return if the packaging materials are open or discarded. Even a missing instruction manual, cords and cables or warranty card can give retailers reason to deny the return.

Be wary online. Don’t just throw it in a box and mail it back. Online returns usually require a packing slip (typically included in any gift order), and a return authorization number. Call ahead to ensure that all requirements are being met.

Don’t break seals or cut out UPC codes. Items like computer software, video games, CDs and DVDs aren’t generally returnable for another title after the seal has been broken. If an item comes with a rebate offer, make sure it works before removing the UPC code to redeem the rebate.

Also, watch out for restocking fees at major retailers, mostly for big-ticket items.

• Amazon.com: 15% restocking fees for computers and fine jewelry
• Best Buy: 15% restocking fees on laptops, camcorders, digital cameras and GPS navigators
• Bidz.com: 15% restocking fee on all items. Plus shoppers have only 15 days to return items.
• Sears: 15% restocking fee applies to electronics products returned without the original box, used, and without all of the original packaging. The penalty also applies to some other products.
• Home Depot: special-orders and some cancelled orders are subject to a 15 percent restocking fee.
• Macys: 10% restocking fee on furniture
• Newegg.com: 15% restocking fee on all major purchases if the box is opened

Blatantly stolen from Consumerist who quoted Consumer Reports.

Jessalyn at Disneyland

Click see the pictures from Jessalyn’s 4th Birthday at Disneyland

Jessalyn and Dad

My Daughter Jessalyn turns 4 today; she’s grown from this little tiny infant to an awesome 4 year old “big girl”.  It’s funny the nicknames you give your kids and how sometimes they contradict themselves. I call Jess by many names: “big girl”, “short stuff”, “sweetie”, “sweet pea” (she gave herself that one) and my fave “love bug”. Big girl and short stuff are all relative and it just shows how much she’s grown over the last few years.

We’ll be celebrating her birthday at Disneyland and she’s extremely excited to get to buy some stuff with the money that Disneyland is giving her due to us having Annual Passes. Your gift from them can be the value of a ticket or a few other things. She’s had her eye on this awesome Disneyland castle so we’re thinking she may end up with that.

Jessalyn, thanks for giving loving me the way that you do and letting me be the best Dad that I can be for you. It means a lot to me and I hope it means a lot to you.

Posted via web from jasontucker’s posterous