When the big one hits, it pays to be prepared

Everyone needs a little jolt now and then.

Twenty years ago (ack!), in the fall of 1989, there was a small earthquake in the middle of the night. My boyfriend and I were rattled enough to run out the next day and buy supplies: Water, first aid kit, transistor radio and flashlights. Smart move on our part: the 7.1 Loma Prieta quake hit three weeks later. And we were prepared. The radio in particular was handy, since the electricity was out for days.

Sunday night a 4.7 earthquake hit Los Angeles; not that big, but with an epicenter close enough to my house to shake things up pretty good and scare my kids (and me) witless.

And so I'm thinking it's time to run out and buy some earthquake supplies again. Just in case, you know.