Friday, March 19, 2010

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

WOW!

4:04 am, Los Angeles. I was just shaken awake by what I thought was someone grabbing the bottom of my bed and shaking it up and down. I went down the hall to the reception desk at the Comfort Inn in Monterey Park and I looked at the night clerk who is usually asleep and said, Did something just happen? Yes, he replied. That was an earthquake.
I went back to my room and called Braff Zackton who was already at work in Chicago. Braff ran his earthquake search that he does every 30 minutes and informed me that I just rode a 4.4 in the Greater Los Angeles Area at 4:04am. It seems no one else is alarmed but me! That is completely whack and a first for me.
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9:20am update
I just got back from breakfast a few minutes ago. Still no one was talking about this event. It's the most reported event in a while on the Did You Feel It? web site. Rare breed these Californians. It's like ... the whole L-A area got up and went for a drive on the I-5 in a bumpy Rambler Station Wagon at 4am for no reason ... and nobody even talks about it. That is crazy.
I literally thought there was someone in my room picking up the bottom of the bed and clipping it to the lift on a Six Flags grade roller coaster. Isn't there a T-Shirt for this kinda thing?
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You might ask ... Why would I would call someone in Chicago about an Earthquake in California? Well, here's a little more background on Braff Zackton you may like to read.
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4:07pm update
OK, OK ... some of you have suggested that I was probably scared. C'mon! Me? No way! I eat this stuff up and spit it out.
OK well, the truth is ... I haven't slept since. I keep thinking I am feeling the ground shake again and now I am on the fourth floor of a building near LAX airport. And I will say that I couldn't sleep probably due to my sobbing like a baby. That kinda made it hard to settle down. Can't wait till the wheels are up at the end of the runway tomorrow morning.
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For those of you interested ... here is an Earthquake Article from this mornings excitement.

Is God Green?

Hello, NikonSniper followers. Well, my trip to the Los Angeles area is coming to a conclusion. That's right, dear ... I'm coming home!
One of the things I do for comfort when I am alone and away from my family for great lengths of time is to listen to sermons online. I know, I can almost hear you shouting "BORING"! OK, OK, some of you are about to quit NikonSniper for good! You've heard enough. I have just proved to you that I am completely looney!
Well, some of you know I was a bit of a creative kid. I was A.D.D. before being A.D.D. was cool! So I was, ... let's say, a bit of a handfull. For those of you who are new, here's a little Background to give you an idea of what kind of rodeo clown I was when I was a kid. Anyway, I tell you this so you don't go around thinking I have my head in the clouds with no clue of the real world.
Anyway. I was raised in a Christian home. More than that, ... my father was the pastor of a large church that we attended (sometimes in handcuffs). Oh, please don't cast me as some kind of religious fanatic. In fact, truth is ... I don't believe in religion whatsoever. I believe in a person and YES I know Him. And that God-man is Jesus.
Anyway, ... I don't want to scare you off ... because I DO completely respect your views. Here's what I wanted to say.
I find that as I age (get more older and more wrinkled-er) I appreciate nature more. If you would have told me when I was 30 that I would enjoy photographing butterflies one day ... well, I woulda told you that you were a complete ding-dong (probably not those words though). I so often feel at peace when I am sitting on a bench watching God's wonders. Like seeing wild deer up close just staring at you, giving you a close look, like they were sent to you. Well, I recently watched a sermon about the Christian in nature that I enjoyed called, "Is God Green?" You can hit the link and watch it if you like. It's good! It is by one of my favorite speakers named John Ortberg from Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in Menlo Park, CA. He won't bore you!
Go on, give it a listen ... I dare ya ... it's a risk free way to tell your mom that you went to church. Pastor Ortberg speaks on how we are to respect the world of the Creator.
I hardly ever lift my camera in the mountains, or near rivers, streams or great oceans without thinking about ... How Great Is Our God!
I hope you have a wonderful day!
NikonSniper Steve

Sunday, March 14, 2010