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Recruitment Tool

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Baboons – this post launched early yesterday, and some have already commented.  Feel free to add to the conversation – already underway.

Today’s post comes from Captain Billy of the Clipper Muskellunge.

Ahoy, Landlubbers!

Me an’ me boys is delighted t’ hear of th’ popularity of th’ new disaster film San Andreas, on account of th’ fact that it is bound t’ cause landlubbers such as yerselves t’ freak out about dry ground an’ be more open than ever t’ the prospect of switchin’ t’ a life lived on th’ open sea.

That’s right, us pirates almost never worries ’bout earthquakes, since terra infirma is usually quite a piece distant from our location – either far below us or outta sight beyond th’ Earth’s curve.

Them images you see of collapsin’ skyscrapers an’ tsunami waves towerin’ over cruise vessels an’ the like is somethin’ what only happens close t’ shore, an’ we ain’t never close t’ shore fer long on account of various arrest warrants, Coast Guard facilities, an’ heavily armed civilians wi’ a minimum amount of firearms training.

But me boys does love watchin’ that San Andreas trailer, ain’t that right boys?

A long time before this here movie came out, us pirates saw th’ danger what always lies near land. Out where we spends our time, earthquakes is hardly a concern, an’ when they happens, they sounds more or less like the grumblin’ of a large submerged stomach an that’s about it.

Although sometimes that sound is a real stomach, fer sure. Several dozens of ’em, filled wi’ grog, t’ be exact. On Sunday mornin in particular.

An on occasion th’ Saturday night roughousin’ above decks gets things tippy enough t’ resemble an openin’ of a fissure in th’ Earth’s crust.

An’ I admits that random folks does go flyin’ overboard sometimes in a manner not entirely unlike th’ way them dispensable movie characters frequently tumbles into steamin’ chasms that opens up underfoot.

But that’s all in good fun, mostly. Except fer when it ain’t.

But anyone watchin’ earthquake disaster flicks an wonderin’ where safety lay – th’ answer is simple. Look t’ that yonder ragged dot on th’ horizon. An consider joinin’ us!

Yer carefree Capt’n,
Billy

Ever been in an earthquake?

84 thoughts on “Recruitment Tool”

  1. Yes. I thought it was the people in the car next to me playing music loudly and from their disapproving glances they thought the same of me

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  2. Nope. Not even some of the little ones I’m told happen in the Midwest in which things shift on the shelves.

    I was working in western MA with a Californian when there was a big quake in San Francisco. It seems one’s disaster sensibilities are regional as she couldn’t imagine living someplace that had tornados fairly often. (Another thing the crew of the Muskellunge doesn’t have to worry about. Hmmm).

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    1. I had the same experience w/ a Florida friend who was here on business when Hurricane Wilma went raging across. As devastating as it seemed to me, my friend seemed much more concerned about the tornado possibility here!

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  3. Good morning. I believe there were some very minor earthquakes that took place where I have lived which I hardly noticed. I’ve lived for my entire life in the Midwest which has been almost as good for avoiding earthquakes as living out on the seas with the Captain.

    OT Another problem waiting to happen, and already starting to happen, which is as bad or worse than earthquakes is climate warming. This Saturday you can join a march and rally in St. Paul which is part of an effort to deal with climate change.

    People from across the Midwest will be gathering at Lambert Landing at 12 noon to march to the capital for a rally there which starts at 2. Bill Mckibben is speaking at the rally. Lambert Landing is near the Union Depot on the river. This march and rally is part of an effort by MN 350.org and other groups to prevent the building and expansion of pipelines designed to carry tar sands oil from Canada into the United States. I hope to see a contingent of Baboons at this event.

    More information about this march and rally can be found at: tarsandsresistance.org

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    1. I heard about the rally on KFAI this morning, and really wish I could be there (especially now that I know Bill McKibben will be speaking). Unfortunately, I broke a toe last week, so no marching and very little standing for me for the next month or so. You’ll have to give us an update later.

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      3. good move crow girl i broke my toe then broke my broken toe and now i have a solid non functioning joint on the right foot that makes me less than the ideal tennis prtner andn ex baseball infielder. take care of your toes

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  4. I was visiting my sister in NYC about 20 years ago when I woke to what I thought was the building’s boiler exploding. It turned out to be an earthquake in the Big Apple. I think it was sizable for that part of the country but there wasn’t much damage done.

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  5. On October 16, 1989 I was playing a gig in San Francisco. On the morning of the 17th, we left for Mount Shasta. 5 to 6 hours later, disaster hit. That was the closest I’ve been to an earthquake and I’m still counting my blessings.

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  6. Nope. I was in la when a shiver happened but never a quake

    I heard a radio comment that they were recalling the disaster movie where they had theater seats that shook .

    I always thought that would be the way to go the next level of film interaction would be to have to seats that moved with the car and the horse and remembering the feelies from brave New World where you could have sexual experiences

    I’ll come Captain Billy never asks us about our sexual experiences ain’t that right boys

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  7. Raise your hand if you remember this little powerhouse.

    tim – you would NOT believe how crazy busy having nothing to do is keeping me! But thanks for the welcome.

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    2. yep retired is waking up at 6 and being 2 hours behind by 10

      i loved felix the cat
      you laugh so hard your sides will ache your heart will go pit a pat watching felix the wonderful cat

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  8. I’ve been unsteady on my feet ever since …. (pause for dramatic effect).. the… ‘incident’.
    But no, never been in an earthquake.

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      1. I think Ben may referring to when his foot got caught in some piece of farm equipment that caused the injury from which he’s still limping. Just a guess.

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        1. thsanks bir and pj i missed it. 2+2 requires me to be involved in thinking while im reading. it is amazing how often i am detached from part two of the equation these days.

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  9. Never been in an earthquake. I was in San Francisco in 1989, but left town a good five months before the quake.

    The closest encounter was watching game 3 of the World Series live that year, and that’s about as close as I want to get.

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  10. 3 left and you give us a used one? it must be time for a break.are you doing anything special with the summer dale or just hunkering down. 60 is a good time to do that. i am going through transition myself this summer and it feels a bit like the arthur miller death of a salesman story with me as willie. my son who worked with sherrilee got fired monday after the company lost the account he was working on. he went from high on life to lost is one fell swoop. my business is in an uproar and i have had to reinvent it. i have two or three new things cooking because the one i have been doing for 40 years is dead. there is no choice but ti reinvent. i get it but it does take a readjusted perspective on approach.
    i hope the summer is good to you all and that the different look and feel the trail will have leaves us all in a place where we accept the new world and the new perspective with an air of grace and appreciation.
    this is such a great group and the discussions are so rich and rewarding. thanks for being a part of my life for the last 5 years.
    the earthquake i have been through most recently was yesterday. my world is shaken. one fell swoop is what happens in this world and at least everyone is well and the summer holds promise of rebirth. i look forward to coming here for reflection and the baring of my soul gnashing of my teeth and the smiles and tears that has become the trail. some earthquakes knock down buildings some just a little place inside.

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    3. tim – so sorry to hear your son was part of the cut. It was a huge account and unfortunately he wasn’t alone! So huge in fact, that we all got an email about it when it happened – that’s pretty unusual around here.

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    4. May he and you not go through what my son has. He was an associate producer for years. Jobs got few; he got burned out. Had no job. Reinvented himself as a program at the cost of bankruptcy and other issues. Had to leave his beloved Seattle but got job in San Diego to be with son and wife. Likes job, but company needs his leader’s skills, which they want him to use. But he just wants to complete his appointed tasks and go home to family.
      We will see.

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      1. california want you to be there til 4 in the morning because thats when the techies all come to life in the vision of facebook and google were launched to rule the world. i feel for him. there are a coupel start ups here i could steer him towards that would love a good brain and a person who can do good work. let me know if he’s interested.

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        3. Agreed tim. I run into this a lot and because so many people take this motto to heart, it’s really hard to swim upstream. But I’m doing my best… don’t give my cell out to client, lock the company laptop in my desk every night when I leave!

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  11. During the 1989 Northridge quake, my company had a large incentive group in San Francisco – they were actually at a game in Candlestick Stadium at the time. I was part of the team that worked overnight to call all the participant’s families back home to let them know everybody was OK. That’s as close as I’ve gotten (and as close as I WANT to get).

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  12. November 9, 1968 while I was attending SIU. It was a Saturday morning and we were lounging around in our pajamas, when suddenly there was a big boom, and the whole house shook. Canned goods were falling off the shelves in the kitchen and dishes were rattling in the kitchen sink.

    Ran outside – not bothering to get dressed – thinking our furnace had exploded. There we met up with our befuddled neighbors who also were wondering what was going on. As we were standing in the yard we could feel the earth trembling beneath our feet. Must have been a large explosion somewhere, we concluded.

    Later in the day we learned that it was an earthquake that measured 5.4 on the Richter scale, the largest earthquake to ever hit Illinois.

    Considering how fast it happened, and that we didn’t have a clue what was happening was scary even though only minor damage was reported. It had never occurred to most of us that an earthquake could happen in Illinois, so it wasn’t one of the possibilities that we considered when trying to figure out what was happening. It’ll be just fine with me if I’m never in another earthquake or other natural disaster for that matter.

    Hurricanes and tornadoes are scary, but at least you know they’re coming and can prepare for them, flee or take shelter. Earthquakes tend to happen rather suddenly and take you completely off guard.

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  14. OT – I just got notice that Death by Rhubarb is in transit from Interlibrary Loan at the library. I’ll let you know how it goes. Clyde, you posted it initially… did you get a copy?

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    2. No, I am not a fan of that kind of book. I was just responding to Renee’s post about poison rhubarb. I can guarantee it is not in this pathetic library. Inter-library loan is odd here, not much use. They will tell you the book is in the Martin Luther College library or in St. Peter or Gaylord, but they are not available to check out.

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      1. I won’t know which library it came from until the book actually shows up. You know me, I’ll read just about anything on a whim! Except Stephen King. And Dean Koontz. And Alexandra Ripley.

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  15. Rise and Shine Baboons!

    No Earthquakes. Just memorable tornadoes–lots of those, most of which were in Iowa, but several in MN, too.

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  17. 1987, southern Indiana. There is a fault running between Kentucky and
    Missouri that, if it lets loose, will make earthquakes in California pale in comparison. BSO Rafferty would caution against ever touring Mammoth Cave for that reason. There was a booming sound and all the bookcases swayed. After a few seconds it was quiet.

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    1. Having never experienced and earthquake before, that booming sound was a surprise to me. Hadn’t thought of an earthquake as generating sound, but of course it does.

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      2. It was much more than a rumbling. What we thought was a large explosion somewhere in the neighborhood was actually the sound generated by the earth moving.

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  19. Not an earthquake but a puzzler. Got a $5.00 check from MN Revenue. Mystery code references something about Dec. 13. Do I dare cash it?

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    2. Call the DOR and ask what it’s for. It was probably a math error on a property tax return or some such thing. The phone lines are staffed by real people, not ogres, as the rumors would have it.

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  20. My Oklahoma cousins have experienced several mild earthquakes in the last few years. One sent me a photo of a serene, sunlit backyard with a white plastic table and four chairs; one of the chairs had fallen over. The caption read, “5.1 earthquake in Oklahoma. Relief help is pouring in from around the world. Please contact the Red Cross and give what you can.” It cracked me up, but I have no desire to experience an earthquake of any scale live and in person.

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    1. I think if we all throw up a post every now and then AND if we all just keep going on the most recent post. Someone can throw up a new or related question. We are too smart ans resilient to lose track of each other.

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        1. If Dale even has to publish, will that be too much to ask? Also, he is listed as creator of the blog. Will his reputation be diminished if all the posts are from mere dilettantes? (not that all of the guest posts haven’t been wonderful)

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        2. Yes, I wondered about that too. I actually set up a blog at one point, haven’t done anything with it. With a little technical help… Anna? or VS? Maybe we should convene at BBC NEXT Sunday the 14th.

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        3. Very good point, Lisa. Essentially Dale would become our secretary which doesn’t seem fair or right at all, at least not to him. Perhaps the Trail Baboon which evolved from the Trial Baloon needs to transition to the Frail Cocoon or something?

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        4. My understanding is that if we become contributors, we can put up our own basic posts. Adding pictures and such is something Dale has to get involved with, but maybe we can get by with just putting links into the body of the post…and the poster could always be the first to reply and insert a YouTube, as we mostly know how to do that in a reply already. Barb, was it you who mastered putting a picture in a reply? Somebody did.

          There is always some sort of workaround….Like Clyde says, we can do this.

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    2. Hey Steve – you’re stuck with me since the day you gave me the wolf book and we discovered that I work for The Investor!!!

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    1. my baseball son is not happy with phil hughes. i told him its nice to have phil performing sub par and having other options. they are dooing it with smoke and mirrors

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  23. The fault of which I wrote is called the New Madrid Seismic Zone:

    “In a report filed in November 2008, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency warned that a serious earthquake in the New Madrid Seismic Zone could result in ‘the highest economic losses due to a natural disaster in the United States,’ further predicting “widespread and catastrophic’ damage across Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and particularly Tennessee, where a 7.7 magnitude quake or greater would cause damage to tens of thousands of structures affecting water distribution, transportation systems, and other vital infrastructure.[20] The earthquake is expected to also result in many thousands of fatalities, with more than 4,000 of the fatalities expected in Memphis alone”.

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    1. If you look at a map of what could be affected by this, it’s truly frightening. Makes me glad I don’t live in St. Louis anymore. This is the fault that caused the river to run backwards back in the early 1800s when the New Madrid fault let loose the last time!

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      1. Actually, vs, the quake I experienced in Carbondale was caused by the New Madrid fault, and that was in 1968.

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    1. bud dave moore who was the sports guy before rosen. we ive in a good community for long term personalities. im not sure our kids will have the same luxuary. they think 5 seasons of a show is a long term relationship.
      bud was so much better than barry zevan

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      1. The CCO sports guy was Ralph Jon Fritz.

        I remember having a boss in the mid to late ’80’s who had moved here from elsewhere. He loved CCO, always called it “The Old Guys News”.

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        1. Funny, I always thought of it as the grandma station. I have fallen into her habit of falling asleep with the news on, except for me it is either the CBC or the BBC.

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        2. theyve always been best. my wife was form chicago and liked ron majors on 11 . then he left and she kept watching whoever was next after frank left to go to cco. i asked her why. they werent as good in my world before majors and frank left but they were nothing after they left cco has been great news for years and years. we all grew up together.
          shelby did such a nice job transitioning from dave moore then don stepping down and frank and amellia. rosie for ralph jon (thanks linda) and the weather guys have been good but nobody as good a bud. paul douglas was good , the current guy is good but bud was so smooth.. kind of a boone and erickson sort of feel there on the news.

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    2. And media success is based on rudeness, half-truths, shallow sentimentality. I remember when Channel 11, the hallmark of shallowness and cheap sentimentality, was called WUSE before the outcry. The national NBC anchor then (name is lost in old age fog) said, “What’s next WGOD?”

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