Your thoughts DURING the Tohoku quake

[Otaku]

"Not again! I experienced the 7.5 Niigata quake. Not another big one! What am I still doing in this country?!?!"

It didn't even occur to me how big this quake was going to affect Japan in the direct future. I remember cracking a joke during it about it feeling like a roller-coaster.

Now, I feel bad about what I said...

[Paul]

After my problems with my cell phone on the day of the quake and tsunami my first thoughts were very selfish, "Thank God it's not me or anyone in my family". Then for some reason or another I felt guilty, but then felt elated that it wasn't me and my family again, and again, and again.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

I just though, as I mentioned before, that I have to get home incase another whopper hits.

Basically I don't know what I would do if my family was crushed in my flimsy apartment while I was safe at school. Just couldn't swing that. It would torment me.

So I waited until all but a handful of kids were picked up, told the teachers I'm leaving then jogged home for 2 hours with only one thing on my mind. "Get home"

Truthfully I would rather die together with my family than survive them while chilling at school. Also if we were to be in a collapsed building with my family at least I could be of some use trying to help them.

[moolooman]

I hung around on the field until I could tell Kyoto sensei I was out of there. I had to go and find my wife and dog. The aftershocks (I was in Tochigi) just kept on coming throughout the day and night, and I was just a little nervous.

[Richard_BenoitEnglipedia Drone]

Yeah, at first I only thought about quakes and the destruction they could cause...then the teachers flipped on the TV and we watched live as the Tsunami hit land and just kept rolling, and rolling and rolling over everything in its path while we all stood with our jaws dropped....all silent. I just kept thinking...wow those are people down there, those are there houses swimming around...and those folks driving on the road look aboslutely ridiculous they gots to get the hell away NOW! But what can you do when your road your driving on is only running north to south and the tsunami is hitting you from the east.

[moolooman]

I remember thinking about it maybe being bigger elsewhere. I remember worrying there may be a tsunami. I started getting emails on the phone about getting away from the sea if I was near it. We had no power for 24 hours, so I couldn`t see anything till the next day at any rate.

[Paul]

Oh and one other thought that passed through my mind was that heaven forbid something as big as that hit down here. I truly believe it would have split the island in half with the southern part being half submerged in water for a bit.

[Paul]

Another thing I thought about while watching the water inundate Sendai airport was "What movie am I watching?" "This can't be for real!"

And it reminded me of another "live" scene that was burned into my memory that gave me the same thought as well, 9/11. I don't think that for as long as I live that I will ever forget either of these events and where I was and the circumstances surrounding them as well.

[moolooman]

You see up here we couldn`t see any of that live. We had the different experiences of ummm a mexting big earthquake, continuous large aftershocks, no power for a day, no gas, no shops. But compared to those in Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima it was a walk through the meadow smelling the pansies.

[Kanashibari]

I was on the train home and felt the whole boat rocking and getting a call from my girlfriend if I felt the earthquake.

It was next to nothing down here in Osaka, so I didn't know how big the catastrophe was until I got home and my g/f turned on the TV........ it was apocalyptic imagery on every channel.

I felt that I had to get outside at once and walk around downtown making sure there was a world left.
It was a shitty feeling, waiting in this "calm before the storm" quiet city, wondering what will happen next and the long-term future effects.

Of course, I had to get in touch with all friends and family and let them know I was ok.

[moolooman]

Respectfully speaking, were you on the train home or the boat home. I am confused.

Where we were in Tochigi (where I praised Allah, Buddha, Islam, God and everyone else when it finished), we had nothing in the way of news until the following afternoon when the power came back on. No power for the TV. Cellphone towers ran out of battery fairly promptly. I didn`t even know of the tsunami till the next day.

Not sure which was better / worse. Seeing it all, or being blissfully ignorant.

[Otaku]

Me too, I didn't have any clue of the results of the quake or tsunami until the next day.

I've never seen those huge tower lights that light up the grounds sway so much in my life. I thought for sure they were collapsing! I was thinking about that movie, 2011.

[moolooman]

I didn`t use the word M*H*AM*E* in my previous post as I didn`t want people protesting outside the palatial offices of Englipedia.

[sum1wholikesengliped]

My thoughts were, 'Crap, I gotta stop playing this game (Counter-Strike).' By that time, I tripped into the wall at least once before I could scramble out of the mansion.

[azuhlLt.]

My thoughts were, 'Crap, I gotta stop playing this game (Counter-Strike).' By that time, I tripped into the wall at least once before I could scramble out of the mansion.

Heh, I was playing Mario with the missus (not a euphamism), not quite as manly as CS but close! I was thinking 'SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII, I'll never kill Bowser at this rate!'

[jeisensei]

"Not again! I experienced the 7.5 Niigata quake.

You too? I was up in Niigata for both the quakes. In Niigata city for the chuuetsu and in Nagaoka for the oki. Every time I tell that to people they accuse me of being a jishin-otoko

[Otaku]

@Jeisensei, I was in Kashiwazaki for the big one, and Joetsu for the Chuuetsu. I don't suppose you know Troy?

[jeisensei]

Troy? Sounds familiar, but I didn't get around when I was in Niigata.

[Otaku]

Did you ever come to any of the beach BBQs I threw down in Kashi?

[jeisensei]

Oh!

I heard of them, but never made it out that way. Not in the 5 years I was there either ^^;

[hokkaido1]

Being in Hokkaido, it was very small, but quite long. Like others have said, I didn't think much of it at all. I was stunned to see the live tsunami broadcasts