E a R t H q U a K e ! e A r T h Q u A k E !

There is really no "good" place do be during an earthquake. Well, maybe in a big open field full of soft green grass... But that's not where most people hang out on a daily basis.

SO! The other afternoon we were in the market. Not the supermarket (and I use the term "super" loosely -- it's more like a funky two-story 7-11 on steroids) but the grungy open-air-maze-of-veggies-and-fruits-and-eggs-and-baby-chickens-and-bootlegged-DVDs-and-watch-your-purse-and-don't-step-on-the-drunk-guy-passed-out-on-the-floor... Yes, THAT market. 

"Toto, I don't think we're in Walmart anymore..."

Aaaanyway. So there was an earthquake. Is it wrong to say that I LIKE them? Well if it's wrong, then I don't want to be right. I like 'em. I really, really like 'em. I think they are exciting. If you were here, you'd like them, too. (Or you'd lie and say you don't like them, when really deep down you do.)

So we were inside the market, which is a deathtrap under normal circumstances, since it is basically a hodgepodge of pieces of corrugated metal, tarps, random scraps of wood and   electric wires zig-zagging over your head...you get the picture. The earthquake hit and it was fun to see the looks on people's faces as they realized what was going on. I think in the past I've usually been sitting down when they hit, but this time I was standing. I could actually FEEL THE GROUND MOVING UNDER MY FEET.

It.

Was.

So.

COOL.

And yes, my Spanish is still bad, but I am multi-lingual when it comes to reading people's faces. The guy tending his little booth near me was dodging packages of napkins as they fell off the shelf. And we were both staring wide-eyed at the orange soda sloshing around in the 3-liter bottles on his counter. It was AWESOME! Anyway, it lasted about 15 seconds. But it was fifteen seconds of waaaay coolishness!

So come, my friends. Come to Guatemala. See the volcanoes. Feel the earthquakes. Hear me squeal with delight whenever there's an eruption or an earthquake.

Have a great day -- and until we meet again, stay thirsty, my friends!