I was thinking as I drove to the Oakland VA Clinic yesterday about how much of the freeway system here is elevated. In some places there are overpasses on top of overpasses while roads travel beneath as city streets. As I headed down the last few blocks of Martin Luther King Boulevard, I decided to count. There are seven in a one block stretch. All filled with vehicles of various sizes and shapes: headed West toward the Bay Bridge & San Francisco, headed North toward Contra Costa County, south toward Hayward & San Jose, or East toward 24 and the cities beyond the hills toward Concord or beyond. And this is earthquake territory.
I mentioned the bridges and overpasses when I was getting my vitals taken. My nurse sat down. She described heading home from work and just exiting the Bay Bridge when the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake hit. Totally shaken (sorry, this was her wording, not an attempt at a bad pun) she finally was able to make her way home. Her phone was ringing as she walked in the door. Her mother was on the phone calling from the SouthEast. The earthquake was on television all over the US. There was a small red car – her make and model, dangling off one section of a bridge…. If you are interested in learning more about this particular disaster whose long range effects have been amazing on the SF water front – here is the Wiki link.
. What is really interesting in the article is that it clearly details all the follow up work to include road construction.
This was a lovely day not to go anywhere. I have managed another small bit of clean up, received the next section of “A Field Guide to Dragons,” added another 400 stitches to the frame and 800+ to the Chinese Dragon. I would hope to finish him up tomorrow – but I have a couple of Zoom sessions, an on-line retreat, a medical appointment, and an early evening concert.
Oh, yes, and it is George’s birthday.
