Classic Rant #1,166 (March 18, 2014): Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On

Yesterday, Los Angeles had a minor earthquake, or major, depending on whether you are there or are where I am.

California had not broken off from the rest of the continental United States, so I guess they will survive this one, as they have survived the other numbers of shakers they've received over the past x amount of years.

Admittedly, earthquakes are not funny things, but if you live in California, you have to be prepared for them every once in a while.

Johnny Carson used to talk about them all the time on "The Tonight Show." They became fodder for jokes on that show for decades, as ubiquitous as the famous Slawson Cutoff.

We had a very mild earthquake sometime during 2012, I think it was, in my neck of the woods.

It happened during lunchtime while I was at work, shook us for a second or two, and that was that.

Since it was such a rare occurrence, we heard about it on the news for days and days.

But that is my only experience with an earthquake. I am sure my counterparts in California have many, many, many more stories about their own encounters with the shakes.

Let it stay over there. Once was enough for me.

We have had other situations here--like nor'easters and hurricanes--that quite frankly scared the heck out of me.

We don't need earthquakes to give us something else to worry about.

Earthquakes have been so ubiquitous on the West Coast that there have been songs written about them, and I posted one that I remember at the end of this Rant.

That's how commonplace they are 3,000 miles away from where I am.

And hopefully, that is where they'll stay.