Earthquake!

I awake in a pseudo-drunken stupor, unable to maintain a sense of balance just after 2am. For a little longer than ten seconds my bamboo mattress pad seems to be floating atop the rock-hard, coil-spring mattress I call bed. The whole building is shaking. Nature has gone quiet. This is unlike anything I have experienced before (except maybe stumbling home the other night and losing the top half of my ice cream cone). Devastating.

I pop up and stand under my door-frame, just like mama always said, and lock eyes with Antoni and Phill who are doing the same. We wait for aftershock that never comes. The choral ambiance of crickets and cicadas returns after half a minute. Do a quick sweep of the apartment and nothing is broken. "Whelp, see ya in the morning." Back to bed.

I lie back down and still feel as if the world is floating to and fro. The aftershock has merely resided in my mind. Earthquakes are common in Taiwan, but this one was significantly noticeable. It struck just off the coast of southeastern Taiwan. Luckily, no major damage occurred, but in the back of my mind I secretly wish the steel skeleton of the building being constructed next door had fallen over.