My longest post yet…SORRY! But it may entertain you if you have the time.
Most of you know that I love movies, but what some of you may not know is that I LOVE LOVE LOVE watching anything instantly from Netflix through my Wii. Seriously my instant queue is made up of random movies and documentaries that I would probably be embarrassed for most people to see. So while I could spend every night watching some ridiculously random movie I have come across on the watch instantly section of netflix, I try to throw a documentary on every once in a while. (haha who am I kidding?! I watch a documentary probably 1 out of 3 times) I'm pretty sure I know a lot more than the average person about the FBI, the Secret Service, the White House, Air Force One, etc. because for a while I had this dream (obviously in kateland) of being in the secret service...it all started with that movie The Sum of All Fears. Seriously I wanted to be the person driving the black Tahoe recklessly to ensure the President escaped. Fortunately I have a very rational and wise dad who told me that along with other reasons, my lack of athletic ability would greatly hinder this dream and I let it go. But I still thrive on any insider information and the rush of adrenaline that comes with it...but I have majorly digressed.
Back to tsunamis...So the other night I thought as I was flipping through my Netflix I should really watch this tsunami documentary. It was only after I had started it that I realized my horrible mistake because I would obviously have nightmares for days to come. After a little research here is some basic information I have found. According to Merriam-Webster a tsunami is “a great sea wave produced especially by submarine earth movement or volcanic eruption.” Basically tsunamis happen when there is an earthquake in the ocean or a volcanic activity, there have been a few occurrences when tsunamis have happened because meteor activity. Tsunami comes from the Japanese word meaning “harbor waves.” Many people say that a tsunami sounds like a freight train. Tsunamis can’t be felt aboard ships nor can they be seen from the air in the open ocean. In deep water tsunami waves may reach speeds exceeding 500 miles per hour. Tsunamis also usually have extremely strong currents. The Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 is believed to have killed more than 150,000 people, making it one of the most destructive tsunamis in history. Tsunamis are the most prevalent in the Pacific Ocean, around the Ring of Fire. Some tsunamis have been known to surge vertically as high as 100 feet, but most cause the sea to rise anywhere from 10-20 feet.
Here’s what I took away from the actual documentary:
1) There have been a lot of tsunamis (meaning a few) in Killo, Hawaii. This made me happy because I live on the East Coast, but sad because Hawaii is my favorite place ever. Now I’m very concerned about possible tsunamis.
2) Volkswagens (at least the old ones) can float. So if I’m ever in Hawaii again, or really the west coast, I will do my best to rent an old Volkswagen in case of a tsunami. There was this guy from Crescent City, California on the documentary talking about being in his Volkswagen with his wife and that it floated. (Don’t worry I found this to be true on Wikipedia….haha jk but I did verify this.)
3) There is a city in Japan that has a wall all the way around it in case of tsunamis…they close the openings to the beach in case of a tsunami warning. They have four minutes to get them all closed.
4) Scientists believe there is a 1 in 10 chance of a major tsunami striking the Pacific West Coast in the next 50 years. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?!?! (besides the fact that I will not be moving to California anytime soon.)
5) If you feel the earth shake while you are on or near a beach/ocean you should immediately go to higher land…like leave everything and start running. Also if the waves and the ocean start receding like a hairline, don’t just stand there marveling at the ocean floor, you need to get out of there pronto.
6) Lastly I learned about Canon Beach, Oregon. First of all they do a tsunami test often because they are at risk. However, they don’t want to scare tourists or anyone for that matter, so instead of a shrill alarm they have a moo’ing sound (as in a cow) which people sit around and laugh at and dogs appear to go crazy. Also Canon Beach Elementary is in a dangerous area so basically if a tsunami hits they will be in harm’s way. However, the students at this school have regular tsunami drills, like we had tornado and fire drills. I was a bit confused during this part because they are talking about these drills and then all the kids suddenly get under the desks. I’m no expert but it seems to me that hiding under a desk isn’t going to do much when your building is destroyed by a tsunami. I think I maybe missed something about them practicing for tornadoes?! Anyway this is where I got really confused…they then got out from under the desks and went and lined up outside. Clearly I missed some key information because not only do I not understand why being under the desks was necessary at all, I’m also confused why lining up outside is going to help when a giant wave is heading towards you. FINALLY things started to make sense…they were getting organized in lines so they could start their march up to higher ground. They use the buddy system and cheer each other on as they go, which is all uplifting but you would think that they would be moving a little faster if an actual tsunami was on its way. I mean hello did they not hear that tsunamis in the open ocean can travel up to 500 miles per hour?!?! Luckily during this particular test they got to higher ground in 13 minutes, but they only have like 15 minutes or something to get there. Anyway there are plans to relocate the school. However this documentary was made in 2004 and it is 2011 and the school is still in the same place. I don’t know about you but I personally would think that this would be at the top of the to-do list…especially since they believe a tsunami could strike at any time. Sorry about this tangent but this seemed to be the most ridiculous part of the documentary to me…just move the school, these are your children!!!!
Anyway below are some pictures of tsunamis or what they would look like. Please note that it was very uncomfortable for me to look at these pictures because I’m now terrified of giant waves. Also here is a quiz you can take to see if you learned anything: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/02/100227/tsunami-quiz/.
This is because I literally was freaking out about all of the other pics...you get the idea.
I’m also EXTREMELY scared of icebergs. (this started in oceanography with Rebecca Jane and Sarah and our book had this full page picture of an iceberg, similar picture shown below, and it said that like 10 percent of icebergs are above water and 90 percent are below---that is TERRIFYING!!!!!!!!! Thank God I wasn’t on the Titanic!)
I'm not lying...I had my eyes covered when I googled icebergs. These seriously give me chills.
In conclusion, FINALLY, I decided to watch the movie 2012 yesterday. I knew this was a bad idea because I’m already stressed about all the theories surrounding the year 2012. But I thought to myself what better do I have to do? Well let me tell you I can think of about 1 million things that would have been a better use of my time. All this movie consisted of was the world being completely destroyed by earthquakes, fires, and flooding (basically tsunamis). Then to make matters worse, I also woke up at 4am this morning and looked at my emails on my phone and had one from the Wall Street Journal about a New Zealand earthquake that killed at least 65 people. Well let me just say that I will be making an appointment to get Xanax ASAP.
No comments:
Post a Comment