[Aktungbby]

1967: Puyi, the last Emperor of China died at age 61...and now we have Xi??!...hardly an improvement... 1989: an earthquake measuring 6.9 in magnitude struck northern California killing 63 people and causing $6 billion in damage...I was driving on Saratoga-Sunnyvale road to my appraisal office, watched the streetlights swaying violently; and immediately 180'd; heading back to our apartment where the elderly nanny and my 10 month old baby were. They were ok! The quake, which had epicentered in the Loma Prieta area of the Santa Cruz Mtns south of San José CA, was my principal appraisal territory; and I was practically the only such 'moutain' appraiser. Consequently, FEMA came a-knocken, and commandeered all my files for the mountain homes (and their photos) to assist in rebuilding to utterly destroyed homes in them thar-hills... I retired from appraisal work (14 years) and moved 100 miles north to Napa and so never saw the rebuilt results of my Canon AE-1's photowork. But an unexpected consequence occurred 10 years later in the 2000 Napa quake, which had epicentered 500 yards from my house, and destroyed the chimney and rear stucco in the shockwave. Showing up to get a Federal grant, covered in dust after a day of cleanup, I encountered the very same FEMA team from '89 who recognized me, with the nervous Napa county assessor who had previously told me I was "overqualified to be a Napa County assessor". After a round of 'howdy do' handshakes with the federals, and on my surmise that 'the elderly and non-English-speaking wouldn't know their damages for some time', the head-Fed agreed and stated they would stay in Napa for a year! Some years later, that much relieved same re-elected assessor actually saw me in full gear, by then guarding a Bank of Amerika during the violent "occupy movement"; and asked me to "please apply for the assistant-assessor opening on Craig's List"... but my wise boss-wife said nyet to that...sparing my overqualified ass undoubted corporate misery!