Good morning,
At about 8:07 am, this morning, we experienced an earth quake and trimmer in the Charlotte area of the Carolinas. I'm thinking this was also experienced with those that live close by in South Carolina, possibly Virginia, Tennesee and Georgia as well. Did anybody else experience this?
For about 30 seconds my house shook with dishes rattling in the kitchen ... etc. I have not yet checked my brick work or driveway for cracks. Our cat took shelter under the kitchen table.
After checking, thus far, I'm finding no damage to my home or any broken objects within the house.
Comments
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/?extent=-19.64259,-203.55469&extent=73.87372,8.08594
Local news now covering ...
https://www.wcnc.com/article/weather/did-you-feel-an-earthquake-in-charlotte/275-c4e0828a-6b8a-4d45-9b90-0f82b4297382
I'm now getting reports, from folks I know, that the quake was felt in Columbia, Charleston and Atlanta. Friends I know say the did not feel it in Asheville, NC ... which I find strange ... as both Sparta and Asheville are in the same mountain range but about 100 mikes apart. Thus, the falut line must run north & south rather than east & west.
This earthquake is surprising since the Carolinas don't have many major fault lines as those found on the West coast. https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/energy-mineral-land-resources/north-carolina-geological-survey/geologic-hazards/earthquakes-north-carolina
For those who live on the west coast learn to live with earthquakes no matter how small they are.
“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”
Glad you’re safe @Old_Skeet.
Hopefully, no after-shocks. Never experienced it, but I hear they can really be nasty.
My home was built in 1938 and held up (with some damage) against a Charleston, SC earthquake that took place in 1968 with some damage to the plaster and brick work. For my family, it was much worse (damage wise) than the Sparta quake. Interestingly, though, I was in college at the time (1968) in Charleston, SC. I now live in this home as it was passed on to me by my parents. And, my son and his wife live in the home that he grew up in that was gifted to him.
As for the metrics in Old_Skeet's stock market barometer, which follows the S&P 500 Index, indicates that the Index is extremely overbought at this time with a reading of 120. Since, I am fully invested based upon my asset allocation, with a 5% overweight in the income area of my portfolio due to low cash yields I am presently in a cash build mode while I await better investing opportunities on the equity side of my portfolio. Generally, I would have trimmed equities from present 40% to 35% but most of my equity value positions are the good dividend generators and my growth positions have offered growth production for the portfolio. So, for the equity side I now sit and watch.
Many may remember that I was an equity buyer during the downdraft that came back in March into early April; and, I have been trimming my equity allocation as it reached about 50% of my portfolio as the market rebounded. Thus, I began an equity trimming process until recently. Presently, I am at about 40% equity splity about evenly between value and growth with about 65% being domestic and 35% foreign.
Again, thanks to those that were concerned about me and family. I can assure you it is most appreciated.
Wishing all ... a Blessed Day!
Skeet
Hi Skeet, I remember that many were equity buyers during the downdraft in March and early April. In hindsight, it was like shooting ducks in a barrel - though there existed no certainty at the time. Following are the closing numbers for March 12 I posted that day. Note that gold closed almost $500 cheaper per ounce than today. The miners fell 11.36% that one day alone. And there was at least one other double-digit drop for them in the same week.
My March 12 Post
Today’s Numbers 3/12/20
hank
March 12 edited March 12
in Off-Topic
Index / Close / % Change
Dow 21200.85 -9.99
Dow Transports 7257.58 -10.69
Dow Utilities 723.81 -10.91
S&P 500 2480.68 -9.51
Nasdaq 7201.8 -9.43
Nasdaq 100 7263.65 -9.27
Russel 2000 1132.38 -10.43
VIX Index 76.83 42.54
10 Year Gov't Yield 0.88 0.44
Spot Gold 1569.7 -3.98
Spot Silver 15.66 -6.52
GDX-Gold Miners 22.31 -11.36
Crude Oil 30.98 -6.06
Dollar Index 97.37 0.89
Euro Spot 1.12 -0.73
Japanese 10 Year -0.06 -72.73
Shanghai SE 2923.49 -1.52
Long Bond 20-year 177.62 -1.61
Source: Bloomberg
March 12, 2020
Did my best to cut / paste these numbers. Thought folks might be especially interested today.
(Clandestine OP - no link)
If you’re “heaving” right now, it might not be due to the Coronavirus.
@Old_Skeet,
All smiles are relative.
I’ve grown the nest-egg substantially since retiring in ‘98, even while taking distributions. What bothers me is that it has been done by accepting more risk than I think is appropriate for someone in retirement. Short-term rates have been mired in the mud for at least a decade. Wouldn’t it be nice to pull 5-7% yearly with a relatively safe, secure investment? Yes - long bonds have outperformed, but those invested in them may not appreciate fully the risk they are taking.
Back to who was buying in March ... Here’s a damn near classic post by @Derf. I regret giving him a rough time than. I didn’t disagree with buying in increments, as I was doing at the time, but I felt at the time his post went overboard in its enthusiasm. Turned out I was wrong. March 20 in retrospect really was “Another Buying Opportunity”.
Derf’s March 20 Thread
@Old_Skeet - I’ve managed to “misdirect” your original purpose here. If the ground starts shaking again, please let us know!
Glad to hear that you got through it in good shape. There are in fact a couple of major fault lines in the Eastern U.S., and the Carolinas seem to be right on top of one:
What concerns me most about the future is that almost all existing defined benefit pension plans are premised upon a fairly high annual rate of return. At our ages, my cohort is likely going to be fine. But what on earth is going to happen to the younger folks who are dependant upon various pension schemes for their income?
Yes.
In the not too distant future I look for some cities and states to go bankrupt. After all ... Detroit did just that with some (with pensions) getting pennies on the dollar.
-break-
With respect to "your" earthquake, here's an article that you might find interesting.
It's from an "earthquake info site" that I frequently check.