My Facebook Highlights:

A coworker is compiling anecdotes about the Earthquake/Tsunami/Reactor disaster and I contributed my blog entries when I realized I didn't have that much substance to my tale. Since I was without power and a computer for almost a week, I did many of my updates via FaceBook. While people couldn't phone one another, due to their I-phones, I-MaxiPads, twittering and tweeting, people all over the country were able to warn people of forthcoming catastrophes and help people get in touch with their loved ones and stalkers.

So I went through my FB entries and compiled them in one fell swoop and passed them along to my comrade. For those of you who don't already socialize with me on that network, here's a smattering of updates by me and about me during the first few days after 11/3/11.

(Note: any spelling & grammar errors haven't been corrected because I was usually in a hurry to type! Furthermore, I don't plan on linking the links, you'll just have to cut & paste if you're so inclined. Rather than putting fancy "quotation marks" around everything. Everything from FB has been placed in italics.) Here we go:

About two dozen people were trying to track me down over the first two days. Fortunately, their fears were assuaged by my personal Person Finder set up by my brother:
http://japan.person-finder.appspot.com/view?id=japan.person-finder.appspot.com%2Fperson.2595413&lang=en&query=Michael+T.+Jones&role=seek

Saturday night, I noticed those green phones had a lineup and called a friend in Tokyo who is a friend of my brothers. My friends Jin & Noriko were very worried about me and tried to tell me all about the tsunami etc. There was a long queue so I just insisted that I was fine and asked her to call my brother and mention to a mutual friend to post my status on Facebook. I hung up and continued my day’s hunt for kerosene for my heater (which was successful 10 minutes later after biking around for 3 hours.)

My sister (Leah Jones) caught word of my good health and posted the following:
Hi everyone – wow, what an outpouring.
I'm Mike's little red-haired sister Leah and as far as we know he is fine. He got a message through from Tokyo late last night.
I don't know if he's hurt but he's alive. Please if anyone of you knows the Huttons from Brampton, could you let them know that he is ok.
From brother Mark in Toronto:
"I... was just watching CBC and they were interviewing the Hutton family from Brampton, whose son John works in Sendai as well and is friends with Michael. At the end of the interview they asked about info on Michael as well, and I've submitted an update to CBC to relay to them. If any of you know these Huttons, please let them know that Michael is OK and that I've left messages for him about his welfare and about John and his family as well."

I'll keep you all updated as info comes in.

We are all so lucky and grateful that Mike made it through...
Leah (in British Columbia)
The next day, she posted the following to my brother, Mark.
Mark...
Michael is well and his apartment is livable. He is safe.
I checked his friend Alex Hutton's record in Google people finder and it's been updated that they are OK in their house, just no power.
There is still no connection through to Michael's cell phone.

I spent Sunday at the Alex Hutton’s place and managed to get a phone message out to the masses. My sister summed it up thusly,
Yay! Michael was able to get a short message out to a few people via his phone...unfortunately, we can't contact him to let him know we've received it!!
I've copied it here...
"im not receiving any mails so i dunno if you get this but my phone doesnt work and i have no power. besides my pc fell so i dunno if it works.
physically ok. no ...damage but plenty of aftershocks.
no gas or electricity but i do have water.
no prob now. we shall see…"
10 hours later, I got to a computer and replied to the above with this,
Hey sis. I'm good. I updated a lot today, but I fear I'm monopolizing this pc I've scammed. I got my phone charged, so I should be more communicative. Alas, my area has no phone service and I don’t know when next I'll be able to recharge it.
Got food & water & shelter. NO gas or power but some service has been restored for now...
While I was pedaling home from Alex’s, the power slowly began returning to the downtown core. It didn’t reach my place until two days later. I did though head downtown to NHK where I successfully scammed a computer and was able to learn about all the damage wrought by the tsunami and the beginning of the Radiation scare.
First I wrote this on my FB page,
MICHAEL JONES is very well and thanks for all your support. I dont have time to read all the messages, cuz im scamming this computer right now. ALEX HUTTON and family are fine as well.
Then, I'm getting my phone charged as we speak and had a long chat with my brother who has updated my GOOGLEFIND page (though I don't know the link).

Andy is doing a bang-up job of informing about everyone else.
take care, thanks for all your support.

Next, I have no power or gas but I have food and water and my apt is stable and power is being restored elsewhere so its a matter of time for me.

And, ps. Happy White Day and Happy PI Day as well, though i wont be consuming any pie today.

This was a tidbit that I was not happy to report,
I haven’t received a whole lot of information but I understand that Arahama was devastated in the tsunami and one of the schools I teach at is there. My thoughts and wishes to all those in Watari and Arahama specifically.

Fortunately, I discovered a week later that all teachers and students had survived. At the time though, I was still a little numb.

I managed to make a quick blog report, as follows;
I don't know when next I'll get to a pc, so take care everyone. http://mytwoyenworth.blogspot.com/2011/03/shaken-rattled-and-rolled.html

I stuck around for another hour or so, reading updates and came across this story from Alex’s sister Stacey, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2011/03/13/japan-canadians.html?sms_ss=facebook&at_xt=4d7cfde630861956%2C0
Apparently there was a shout out for me too. I don't have time to watch it, but rest assured Hutton family that Alex's gang and I are well.

I linked to a few other tales, most of which I still haven't read, such as,
https://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_153076451419949
http://bravenewclimate.com/2011/03/13/fukushima-simple-explanation/

Another post:
People I know who are reportedly okay: ME, Alex Hutton & family, Miwa (Dave's spouse), Adam, Ando, Ernie, Julian, Tony.

I haven't heard any bad news locally but that's not necessarily good news.

I still hadn't left NHK yet (who could resist the free computer time?) and I wrote this,

As I was biking home last night, power was restored in most of downtown. Entering my ward, it was pitch black. There is a Frick'n Christmas tree lit up in front of one of the Housing Corps!! Not the message they should be sending.
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110314a2.html

Id almost left and posted this,

I fear I'm monopolizing this pc I've scammed. I got my phone charged, so I should be more communicative. Alas, my area has no phone service and I don’t know when next I'll be able to recharge it.

Got food & water & shelter. NO gas or power but some service has been restored for now...
take care all. I'm going to venture out into the real world.

Then I read a post from Alex and posted it.
Hello everyone. My family and I are O.K. Just got electricity back a little while ago; don't know how long it'll last. Had water last night- not now. No gas at all. There are 1-hour line-ups at anything that is open (not much). Sirens are fairly constant and about once an hour the earth's plates remind us that they're not finished dancing.
Now that I look at it, it sounds pretty harsh, but we're alive- that's what matters. Many not far from here along the coast were not as fortunate. I've got students, co-workers and friends there that are still out of contact.
The thing that's impressed me most is the amount of calm that people seem to have here- we all know the situation and we're just dealing with it, no drama or unnecessary hysterics; case in point- I didn't stop writing while another tremor was going on during that last sentence.
Thanks to all who have sent messages- I've read them all and I sincerely appreciate the concern.
Still winning in Sendai!

Finally, I took off and didn’t update until I got my power back the following evening.

I'm giving up the comfort of NHK to venture into the big bad city.
Hopefully when I get home, I'll have power. Others have lost water. I hope I still have that...
Next update. I dunno!

Part 2 (I got my power back, Yahoo!) later.

I don't know if any part of this will be used in the book, but there are some juicy tidbits in there. TBC (maybe.)