My sister’s text message equaled one word.

 “Earthquake!”

 I didn’t get too shook up about it. Laurie lives in San Diego and she sends that message whenever a sizable tremor rattles her neighborhood.

But her next message surprised me.

 “A 3.0 just hit Nebraska. Did you feel it?”

 While most may consider earthquakes a California phenomenon, Nebraska’s tremor testimony stretches back in time. The Nebraska Geological Survey estimates 50 quakes have rocked the state.

The first substantial earthquake felt in Nebraska occurred about a month after achieving statehood reports the U.S. Geological Survey. On April 24, 1867, a quake near Lawrence, Kansas affected much of the Cornhusker state. Since then, at least seven reports of seismic activity with an intensity V (Mercalli scale) or greater have centered within our borders. The intensity rating translates to a 4.0 or higher on the Richter scale.

On November 15, 1877, two shockwaves hit Nebraska about 45 minutes apart along the western edge of the Keweenawan mafic belt. Columbus, located northwest of the epicenter, suffered damage to courthouse and schoolhouse walls. The second wave released a surge of energy and lasted nearly 40 seconds in North Platte. Buildings swayed in Lincoln. Parts of the Dakotas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin experienced the eruption. The quake registered intensity VII and the event is considered Nebraska’s strongest earthquake.

Small, modest earthquakes struck throughout the next several decades. Near Battle Creek, an intensity V shook the bell towers of local churches and clattered dishes in many homes on July 28, 1902. During a single day in 1910, multiple rumblings shook houses in Columbus. In 1972, a 3.7 occurred near Basset. Residents of Ainsworth and Newport reported it, too.

 But several strong earth rattlers have hit Nebraska. In 1934 near Chadron, a 5.5 quake caused plaster to fall from walls. Canned goods and dishes wobbled from shelves. This event was felt as far away as Sterling, Colorado.

Close to Tecumseh, two earthquakes broke windows, cracked plaster, and damaged chimneys. The jolts came four minutes apart in 1935.

In March 1964, Nebraska, Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming felt an awakening jolt. But six hours later, in the middle of the night, a 5.1 quake caused roadways south of Merriman to crack. The banks of the Niobrara River slid into the tranquil, flowing river. Damage rated as an intensity VII or very strong.

I’ve experienced two earthquakes, and both weren’t felt on the sandy beaches of San Diego. The first quake was centered between Center and Creighton. I taught in Wausa and a fellow teacher walked into my room and asked if felt the earthquake.

Um, no.

In fall 2002, on a Sunday afternoon, I thought a semi-truck was rounding the curve and hitting the brakes near our home in Neligh, until I noticed the ceiling fan swaying. A 4.3 quake hit northwest of O’Neill.

Even though Nebraska’s earthquakes haven’t been extremely destructive, the shake, rattle and roll are unnerving, making it difficult to imagine the earthquakes my sister has survived.

Have you experienced Nebraska shiver?

The Geological Survey tracks earthquakes in real time at http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsus/.

New York has the Guggenheim and the MoMA. San Diego’s Balboa Park hosts the nation’s largest urban cultural park, home to 15 museums. Chicago lauds its exhibits: The Field Museum, Museum of Science and Industry, Hull House. History and art enthusiasts revel at the delightful treasures displayed within these halls.

Nebraskans don’t have to travel across the Midwest or even to the coasts to visit top exhibitions. In our own back yards, historical societies, art foundations and educational groups have assembled some of the best collections around.

If you have never traveled Nebraska’s byways and stopped at some of our state’s quaint menageries, you have the opportunity to this weekend. The Smithsonian and Smithsonian Magazine welcome visitors for their 6^th annual National Museum Day.

And the good news: you don’t have to visit Washington D.C. to partake. Nine museums across the Cornhusker state are offering free admission with the required ticket, which can be retrieved at www.smithsonianmag.com/museumday.

What sites can you visit in Nebraska?

The Lincoln County Historical Society maintains a museum in North Platte. Inside, exhibits show what life is like in cattle country. The museum features railroad history, too. Several preserved outbuildings depict 1880s living.

At Kearney’s Buffalo County Historical Society and Trails and Rails Museum, visitors discover the history of the Overland and Mormon trails and the Union Pacific railroad along the Great Platte River Road.  Check out a locomotive and the depot, along with the Boyd Ranch House, the Freighters Hotel, a school house, 1898 church, and a log cabin.

Enjoy living history presentations? Visit the Stuhr Museum of the Prairie Pioneer in Grand Island. In addition to the main building, saunter through Henry Fonda’s birthplace, a livery stable, blacksmith shop or the Silver Dollar Café. The museum also offers educational classes for parents and children. Its H.A.T.S. (Heritage Activities for Today’s Students) program, with grade level-appropriate activities, introduces learners to pioneer life.

Headed to this week’s Husker game? Since there’s a six o’clock kickoff, go early and visit three of Lincoln’s top treasures: the International Quilt Study Center and Museum, Nebraska History Museum and University of Nebraska State Museum. Discover the history of quilting, a 14-foot mammoth, or the amazing stories of our state’s ancestors.

The Cass County Historical Society Museum in Plattsmouth conveys the history of the county, which was settled in 1854. Steamboating on the Missouri, pioneer life, and agriculture production are highlighted.

In Omaha’s Union Station, The Durham Museum examines regional history. Celebrate the Trans-Mississippi Exposition, model trains, or the soda fountain.

Ever visited the oldest county museum in Nebraska? The Washington County Historical Museum in Ft. Calhoun contains prehistoric relics and Native American pieces. Objects from Fort Atkinson are also displayed.

Since I’m a history enthusiast, I’ve visited five of the nine museums participating in this weekend’s event. I’m amazed at the information and artifacts that explore the lives of those who lived here before us.

High quality exhibits exist here at home. Which museum will you visit and enrich your Nebraska knowledge?

Share your favorite Nebraska Museums at http://luannschindler.com.

Certain snippets of time stand out, a cheerful tableau framed within a person’s memory: my daughters’ birthdays or the afternoon Scott and I got married and the preacher was late. Each indelibly-stamped imprint creates a smile.

Other events stick with us because of the immediate implications on our society: the Pearl Harbor invasion, the assassinations of John and Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr., the Challenger explosion.

A handful of pictures never escape our recollection. Instead, they rewind and replay in slow motion, waiting for our intervention.

Where were you when the world stopped turning?

Standing in the kitchen, brewing a pot of coffee, watching Cassie walk two blocks to the Neligh-Oakdale high school.  The radio broadcasted a news bulletin about a plane hitting a building in Manhattan. I flipped on the Today Show and within a couple minutes, watched in horror as the second plane smashed into the neighboring tower.

Like you, I watched the towers crumble, agonized when the plane hit the Pentagon (knowing a friend worked there), and felt numb when Flight 93 crashed into a Pennsylvania field.

Nine years ago Saturday, the worst side of our enemy brought out the best in this country. Close to 3000 individuals lost their lives in a senseless act. The repercussions were felt here in the Cornhusker state, as five victims with Nebraska ties lost their lives.

Leonard Castrianno of Omaha worked for Cantor Fitzgerald in the north tower. Former Beaver City resident Julie Geis happened to be visiting New York and was on the 102nd floor of Two WTC. Captain Larry Getzfred of Elgin, a Navy officer, was in the Navy command center at the Pentagon. Another employee of Cantor Fitzgerald, Monte Hord from Central City, was in the north tower. Lincolnite Jennifer Dorsey Howley was on the 92nd floor of Two World Trade Center.

Each year since the attack, Lincoln’s Veterans Memorial Garden commemorates the date with a program honoring those who lost their lives. Located in historic Antelope Park, the Veterans Memorial Garden features a walking tour of 21 military monuments. The park and the program provide quiet deliberation.

On Saturday, just a few miles away from the peaceful remembrance, 85,000 fans in Memorial Stadium united for the singing of “The Star Spangled Banner” as color guard from each branch of service marched onto the field. When the gates opened for the tunnel walk, Tyrone Fahie, a Nebraska senior defensive end and oldest walk-on player, carried our country’s colors onto Tom Osborne Field, along with police officers, firefighters and military heroes. A member of the U.S. Navy, Fahie served two tours of duty in Iraq.

Moments like that make me proud to be an American and a Nebraskan.

Did you notice a change in the world that fateful day?

Legend says sky and Earth are twins, mirroring the other’s moods. That Tuesday, the mid-day moon frowned at the world, at the disruption of ebb and flow. Smoke curled into the atmosphere releasing thousands of muffled voices, while inconstancy ruffled the Sea of Tranquility.

Purple-ribbon pigs, best-of-show pies and hot headliners. Sounds like a scene acted on the silver screen, complete with Academy Award-winning soundtrack.

 While those fictional elements plot the 1945 movie “State Fair”, they also comprise the storyline for this year’s State Fair, which wrapped its new locale debut on Labor Day.

 As of September 2, over 120,000 spectators entered Grand Island’s Fonner Park. Fair officials reported the event should draw 300,000 visitors when midway lights dim Monday evening.

It’s a testament to 141-year-old event.

Those first extravaganzas took place along the Missouri River, as the fair put down stakes in Brownville, Lincoln, Nebraska City and Omaha before the Legislature picked Lincoln as the fair’s home.

Majestic architecture became a top draw. Agriculture Hall, or the Industrial Arts building, was built in 1913 and considered one of the top exhibition halls in the nation. The trapezoid-shaped, red brick structure, complete with natural skylights, Palladian windows and open trusses captured the attention of fairgoers and exhibitors.

The purpose of the fair: showcase Nebraska and all she offered.

In Lincoln, the rural social event of the year turned into a struggling affair barely capable of meeting its obligations. Attendance dipped. Execs tried a variety of ideas and incentives to entice visitors, especially those from outstate.

 Would a change in venue give the fair a much-needed boost or would it drown like a Twinkie lowered into a vat of sizzling grease?

 Scott and I visited the fair this weekend. Overall, we were impressed.

We opted to pay ten bucks for parking in a lot run by the Tehama Shrine Temple instead of using the park n’ ride system set up at sites around the city. Traffic was a bit hectic but manageable.

Then, we viewed the grounds. While the old fairgrounds offered a feeling of hominess, of familiarity, the new facilities are simply amazing.

 Tyler and Lacey participated in the FFA and 4-H market goat shows on Sunday. The livestock arena allows three rings of competition at once, and a giant display on the west wall screens the show.

 Everything – the livestock barns and the exhibition hall – seem bigger and better. I’m not sure about numbers, but it appears more competitors vied in these contests. Notably, more audience members watched. Grandstands were packed. 

The purpose of the fair: showcase 4-H and FFA members and their projects, the heart of Nebraska’s best-of-the-best competition. These displays let our state’s youth shine, whether showing the perfect dairy cow or the sweetest plate of cookies.

Despite the controversial move, Nebraskans appear to support the fair.

Perhaps curiosity drew crowds. On Sunday, hungry guests waited in lengthy lines to taste a deep-fried peach or the pecan-smoked pork chop on a stick. Throngs sauntered among the newest Ag products and filled the Rising Stars concert. Rides whirled and twirled. Favorite, reliable food stands made the move, and new exhibitors showed wares.

Next year, we will return and celebrate Nebraska’s grand affair. It’s tradition, no matter where it’s located.

Will you?

Ready for kickoff? I am. My thoughts about Husker fandom and fanatics are included in the Omaha World-Herald’s “Big Red is the Only Fall Color” article. Great job, Josie Lozafina!!