Adding Insult to Injury

Yesterday's restored power found me happily back to my household routines.  I drank my morning coffee brewed in my magical electric coffee pot,  I went to the market for some fresh food (milk, fresh veggies and deli, oh my!), ran the dishwasher, washed clothes, took some of the heavy bedding off our beds, vacuumed, and cleaned things up.  I thought about putting my candles and flashlights away but refrained, mindful of the Nor'easter headed our way.

Turns out that was a wise choice.  The snow was falling by mid-day and JT headed out to play.  He was delighted by this turn of events because he loves to play in the snow.  I was worried.

As the evening came on, the snow kept falling, and the winds picked up.  Another piece of trim blew off my house.  Our lights flickered around 7 pm and then at 8:30, everything went dark.  It would be fair to say that I rather lost my mind at that point.  We took to our beds and I let despair lull me to sleep.  Around 1:30 am I was awakened by the brightness of the hallway light.  At first, I thought it was just a dream.  Then I sat up and realized that it was a dream come true.  The lights were back and my house never even had time to get cold again.  I shot downstairs to check out my neighborhood's glowing porch lights and plug in JT's iPad.  Then I returned to bed with a most happy heart.

This morning the winds are gone and the sun is already melting our fresh snow.  I can afford to be cheerful.  Mother Nature, if you are reading, I get it.  You can count on my support in this whole global warming debate.

An Ill Wind Blows

There's an old Mary-Chapin Carpenter song about being stuck in the northern cold while she wishes she were south in Louisiana where, she sings, "there's a hurricane party every time it blows."  I keep hearing that chorus in my head and then wondering about the hurricane party.  Around here, we're not having a party so much as an anxiety watch.

State workers have been instructed to stay home and New Jersey has shut down all of its public transportation.  Schools throughout the state are cancelled, including mine.  The whole of the Garden State is in a state of emergency.  We're all hunkered down in our homes, awaiting the inevitable.  

The storm is slow-moving and hasn't yet come ashore.  This morning, we are getting a pretty good preview of what's to come.  The wind gusts started last night and the air chilled.  As we slept, the wind picked up and the rain began.  Were it not for the alarmist forecast, I'd say this is just a cold, windy storm.  But in every gust of wind or unexpected creak of the house, you can hear a sense of menace.

On the other hand, I've laid in supplies and we still have electricity.  I took that as a promising sign and stirred together some homemade muffins for this morning's breakfast.  The forecast reports that conditions should start to improve by tomorrow night.  This morning, with the wind and rain whipping around us, that seems a long way away.    

High Wind of Anxiety

The sun rises slowly on these fall days, and morning light doesn't seem very bright until  nearly 8 am.  In this morning's darkness, I should have pulled the quilt up high and settled down for another hour's sleep.  But I could hear the wind stirring the dry leaves.  Hurricane Sandy is gearing up  and the storm makes us all  restless, anxious for what's to come.

To my dismay, in the last year I seem to be getting rather experienced at the business of hurricane preparedness.   To that end, on Saturday afternoon we put all the outdoor items into the garage.  Grill, tables, chairs, benches, and assorted summer flower pots are now less likely to become hurricane projectiles. 

The storm track remains somewhat uncertain though New Jersey is awash in preparedness panic.  I got supplies on Friday night.  My flashlights are ready and I have non-perishable food and extra water on hand.  I've stored away some ice to keep a few items cool should the power go.  I don't want to say that I'm ready for the storm because that feels awfully daring and I hesitate to get into a bravery match with a hurricane.  No matter how prepared I am, I am never ready for a storm that might bring power outages, flooding, and property damage.

I will blog daily as long as I have electricity.  And I will hope mightily that this storm doesn't overwhelm us all.  Here's to propane stoves, warm blankets, bottled water, and crossed fingers.