Frankenstorm

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few weeks you know at least two things. 

1. The election season was extremely dramatic, and at last, has come to close 

2. Hurricane Sandy hit the New York area at the beginning of last week and wreaked havoc in the northeast. 

Actually, hurricane is a bit of an understatement. The media is, and rightfully so, now calling it "Superstorm Sandy". For those of you who haven't been paying too much attention to the climactic issues of the Northeast, Sandy was a combination of a hurricane that hit the Tri-state area from directly off the water that met up with a nor'easter that met up with a snowstorm coming in from the west. That's a total of 3 storms combined into one large Sandy. 

In the days before Sandy hit New York, as anyone would expect, went along with its busy life as New York always does. I felt like I was one of 6 people in the entire city that was freaking out about the storm. (I say that because Sandy was my first hurricane. I had no idea what to expect.) The news and NYU email blasts told us to stock up on water, flashlights, and non-perishable food items as they always do for any storm, so I went to Duane Reade with every intent of buying a stock of food and water to feed an entire village. I walked out of Duane Reade with some Pretzel m&ms, goldfish, chips, water, snickers, a magazine, and two jars of Nutella. In my defense it was the weekend before halloween so all of the candy lay neatly in their display at the front of the store. I'd like to see you try to walk by that without grabbing some. Also, I had just eaten dinner so my mind really wasn't thinking about the meals I would make myself during the coming apocalypse, just the desserts I would enjoy. Hey, at least I bought some water! 

Sunday morning I woke up to find New York in a frenzy. Yes, New York is always moving, but not like this. People were walking faster than usual, leaves were not in their usual spots on their trees, and the New York Times notification on my phone said that the subways would be closing at 7pm. It was then that I realized the rest of the city had finally reached my level of panic. Fast forward a couple hours and I get an email from NYU itself saying that classes would be cancelled on Monday. Like any other student I began to do a little celebration jig and plan out the rest of my newly extended weekend. This email was cause enough to make me forget about the seriousness of the impending storm. I began to sing "Sandy" from the blockbuster musical, "Grease" in my head on repeat. Images of rehearsals and performances of Annie flashed in my head. Every pop-culture reference I could think of that related to the storm was on my mind. I had a clear plan. I would sit tight in my bed, watch something on Netflix, and ride out the storm.

About an hour later I got a text from my roommate that said, "The storm's gonna be really bad. I'm going home. My mom says you're coming," followed by one that said, "our train leaves at 2:50." I looked at my clock and saw that it was 2:00. Like any New Yorker under pressure the first thing I thought was, "I need a bagel." Luckily for me, I happen to live in a building that has a bagel shop right downstairs. I went back to my room and started throwing items of clothing into my bag. I didn't know how long to pack for, but I thought clothing for 2 days will be fine. Naturally, when I think of 2 days, I think of 4 outfits. 2 for each day. With my bag all packed and my bagel in hand, my roommate, Jake, and I got in a cab and headed to Penn Station. We were lucky to get on the train a mere 20 seconds before the doors closed and the train took off for Long Island. The train ride wasn't too bad - mostly because I had a warm bagel, some apple juice, and a refreshed twitter feed that could last me at least 10 minutes. 

After arriving at Jake's house I was given a grand tour - of his house, and his town. While driving around I noticed that everything was closed and it wasn't even 6:00 yet. It really seemed like people were taking this seriously now. We picked up a friend of Jake's that was being evacuated for the storm, headed back to his house, and ate dinner. My first night away was spent watching movies and sleeping. 

It wasn't until mid-afternoon on Monday, the 29th of October that the storm actually started to hit. Trees fell and the wind howled. We were about 2 minutes away from the end a movie when the power went out. Conveniently, the power also went out right as the sun had disappeared behind the horizon. We were forced to spend the night bathed in candlelight and the artificial light of our cell phones that were out of service. Luckily, I've been through a few power outages before, so I knew how to conduct myself, making sure to blow out all the candles in a room before deserting it. By the time I woke up the next morning the generator at the house had been fixed. 

Later in the day on Tuesday, the day after Sandy wreaked havoc in the Northeast, we decided to take a little drive and survey the damage. After weaving through fallen trees and power lines we made it into the heart of town where few stores had power. Much to my despair, the local Starbucks was one of the unlucky establishments left without power. It wasn't until the next day that we heard of a Starbucks a few town away that had power. The inner New Yorker in me was in desperate need of anything that would keep me connected to the real world that I had lost contact with, so we made a 45 minute trek to get a cup of hot, caffeinated heaven. 

Thursday morning I decided that, as nice as it was to be somewhere where I was safe and warm, I needed to be able to have contact with my family and friends back home. Also, I just really missed the city. I was able to catch a ride into the city with Jake's sister and I set up camp at my cousin Sara's apartment in New York's Upper East Side. Uptown was a completely different world than downtown. Countless references have been made during the aftermath of this storm to Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities", and rightfully so. The cover image of The New York Magazine best describes the utter split between Upper and Lower Manhattan in the aftermath of Sandy. Downtown, home to thousands of clubs and restaurants, known for its nightlife and excitement, was left without power. Jokes were made amongst those who were safely sheltered above 39th Street that Downtown Manhattan would fall victim to anarchy before power was restored. A fate that was quite possible seeing as cell phone service was non-existent in the many neighborhoods below 39th Street. My friends that chose to remain in their dorms had to walk 30 or 40 blocks just to get cell phone service so they could call home and assure their family and friends that they were, in fact, alive and well. 

I remained in the Upper East Side where I was able to walk around amongst actual civilization and enjoy the benefits of living in the city until I received word that power was back in Lower Manhattan. I spent the Friday after the storm indulging in a healthy dose of retail therapy and coffee. These simple - or in the case of my college student-budget restricted wallet, not so simple - pleasures had a way of assuring me that all would be okay in just a matter of time. That my concrete jungle of paradise would soon be restored to its former glory. 

Saturday I received the all-clear that my residence hall was well lit and could accommodate 900 students and their electronics. I made it back down to the East Village in a cab - the subways still weren't running - and walked into my dorm room, only to find that my room was freezing. When I was given the power all clear, they forgot to mention that there was no heat or hot water. I ended up spending that night in one of my friend's room because it was about 5 degrees warmer than my own. Much to my despair, I could not take a shower in the morning, unless I wanted to turn myself into a large ice cube. My friends and I went to brunch, then I went to a local Starbucks to do some homework in a warm environment. After dinner, around 8, I ran a few errands with a few friends, which was to end in a nice hot drink from Starbucks. With an extreme amount of confidence I marched up to the door of the Starbucks I had been in earlier and began to pull on the handle. It was closed. Five hours early. The little bubble of joy inside me had burst. It seems that in the aftermath of Sandy, every store in Lower Manhattan had to shorten their hours because they had such a limited supply of food. 

As I mourned my inability to get a gingerbread latte I got a text message from my cousin, Jordan, who lives in Morningside Heights offering a place to take a hot shower and a couch to sleep on if I wanted to get away from the cold. I decided to take her up on this offer and I took what should have been a 30 minute trip on the subway up to Morningside Heights. The trip ended up being about an hour and a half because of all the subway closures in the week following the storm. I had a warm place to sleep on Sunday night and made it to class on Monday morning 

Monday night ConEdison decided to surprise my dorm building with the steam necessary to heat the building and the pipes. After 8 nights of sleeping on couches I was finally able to settle back in  my own bed. Things were getting back to normal in my area of the Village, but not necessarily in other parts of New York and New Jersey. A few days later New York was hit by a nor'easter, which resulted in the first snowstorm of the year. While everyone else was complaining about the white flakes falling from the sky and freaking out about the impending season of winter, I was outside swirling around in the snow. It was a nice reminder of home. It also didn't hurt that I've been in the holiday spirit since the beginning of October. This only validated my feelings of yuletide and joy. My rule has always been, after the first snow it becomes acceptable to openly listen to, and sing Christmas music. So that's exactly what I've been doing for the past week! Luckily, this storm did not affect the city very much. 

All that being said, I would like to take a minute to encourage all of my readers out there to pay attention to the news. There are many people who lost their homes and lives as a result of Superstorm Sandy. It is almost impossible for anyone to get gas in this area and people are still suffering. I may be okay, but that doesn't mean that everything up here is back to normal. Please, please, please consider making a donation to the Red Cross or any other organization that is helping in the recovery process. I would also like to acknowledge the amazing leadership taken by local and federal government officials in the aftermath of Sandy. While it may seem like they are not doing enough, I assure you they are working countless hours to bring relief to those affected most by the storm. Once again, please do whatever you can to help people who lost their homes and suffered horrible damages in Superstorm Sandy. Whether that is through donations to relief organizations or through your thoughts and prayers, I assure you, they deserve all the help they can get. 

Have a  great week everyone!