October 30, 2012
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Shore Thoughts
Well, my heart is heavy after watching countless reports of the devastation that Sandy caused back in New Jersey and New York. Thankfully, it seems that all of our friends and family in the storm’s path are ok — trees were lost, power is out, streets are flooded — but everyone seems to be safe and sound. I suspect many of them haven’t even begun to realize the scope of the damage, since they are isolated by the power loss and poor road conditions. I wish they had better news to look forward to, but that’s not likely to be the case.
I grew up on the Jersey Shore, as I have mentioned many times. Clearly, the impact there was enormous and unprecedented. I keep thinking of various landmarks, some of which are known to many, and some of which are mostly only known to me and mine – and wondering if they still exist.
It’s impossible to see the shots of lower Manhattan without thinking back to 9/11. That’s never a good feeling.
The Mr. and I have been watching the reports, and taking turns expressing our disbelief at what we are seeing. We have had some laughs, though, because there’s nothing like a NY/NJ attitude in the face of trouble. We saw a young woman being interviewed tonight talking about how the storm, “just flat out kicked our ass!” Yup, that sounds like home. And we heard mention of how one thing New Yorkers need now is something they are often in short supply of — patience. Uh, yes. That’s a true statement.
I’m glad the kids and I spent some time “down the shore” this past summer. I took them to the boardwalk in Point Pleasant, where I used to hang out with my two closest friends in high school. This is a picture of all of our children (at a reunion a few years back) taking in the shore line from a ride on the boardwalk. It’s a keeper.
Comments (3)
Every time I have regrets about not settling in your part of the country, there’s a hurricane. And then my regrets just disappear.
Eventually we may have a volcano to deal with in Portland, but so far hurricanes have kept their distance.
Glad you are safe. I feel bad about poor NY/NJ.
@FalconBridge - Thanks for the love.
@madhousewife - Yeah, neither hurricanes nor volcanoes are big selling points, huh? My NY/NJ friends/family are just now starting to realize the extent of the devastation, as they get newspapers and in contact with people out of the area. It’s cold up there without power, too.