For Us, At Least, Power is Back

With the size of the super storm we endured on Monday and Tuesday, the loss of human life could have been much worse.  The latest number for the overall death toll from the storm is 60, which when you consider that the first deaths were reported in Jamaica, isn't all that bad.  Don't get me wrong, any loss of human life is horrible, but due to our awareness of the storm and its potential for incredible devastation, most people were able to get out of harms way and keep themselves and their loved ones safe.  On the flip side, the loss of property, houses, cars, infrastructure, etc, will probably edge close to tens of billions of dollars.  One whole community in New York was burned completely to the ground, 111 houses in all due to the storm.  Whole communities in New Jersey and New York are still completely under water and some houses are now out at sea, never to be seen again.   For all our griping about loss of property, let me just reiterate that only 60 people have died so far due to the storm.  I think that we should all be grateful that meteorologists and public officials did their best to warn us perpetually about the gravity of this storm and the potential for record breaking devastation.  Without the warnings we had about this storm I fear we would be facing even greater loss of life and even worse devastation.  At this point we turn to clean up and rebuilding, in hopes that we don't see another storm like this for another hundred years.  Unfortunately, we in the North East have been pounded by 2 strong hurricanes 2 years in a row with a freak October blizzard thrown in for good measure.  The weather has been increasingly volatile and we can only hope that mother nature takes a break for a while.  That being said, the people who live in the North East have a tough skin and are capable of rebounding, which we will. 

My heart truly goes out to those who lost everything or even just a little.  As for us who live inland, we have nothing to complain about.  I personally had a few shingles fly off one side of my garage roof and a piece of siding break loose and flap around during the storm.  None of that was even worth putting in a claim to my insurance company.  The next day I was up on the roof patching in shingles and fixing the siding on my house.  Some people will not have it that easy and some will have to start rebuilding their homes from scratch.  We did lose power for 2.5 days, but with relatively cool temperatures, we were able to save all the food from our refrigerator and freezer.  I didn't even care that we had no hot water for showers.  You know what my biggest complaint was during our few days without power?  (I will warn you now, if you lost a lot or everything, don't read my next sentence.)  My biggest complaint was that I had to leave my house and drive to get coffee.  I know, I know, it is petty to even mention something like that in the wake of such devastation, but to be honest, that was what I was thinking.  It is amazing what we take for granted in our everyday life.  We expect to walk into a room and be able to flick a switch and have light.  We expect to be able to walk downstairs in the morning and cook a nice hot breakfast, take a hot shower, and be warm with the heat being produced by a furnace.  Some of us expect to have a house standing when we go back after a storm to view the damage.  This latest storm just proved the point that anything we have can be taken away in a moments notice and we can do absolutely nothing about it.  Especially when it comes to mother nature, all bets are off.  What mother nature wants to do, she will do.  Despite our best efforts to stave off the worst damage, sometimes we can make no impact at all.  Perhaps what we all learned most from this storm is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.  All told, this storm could have been worse than it was if the actual landfall coincided more directly with the high tides on Monday night.  The flooding that would have occurred given all the variables lining up correctly would have been absolutely horrendous wiping even more communities off the map.  Let us be thankful that some things went in our favor during this storm. 

As far as I'm concerned, I can do without another hurricane for a few years.  While their destructive power can be beautiful, it is also excessively damaging.  For us in the North East, it is time to prepare for the upcoming winter and from what some are saying could be heavier than usual snow fall.  But such is life in New England, we go from hurricanes to blizzards in the space of only a month or two.  Only this time, if a blizzard does hit us, at least there will be no leaves on the trees thanks to Sandy (the super storm).  For all the petty complaints that people have had after this storm (I will include myself here) for the most part we are a tough people who take the punches as they come, get back up afterwards, and move forward with our lives.  We could sit around and complain, and I assure you that some people will, but what good will that do.  We have learned many valuable lessons over the past 14 months and I am sure that any storm to hit us in the future will have a much harder time getting under our skin.  For now at least, it is time to lend a helping hand to those who need it, rebuild our lives over the next weeks and months, and keep on living like we always do.  I will leave you with one last little video clip that I took along the shore after the storm.  Keep in mind, this was after the storm had already moved through (I know its not New Jersey, but it is still breath taking to see mother nature in action).  What you will see is high tide on Tuesday in Milford, CT.  I can't even imagine what it must have been like during the height of the storm on Monday night.  To all of you who still don't have power, stay warm, stay safe, and good luck.