Hello Sandy! Part 3

October 30th - 11:30 am

We can hear chain saws in the distance, so crews are out working. According to the local radio station, the local utility says that it could be a week to ten days before full power is restored to the county.  Oh joy.

5:00 pm - Just got back home
We went out to see if we could find so gas & survey the damage. Drove down to the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey, got gas, and drove down to Paramus.

Drove back up Route 17 in NJ.  Power on in some areas, off in others.  When we got gas on the GSP, we drove right up to the pump.  On Route 17, the gas stations that were open had really long lines.

We stopped at an Olive Garden, but the wait for a table was at least two hours, so we left and drove up the road some more. Went to a place called the Mason Jar in Ramsey, NJ.  The wait was only a half an hour, so we waited.

After lunch, we drove across Route 202 in NJ, to Route 59 back here in NY.  Drove down Route 59, around downed trees and power lines.  Found an open Radio Shack, so we bought some extra batteries.

Drove back home, around more downed trees and power lines, hoping that the lights would be back on, but no luck.  So we wait.

Almost forgot about our portable DVD player.  Watched a John Denver concert DVD before I went to bed.  Not that I've been able to sleep much.  It's too damn quiet!!

To be continued....

Hello Sandy! Part 2

Tuesday October 30th - 8:30 am - Still no power in the apartment, but the lights are on in the hallway.

Went for a walk to see what things looked like in the neighborhood.  Not as much damage as I expected.  A few branches down, but not too bad.

The traffic light on the corner was out, so it was a game of four way chicken.  Looked up and down Route 59, one of the main roads through the county, and saw no lights on in any of the stores, but no trees or power lines down.

Talked to the building porter, who said that some apartments have full power, some have some power, and some, like us, have no power.  Just peachy.

One of the most frustrating things is not being able to get through to Mom and Aunt Carol, and my sister Billie.  The cell phone is useless, but the land line is working.

10:30 am:
Mom was finally able to get through to us.  She and Aunt Carol, who live in Toms River, NJ, only lost power for an hour and a half.  Thank God, because Aunt Carol relies on oxygen 24/7.  They had several portable tanks that would have lasted for a few days, but I'm glad they didn't have to use them.

I was able to get through to Billie, at last.  She's without power since last night too.  Her motor scooter got knocked over by the wind.  Hopefully it's not damaged too bad.  Billie's land line doesn't work, but her cell phone does.

All of the stray cats that I feed out the window have been around this morning, so they all made it through the storm okay.  Thank you Saint Francis.

I'm worried about the food in the fridge and freezer, but I'm more worried about Jimmy's and my insulin.  We are making sure not to open the fridge too often, in an effort to keep stuff as cold as possible for as long as possible.

Hello Sandy! Part 1

This is my diary of Hurricane Sandy and her aftermath.  It is admittedly rambling, and disjointed, but that is how I felt during those hours, so it fits.

Power blipped a couple of times between 6:30 and 7:00 pm Monday night, October 29th.  At one point, we had power in some areas of the apartment, but none on other areas.  At around 7:06 pm, power went out completely in the apartment.  Checked out in the hallway, and the lights were on.  Weird.

Wind was wicked.  Top speed of 75 miles an hour were recorded in the county.  The rain never got that bad.

A few large branches fell from one of the trees on the front lawn.  The branches blocked part of the street, until the super and a couple of helpers moved them out of the way, and onto the lawn.

Spent the night listening to the radio, and playing games on my Kindle.

New Meter. UGH!!

My wonderful health insurance company has decided to change what glucose meters that it covers, so I had to get a new one.  It was free, but that's not the point.  I've been doing blood sugar tests with both meters until I run out of test strips for the old meter.  The readings are anywhere from 5 to 30 points different, with the new meter always giving me lower readings.  Now what do I do?  Crapola!!!