Last week ended with a Sunday that was just the sort of day you would want to have every day. The temperature was just right, the wind was just right, the waves were just right, and the day moved along like a train moving into a station. Evelyn made a fruit drink that was the best she has made, and the food tasted like it had been prepared just for me. This was a day that I felt I had to do nothing but just enjoy what came. That night I went to bed and slept. That is unusual for me because I like to read and play chess and fall asleep when I am not able to think of the next move.
That night I slept.
Monday
As if to offset the previous day, Monday was a do nothing day. It rained during the night, and rained almost all of the day; some times heavy and most of the time a light fine drizzle, the sort of rain that soaks you through. But this rain was warm, and felt comforting as it fell onto my face, standing next to the pool watching the drizzle blur the surface of the water. There were no rings pulsing out from the drops as you would see with heavy rain, just a blur.
The dogs lay out in the warm drizzle, and a fine layer of dew formed on their coats until they got up and shook themselves and the process started over again. By the gate, there were leaf cuttings, ants loaded with their bounty heading for their nest, humming birds drinking from the flowers. But there was a muted silence, no kids crying, no hawkers shouting, no traffic. The day seemed to be in sympathy with the weather on the east coast of the US.
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| Fine rain coating the street |
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| Quiet, no movement
Tuesday
Now that hurricane Sandy has made land fall on the U.S. east coast, the force and destruction that was predicted has become a reality. Thankfully, the authorities were able to get a jump on the responders needed, and with federal support, aid will get to those that need it the most.
This disaster will not be something that the area of impact will be able to recover from in a short time. The financial cost and infrastructure will be impacted for a considerable time.
Our immediate concerns are to family that reside in New York, and are at this time without power and water. Inability to communicate is hard, but we hope that they are able to get through this, as we do for everyone that is impacted by this storm.
Are you prepared?
It could be that you have broken down in your vehicle, got stranded in an airport, been in an accident.
Earthquakes, floods, fires, hurricanes, and the above are all disasters, but if you have a plan, you can reduce the impact of the incident and get through it a lot better.
When we lived in California, we had plans up the yin yang and never had to implement them; we did come close with a wild fire in Benicia when there was a fire at one of the refineries.
But because you are here in retirement mode means that you have more time to develop a plan. Most who have moved here are away from their children and grandchildren, brothers and sisters. They need to be included in the plan.
Wednesday
Evelyn heard from her sister from her email at her job in New York this morning. All of her brothers and her sister are out of power in their homes. We are not surprised, due to the high number of people without power and the scale of the disaster area.
Also this week, there were two earthquakes on the west coast of North America, one in the Los Angeles area and the other off the coast of Canada. These did not impact human life, however.
Looking at the aerial maps of New York, we can see clearly Queens, the area in which our family members are living; the waters have not reached them, but they are without power.
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