Is Everyone Okay?…by Whitney Farmer – Un Pop Culture | @MDWorld
October 31, 2012 Whitney Farmer 15 Comments
Whitney worked at a rock music venue on the beach in L.A.. She has an MBA and is a storm watcher.
To our East Coast friends, it would be great to hear from you. Are you okay? Or whoever knows that someone is okay, can you let us know?
This is basically all anyone cares to know about right now, at least for a few days. Then the manufactured fury of political storms will cloud the horizon again.
My NYC little sister is safe and well. She has a Visiting Artist academic gig – (Can ‘academic’ and ‘gig’ both be used in a sentence…? Is it okay wordsmithing?) – at a West Coast college, and is snuggled into her stucco Craftsman bungalow. Her husband on a whim bought a plane ticket three weeks ago to take a break from his marathon editing project in NYC to come see her for the weekend. He arrived at her home on Friday, intending to leave on Sunday. But now, they are both safe together because his flight is one of the many that has been cancelled. I hope they are dining on her famous beef bourguignon.
My Montauk cousin is safe, too. I can’t imagine how much damage the marina sustained. If anyone can make things ship-shape again, it is him…
Martha, are you okay? I saw Art’s column…
MOTU, how is your mom…?
Reg, aren’t you on the southern side of the storm’s path…?
Anyone and everyone who got swirled around by Sandy, let us know you are okay.
Okay?
Quote of the Blog from John Muir: “A few minutes ago, every tree was excited, bowing to the roaring storm, waving, swirling, tossing their branches in glorious enthusiasm like worship. But though to the outer ear these trees are now silent, their song will never cease…”.
Image courtesy of www.pbs.org.
Reg
October 31, 2012 - 10:06 pm
Whitney, MUCH appreciation for your agape, Sister. It is well here… I’m deeply fortunate in being far enough inland that we only received high wind gusts for two days. That being said, I do have lots of family in both Buffalo and Jersey…a good portion of whom remain without power. As one cousin (well prepared with generators and the like) expressed…”This was SCARY Bad. Unprecedented damage.”
To quote Thomas Paine…”These are the times that try men’s souls.”
Mike Gold
November 1, 2012 - 8:16 am
Martha’s without power, still, and she and Selina are holed up in their 7th floor Greenwich Village apartment, two miles south of subway service. If I had to bet on Martha vs. Sandy, my money’s on Martha.
Adriane and I are fine. Our power was out for 14 hours, most of them overnight, and we got hardly any rain so the ground wasn’t saturated. Adg went into Brooklyn last night for a gig; most of the bridges are open but many of the tunnels remain water-logged and dangerous. Staten Island was shrunk down by Brainiac and warehoused in a large bottle.
Listening to the storm pass through on the radio in the dark was pretty damn scary — particularly when some hospitals’ back-up generators went blooie. But I’ve been through this before in the blackout of 1977 (I was living in Manhattan at the time), and of course nothing is as scary as 9/11. Sandy sucks — well, Sandy sucks and blows — but most people made it through all right and the damages can be repaired. Mostly.
Mother Nature can be one mean bitch.
Whitney
November 1, 2012 - 9:41 am
Golden Boy –
Why was I thinking that you were still a Chicago boy and out of harm’s way?
We’re all glad to hear from you! And glad that your circle weathered the storm! Thanks also for the update on Martha, too.
There is a fine line between getting great writing material and getting dished out more than you can handle. While I am looking forward to reading what
Whitney
November 1, 2012 - 9:47 am
…the East Coast contingent create from this, I hope that things immediately start to get easier for you and the clouds part.
Ideas how we can help…? I know Red Cross is in dire need of donations, including blood (which all poor aspiring writers have flowing hotly through their veins…)
Whitney
November 1, 2012 - 2:25 pm
Regis –
Whew!
Reg
November 1, 2012 - 2:59 pm
Whitney…Indeed.
Btw, not sure if you’re a cat person, but I thought that the following would bring some smiles to the faces of your guests, La Roma.
I present… Henri
Whitney
November 1, 2012 - 9:53 pm
Regis –
Merci.
Jeremiah Avery
November 2, 2012 - 5:30 am
Fortunately I was able to get through the storm with minimal issues. Friends of mine in NJ are without power still. A friend posted a picture that was taken right across the street from a house we stayed at in Point Pleasant over Memorial Day weekend. The house went from “by the beach” to “in the ocean” due to the whole area being flooded.
One good thing about social media is getting quick updates from different people. Various people checking-in to reassure others and also posting info about shelter and power.
Martha Thomases
November 3, 2012 - 7:46 am
Power returned this morning, and all is right with the world.
Well, not all. The elevator isn’t working, and there is no heat or hot water. I haven’t showered since Monday. Luckily, the cat doesn’t seem to care.
Missed you, Internet friends.
Mike Gold
November 3, 2012 - 10:10 am
Actually, Selina might prefer you this way…
Whitney
November 3, 2012 - 11:23 pm
Jeremiah –
Et tu bueno? Excellante!
BTW: You are named after one of my favorite books.
Whitney
November 3, 2012 - 11:28 pm
Amazing Martha –
If you can go five days without a shower and still crack jokes, you are my kind of heroine.
And I’m glad your cat didn’t eat you.
Whitney
November 3, 2012 - 11:31 pm
Golden Boy –
Selina?
Martha’s cat, yes?
Martha named her cat after Justin Bieber’s girlfriend?
I need to sit down for a minute…
Martha Thomses
November 4, 2012 - 6:04 am
My cat is named Selina Salina, after Catwoman and the amazing singer, Salina Sias
Mike Gold
November 4, 2012 - 10:50 am
Yes. Ever since Bieber took up with Selina, Martha’s been crushed.