Before we get to the nitty gritty I thought I'd start out by saying, YES, I am back at work. And yes, very few people are here with me. Apparently the phones are also down, which means I am largely going to be sitting here looking at crazy hurricane photos all day. That and eating the scrumptious apple crumbly cake that L dropped off at my desk this morning, like a glorious baked goods goddess.
I walked by that collapsed crane on the way in this morning. It's around the corner from my office. It is actually terrifying to see in person, when you think that all over this city giant cranes are strapped to rooftops high in the air, and perhaps they aren't really as sturdy as you thought. Most of the damage in and around my area came from downed trees and collapsed scaffolding.
We were watching the news last night, and both my roomie and I were pretty incensed at the reporters on various stations trying to further increase the drama of the situation by comparing Hurricane Sandy to not just one but all of these events:
*September 11th
*Hurricane Katrina
*The Tsunami in Thailand
*China Earthquake
*Haiti Earthquake
As someone on the ground here, let me say this. Hurricane Sandy was horrible. No doubt. The loss of life (29 was the last I heard) and certainly billions it will cost to repair the city is a terrible blow. We all feel it. Seeing parts of town I know and love submerged and ruined...it takes your breath away like a punch in the gut. HOWEVER. It is in no way on scale with those other disasters (thousands upon thousands dead, cities wiped out, spread of disease). We're going to be OK. The power, while terribly gross and inconvenient, will come back on. Flooded subways are being pumped as I type. We are a fortunate city, with a lot of stamina and the resources to bounce back. That is the thing: we have the resources. New York City has the capacity to rebuild, much more quickly than most. A city of nine million won't let projects go undone. (It's like a love/hate thing I have with this place. New Yorkers are so spoiled that they can't function without all the little luxuries they now take as necessity, so every little bakery and shop MUST reopen asap! Little Timmy needs his organic muffins!) This alone gives us a great advantage over most other places faced with disaster: we have the money and the drive to rebuild, and quickly. So yes, this week has been pretty brutal, to say the least. But we'll be fine. New York will always rebuild.
Today is Halloween, and frankly, I understand why no one seems to give a fuck. There are bigger problems. But, because I try to keep things fun even in the face of disaster, I am dressed as Waldo (as in "Where's?") today. This means simply that I am wearing my red/white striped shirt and have my glasses in my bag. It's like a stealthy costume. Fellow employees might think I am simply a hipster. Sadly, though, I am missing the one most crucial part of my costume...
Which is made all the more ironic by the fact that I slept on my back kind of crazy last night and am in all sorts of pain today. Like, really really horrible pain that I'm trying to stretch out discreetly without bursting into screams pain. So I could actually use a cane today. Dressed as Waldo. Oh life.
