HEY! How are you all doing? East Coasters, I hope you all weathered Hurricane Sandy (“Tropical Storm” Sandy?) without too much damage.
We live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan which, for the most part, was left unscathed. We taped up the windows, just in case…
New Jersey, which you can see across the Hudson River in the photo above, was completely blacked out on Monday night. It was really eerie.
All of Lower Manhattan has lost heat and electricity; many of our friends have been living with broken windows and without power for days. The Subways are just starting to restore service, but a lot of the stations downtown were completely flooded. NYU hospital- the same hospital I was at when I had meningitis- was evacuated, there were boats going up and down 14th street, a Con Ed transformer on 15th street exploded, houses burned to the ground in Breezy Point, Queens…
Again, we were very lucky. Trees fell down and wrecked a few cars, but from what I’ve heard so far, no one nearby has been hurt.
I hate to sound callous, but for us, it’s been sort of a “hurrication”! We all work downtown, so not only is there no power in our offices, but there’s no way to get to work. We’ve been home for the past three- now four- days, watching the news and enjoying each other’s company.
Melissa posted this a couple days ago, which I thought was pretty spot-on…
We made multiple trips to the grocery store (and the liquor store for wine).
We slept in, enjoying leisurely breakfasts. Monday morning- the day of the major part of the storm- seemed like a good time to enjoy the season’s first batch of pumpkin oats. It was pretty darn cozy!
Here’s how I made it:
Combine 1/3 c. oats, 2/3 c. water + 1 T chia seeds in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, adding a splash of milk once the water has been absorbed. Stir in 1/3 c. pumpkin purée. Pour into a bowl and garnish with dried cranberries, pumpkin butter and peanut butter.
Other comforting meals include:
whole wheat pasta with pesto, potatoes, green beans, edamame, olives, chili and nutritional yeast
kale, white bean, + tomato soup
toast with as many toppings as will fit!
I also plowed through this book in a couple days. I loved it, but I have to warn you: the subject matter is very difficult, and there were times when I felt extremely sick to my stomach while reading. Like Room, it’s the kind of page-turner you want to look away from but just can’t put down. Also like Room- or, like any book, really- I suggest NOT reading the summary before you dive in. Too much is given away.
How has Hurricane Sandy affected you? My thoughts are with you!
Something to hear: Ryan Gosling is singing this Halloween-appropriate song… is there anything Young Hercules can’t do?
