Post Sandy Post #1

Posted by: on Nov 3, 2012 | 2 Comments

Well, it’s been one hell of week here in NJ and for much of the east coast. The wrath of Sandy was one for the history books. I hope everyone effected by the storm is doing as well as can be expected and that you did not suffer too much damage.

I have lots of thoughts about this storm but for this post, going to stick with some photos from my home and the area. Here’s our house the morning after.At about 10 PM the night of the storm, we heard the sound of breaking glass. Never a good thing during a hurricane. So I did what any red-blooded American male would do. I got dressed and went outside to assess the damage, while Linda screamed at me that I was crazy. The branch that is laying on the ground in the photo above, was actually kissing my car. Luckily, the glass that we heard was from our lamp post that the spruce fell on. The good news is our peeing boy of Belgium got a new hat.

As can be expected during these types of events, the response from the utility company was slow, and that’s being kind. We live in Short Hills, which has many big houses and many more big, old trees. Last year during Irene and the October snowstorm, our area sustained tremendous damage but those 2 storms combined don’t come close to the devastation we sustained from Sandy. Below is a photo of one of the main streets leading up to the Short Hills Train Station.

I took this picture on Wednesday, 2 days after the storm. Today is Saturday and that area looks pretty much the same.
Earlier today, we took a walk in South Mountain Reservation behind Old Short Hills Park, a heavily wooded area with miles of walking trails. This is something Cosmo and I (and sometimes Linda) do almost every weekend, and I go snowshoeing in there when there is snow (yes, Jews do know how to snowshoe). I was amazed last year at the devastation that took place after the 2 storms that hit our area but you can add those 2 storms together, multiply by a factor of 5 – 10 and that’s what I saw today. A week after Irene, the trails were better than 50% cleared of trees, branches and debris. Today…well a picture is worth a thousand words.

Behind that mass of tree trunks and branches is a trail that I walk almost every weekend. Whereas last year the trails were cleared in a week or two, I’m thinking this is going to take months to clean up. The good news is, Cosmo has a new obstacle course to play on. In times like this, you need to find joy in the simple things in life – family, friends, community and the smile of a happy dog:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151229388087320

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2 Comments

  1. markurquhart
    November 3, 2012

    Glad everyone is safe Ira, great post. Let me know if I can help in anyway.

  2. Andy Pritikin
    November 7, 2012

    Wow Ira- I hope things are getting back to normal for you and your family