Monday, September 22, 2003
Isabel cleanup continues around me. Lots of folks still don't have power, including at least two coworkers, and Dominion Power is saying it could be a while. Their workers (and those they've brought in from other states) are working their proverbial asses off, but in many locations, they have to actually rebuild power lines and transformers. I heard today that one particular hold-up is that they're waiting on more poles from which to hang the power lines.
A new friend who recently relocated here from the southwest kinda freaked out yesterday. He only moved here within the last month, leaving his friends and family back home, and within the space of the last week a) his car broke down (and at last report, is still in a Taco Bell parking lot in Chesapeake), and b) Isabel came a-calling. He's having a rough time of it, understandably. I've simply encouraged him to keep on keepin' on; retreat should never be an option. His power came back on Saturday, and then he lost it again Sunday morning, so he's justifiably frustrated. I've invited him over if need be, for some ice, air conditioning, and electricity (and cable).
The devastation, frankly, is amazing, shocking, and truly awesome in the simplest sense of the word - just look at this photo of a new inlet on Hatteras Island, or this one of the flooded Midtown Tunnel, which it's now being said could be closed for at least a month.
Of course, I'm overjoyed that Isabel's path of destruction resulted in a photo op for the Prez. And what the fuck was Tom Ridge doing here this weekend? How the hell does a hurricane fall under the rubric of the Dep't of Homeland Security? Nothing like hollow promises... I was out at the Chesapeake Department of Social Services today for work, and heard plenty of people, trying to get emergency food stamps, asking "why isn't the President here [instead of Richmond, where he visited]?" Good question.
Funny how a hurricane makes you realize how lucky you are - yeah, we were out of power for two days, but that ultimately amounts to a nasty inconvenience, not a life-threatening situation. We had plenty of food, water, candles, batteries, friends around, et cetera. Poor Bob is still sans power, but fortunately, he's got his second home available - and more importantly, his friends to help him out when necessary. Amongst my friends, there was some (not a ton of) property damage, but no injuries nor loss of life. That's what's important.
A new friend who recently relocated here from the southwest kinda freaked out yesterday. He only moved here within the last month, leaving his friends and family back home, and within the space of the last week a) his car broke down (and at last report, is still in a Taco Bell parking lot in Chesapeake), and b) Isabel came a-calling. He's having a rough time of it, understandably. I've simply encouraged him to keep on keepin' on; retreat should never be an option. His power came back on Saturday, and then he lost it again Sunday morning, so he's justifiably frustrated. I've invited him over if need be, for some ice, air conditioning, and electricity (and cable).
The devastation, frankly, is amazing, shocking, and truly awesome in the simplest sense of the word - just look at this photo of a new inlet on Hatteras Island, or this one of the flooded Midtown Tunnel, which it's now being said could be closed for at least a month.
Of course, I'm overjoyed that Isabel's path of destruction resulted in a photo op for the Prez. And what the fuck was Tom Ridge doing here this weekend? How the hell does a hurricane fall under the rubric of the Dep't of Homeland Security? Nothing like hollow promises... I was out at the Chesapeake Department of Social Services today for work, and heard plenty of people, trying to get emergency food stamps, asking "why isn't the President here [instead of Richmond, where he visited]?" Good question.
Funny how a hurricane makes you realize how lucky you are - yeah, we were out of power for two days, but that ultimately amounts to a nasty inconvenience, not a life-threatening situation. We had plenty of food, water, candles, batteries, friends around, et cetera. Poor Bob is still sans power, but fortunately, he's got his second home available - and more importantly, his friends to help him out when necessary. Amongst my friends, there was some (not a ton of) property damage, but no injuries nor loss of life. That's what's important.
# posted by Thomas : 1:18 PM
