Further Update

November 1, 2012

Further Update

We are still okay here in Brooklyn, although one of the neighboring communities that was also in a Zone B, Gerritson Beach, got hammered pretty badly.  If any of you are near Gerritson Beach, the folks there need pretty much everything, including clothing.  A lot of the apartments there are basement apartments, so folks there lost pretty much everything.  The bad news is that since they were located in Zone B, it’s only today that they are first beginning to be noticed.

We had a small power outtage on Tuesday evening, when Con Edison took down the power in Sheepshead Bay, Homecrest, Midwood, and a fairly large chunk of Flatbush.  Since it was already dark, I just went to be, and when I opened my eyes shortly after midnight, the power was back.  The reason Con Edison took it down was that there had been a transformer explosion somewhere in the area, and they wanted to get it fixed without other parts of the grid overloading.  I’m just glad we got it back, since so many are still without power.

We have oil heat, and vehicles cannot get down our street, thanks to the tree, so the Landlord has been rationing the heat a bit more than usual.  Understandable, but between that and all the mold and crap in the air, I think I’m developing a cold.  Thank God I knit.  I have tons of clean, warm socks, scarves and shawls to add to the sweats I’ve been wearing.

I heard from my sister yesterday.  Her house is still standing, but she got eight feet of water in her garage, and three feet in her house.  Fortunately she and her fiance were able to move a lot of their stuff to the second floor.  She also noted that most of her neighbors had their front yards torn up by boats breaking loose from the marina nearby, but that they didn’t.  Still, her oil burner (and those of her neighbors) got flipped and the lines were broken, so there is oil over a ton of stuff.  On the other hand, she, her fiance and their dogs did not get hurt, so she is lucky.

My cousin’s cousin, Debi, in New Jersey, had a tree come through her roof, and had no power until today.

In terms of money, I am very glad I told the Landlord that we would be a bit late this month.  My pension check dropped, but there is a problem with the electronic deposits at my roommate’s credit union, so while yesterday it said she had money, today her balance is showing negative by the amount she withdrew for us to live on, plus a bank charge.  She went to the Brooklyn branch of the credit union, and they told her that they were waiting for repairs to the system.  I told her that once things are sorted out, she should call them and dispute the charge, since if the bank had not said her check had dropped, she would not have withdrawn the money to begin with.  Meanwhile, at least we have some cash on hand to survive until her bank gets sorted out.

So, that’s the news from Sheepshead Bay.  Wherever you are, dear readers, I hope you are warm, dry, and safe, and that no natural disasters come your way.

 

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