it still feels really weird to me that life on the upper west side has already gone back to normal after the hurricane, while just a few blocks to the south so many are still without power. by tuesday night most of our local restaurants had opened back up, meanwhile all of hoboken is buried in hudson and won't have power back until saturday. it feels weird and kind of wrong.
in what is becoming kind of a bizarre holbrook hurricane tradition (two years running!), we bundled up in our rain gear the morning after and (very, very carefully) set out through the neighborhood to assess the damage and play our favorite hurricane game, "who all is open?" my favorite neighborhood shoe store is always open during the hurricane, and for the second year in a row they were entirely sold out of their substantial stock of hunter wellies by mornings. smart!
here are a few shots of our water-logged corner of manhattan...
...that broken crane...
...part of that enormous street lamp on the ground...
...unbelievable colors on these downed branches...
...we spotted peter pan's girlfriend moby and my heart broke a little. hoping he stayed safe in virginia!...
...dead umbrellas on the street always remind me of this post i wrote a million years ago...
...this poor car did not fare too well...
tonight is halloween though it's going to be a quiet one. 69th street has canceled their halloween party (for the first time since 1969) and in light of everything that's happened lately--especially those awful stabbings last week--i'm sort of glad. i'm such a halloween grinch. but we are having a little party with all of henny's friends this morning (we're running late!) as school's off the third day in a row and we have to get a costume parade in there somewhere.
to all of you heading out this evening, stay dry and safe while trick or treating. may your candy bags runneth over!
p.s.
my galoshes are bass from last year
(these boots are similarish)
glad you guys are safe! water from the hudson came 1 block from my house in jersey city! we are at 15 ft above sea level, and the water surged to 13ft above sea level!!
ReplyDeletewe have power back too, because we live so close to the PATH trains...
life is almost back to normal, but still praying for those in long island, jersey shore communities, and especially staten island...
Thanks for sharing the photos. I completely understand your feelings of guilt at going unscathed during a storm. During Katrina in 2005 my family's home was almost completely undamaged and our neighborhood was part of the 20% of New Orleans that did not flood. In the years following, as people struggled with rebuilding, it was a strange feeling being one of the only ones out of my group of friends and co-workers that did not have to deal with rebuilding.
ReplyDeleteDuring Isaac just a couple months ago we lost power for a week but had very little damage and only a little bit of water in the house, while neighborhoods that flooded in Katrina were hit hard and some people lost their homes for a second time. I've learned to be grateful and humble (as you are) that we've been so fortunate, but this has especially taught my family the importance of giving back to neighbors and friends that weren't so lucky. Many prayers for NYC and the Northeast as y'all dig out and begin to clean up. Stay safe! Lots of love from New Orleans.
Jessica, your comment moved me to tears. I think that people around the world still mourn the losses that Katrina brought and we prayed that New York and New Jersey wouldn't join into that level of loss during the superstorm.
DeleteOn a sweeter note, a friend of mine has an eight year old cat that she adopted as a kitten from New Orleans. He's a character. (He shreds the toilet paper.) How could he not be to have survived all that? But he's still going strong, even thriving up here in the Pacific Northwest.
My hope is that recovery continues, both in New Orleans and on the East Coast.
So sad. I hope you have a good little party.
ReplyDeleteNatalie, I loved the two throwbacks in this post Peter Pan and blog post circa 2006! Like old friends coming to say haaay. Cheers to you, lady and your adorable family too!
ReplyDeleteXOXO
Maggie
http://beautifullysimmmple.blogspot.com/
This really touched me! I'm glad you are well up!
ReplyDeletexxx
http://joyfuldiary.blogspot.de/
I know your feeling of guilty we are in Boston, and the storm just went right around us. Pretty sad all the damage. love your photos and how you captured them.
ReplyDeleteshelby
brandonandshelby.blogspot.com
I'm glad you all are safe! I know this isn't the point of the post but WOW where did you get those bean boots? I've never seen them with the strap before!
ReplyDeleteum can i have those boots? where are they from??
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you guys are okay!
ReplyDeleteI really love the photo of the bikes. :) It made me smile.
-B
Lovely but sad photos...those leaves are so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThankfully you are all OK! It's strange how beautiful your photos as they depict the aftermath of destruction. Perhaps it's a nice way of remembering to find the beauty in the difficult times.
ReplyDeletewww.sparklemeetspop.com
those boots! where are they from?
ReplyDeleteglad that you guys are ok and if i ever move to new york i am living on the upper west side, it sounds like a safe place to be.
ReplyDeleteBoots? Love! Thanks for sharing pictures!
ReplyDeleteoh my gosh! that tree uprooted! that is crazy!
ReplyDeleteGlad you and your family are safe! Hopefully it's still a great halloween despite the party being cancelled! Can't wait to see pictures of huck!
ReplyDeleteTheresa
http://bomamma.blogspot.com
The damage doesn't look as bad as I expected My blog
ReplyDeleteGlad you guys are safe! I grew up in South Louisiana, just out of the usual hurricane destruction zone and always felt terrible when people just a few towns over lost their homes. I did learn that people are resilient and houses are just stuff. Here's to rebuilding!
ReplyDeleteSO glad you guys are safe! Happy Halloween:) xoxo
ReplyDeleteKate
www.365til30.com
Isn't it weird that a natural disaster could create a scene that lends itself to such beautiful pictures. Hope you guys have a nice halloween.
ReplyDeleteBut where, oh where did you get that lovely raincoat?! Do tell.
ReplyDeleteHappy Halloween! Even though you'll be staying in, I'm sure your family will enjoy celebrating tonight : )
ReplyDeleteGlad you fared so well! Even for not being hit so badly where you are at, there is still devastation. Still haven't heard from Rockstar Diaries here in the blogosphere. Wondering how they made out....
ReplyDeleteGlad you guys are doing ok. I'm in RI and we got lucky too. (I've been looking for a raincoat forever and your's looks perfect! Where is it from?)
ReplyDelete~Gaia
wow. thanks for sharing. so tragic so heartbreaking!
ReplyDeleteStop by for a visit,
Lydia from Vintage2Vogue
http://vintagetwovogue.blogspot.com
wow. crazy to see this. i'm glad your family is safe.
ReplyDeletethose photos are crazy!!
ReplyDeleteglad you are safe and sound.
xo the egg out west.
what beautiful sombre photos...
ReplyDeleteOnce after a storm in the Midwest, our neighbors had power, and we didn't. They were definitely feeling guilty; one even offer to put us up in a hotel! But, the nicest things people did were doing a load of laundry for us, and letting us use part of their freezer.
ReplyDeleteHope the party was fun!
I just walked to Columbus circle today also to assess the damage and that dangling crane was still hanging by a thread and scaring me half to death. Oy
ReplyDeleteGlad you are all safe- we have watched the footage in disbelief in the UK. Never again will I complain about our weather. ;)
ReplyDeleteKatie
www.mummydaddyandmemakesthree.co.uk
I am so, so glad to hear and see that you all are safe! Those pictures are incredible (and so are your boots - swoon)!
ReplyDeletewow it's crazy seeing it like this!
ReplyDeleteThe broken crane is something that has been on the news all day! So scary! Keep safe and warm!
ReplyDeletexo TJ
Glad you guys and the UWS fared well. My heart is breaking so so much for New York right now. Not only because of the hurricane but also because of the sad story of the Krim family. We lived a block away from them when we lived there (I did't know the family, but I'm sure I passed those children when I was out with my daughter). In a strange way, I really wish I could be in the city now to grieve with everyone over that tragedy and also recover from the hurricane. Despite its population, New Yorkers are really a tight knit bunch at times.
ReplyDeleteI really appreciated your blog this week. When I was wondering what its like for New York, I thought about natthefatrat. And sure enough, you were very thorough with your reporting and gave your own personal account which I very much enjoyed.
ReplyDelete