Hurricanes, Earthquakes & Floods. Oh My!

So, I've begun taking stock of what interesting situations I (and my fellow New Yorkers) found myself in these past 2 weeks. Here's the run-down:

-AN EARTHQUAKE

Whhaaat? I'm going to be completely honest and admit that I didn't even know about said earthquake until I got home ten minutes after it happened. I had wandered down the street for some Pinkberry frozen yogurt, when, upon my return, I felt a slight sway. My balance has never been something to brag about, so I thought it was in my head or thought I was so invested in my fro-yo that I tripped. But, once I got home and opened my laptop, everyone was all a-twitter about an earthquake; so cool, I can say I've survived an earthquake.

-A "HURRICANE"

The best part about this "hurricane" (besides the fact NYC was very lucky and in no way got the brunt of the storm as forecasted) was the preparation for said "storm of the century." My house guests for the weekend, who were forced to stay two extra days because of flight cancellations, and I made sure we stocked up on the 'essentials.' The essentials, of course, being: Cliff bars, eggs, $5 trail mix (?!?), apples, Koala Yummies (yes, they still make them!), bottled water, soda, coffee and a few options in terms of adult beverages.... We filled my entire bathtub in case the power went out and we weren't able to flush the toilet (thanks to the ever-knowledgeable Jacquelyn Wegmann for texting me that tip before the storm..). We attempted, with no luck, to find an extra flashlights. We made it over to Bourbon Street for $5 Pre-Hurricane Hurricanes (we couldn't resist!) and we even managed to attract the AccuWeather.com reporter, who, despite our haggard appearances, insisted on interviewing us on how upset we were the stores in Times Square all closed early. (Ironically, we weren't upset at all -- See, Mom! Actor training is paying off already!)

Besides our individual preparation, the city itself prepared for the impending storm, and essentially shut down. Words can not express how creepy an empty Manhattan is (think end-of-the-world movies, and you'll get a good sense of it).

Empty 42nd Street

Palm trees secured in Rockefeller Plaza

Times Square clearing out

So... we buckled up for what was predicted to be a hide-in-the-closet-because-glass-is-flying kind of storm.....

Embarrassingly, we slept through most of Irene's show.

AFTER THE STORM:

You should be able to see the George Washington Bridge here.... This was the morning Irene blew through.... it was pretty flippin' windy, but nothing compared to what up-state NY and Vermont got... 

Taxis lined the curbs Sunday morning, and the streets were empty. People were laying in the middle of 8th Avenue taking pictures.

NYC was luckily just side-swiped, and Lower Manhattan did see some flooding, but overall, we fared well.

After being pent-up for an entire night, we happily celebrated a night out after we emerged from my apartment.

Besides all of that excitement, Katie, Kristin and I walked about a thousand miles, seeing the sights, doing some shopping and eating some cupcakes and sushi.  All in all it was a great and memorable visit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week I'm heading home to good 'ol MINNESOTA. 

My week will be filled with:

Friends

Family

A(nother) wedding

A much-anticipated trip to my cabin in Wisconsin

and

a few visits to the MINNESOTA STATE FAIR. 

Yay.

I'll be back blogging with my "fair"-share a good stories in a week. 

Until then~

xo,

B.