Sandy's Wrath in the Highlands

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Photo Courtesy of NorthJersey.com

Hi Everyone, 

I just wanted to let you all know that I'm alive and well.  :) I know my posts have been going off here each day on the blog; however, I had scheduled those posts in advance and wasn't able to update them before they launched. Though the southern portion of our fine state of NJ has been washed away by horrific water damage, we're experiencing our own issues in the highlands of Northern NJ. 

This is just one image of a main street to get in and out of our town. Where I live is mostly watershed property and a LOT of empty land scattered by strategically placed developments off of one major (or not so major) highway.We have been without power, cable, internet, phone and for me, cell phone service since Monday afternoon (October 29, 2012) and the gas lines are 2-3 hours long just to be rationed to $30-$40 per purchase. Sandy seemed to like all of our pine trees as they are shallow rooted and many have been uplifted. They anticipate us being back up by Wednesday/Friday next week, so until then we will just have to wait and be patient and know that they are working as quickly as they can to get everyone restored. And to all of the servicemen out there...I THANK YOU. 

I have to say that I am more fortunate than others in my area as we just put in a whole house generator which runs on propane gas. In our area we lose power frequently, not just during storms and after last year with Irene, I had enough. I spent 7 days without power in a home that was 48 degrees, trying to put a log on the fireplace every two hours just so that our pipes wouldn't freeze. My house was all electric until we just renovated the kitchen this summer, which means no cooking, unless you count heating up soup in an old pot over the fireplace. We also have a septic and a well; which means that I also had to melt the snow from the storm to even flush my toilets and wasn't able to shower. It wasn't pretty...I'm not much of an out-doorsy kind of girl (think Green Acres for those of you old enough to remember! lol)

It's really been quite interesting with no cable or internet. At least my generation (the over 40 crowd) was used to entertaining themselves with board games and cards for fun, but for most children these days, they've never seen some of these games and let alone played them. So, we'll just keep busy cleaning the house and organizing the closets, and playing card games like Skipbo, Hand and Foot (one of our personal favorites!) and good old Solitare. 

I'll be back when I can and hang in there to all of my East Coast friends experiencing the aftermath of this storm. 

xo Carrie