battening down the hatches

we took a walk this morning to see how everyone was getting ready for the storm, and to get a few essentials (eggs, milk, arugula, melon . . ).

the streets were quiet . . many places shuttered . .

. . curtains closed!

. . windows taped up . .

we walked along 8th avenue to 24th street. we planned to stop at whole foods, but they had closed at 9 am (it was 9:40). so we turned back south and walked homeward along 7th avenue. we stopped at westside market and picked up eggs and cheese, and waited in a line that during normal times does not occur at this store. we continued on to integral yoga, as they have the bulk peanut butter greg really likes.

they were closed. so sad. (so smart!)

we would have to stop at dagostino's. dagostino's was quite crowded, so we left greg with his peanut butter and took the other groceries home. i wanted to get things put away so we could take a walk by the river.

hudson river park . . please stay put, river . .

it was eerily calm . .

and the sky grey with misty looking clouds.

many buildings evacuated along west street . . i looked up and noticed some lights on in various apartments . . not everyone has left.

time for lunch . .

we've been following irene's progress on the national hurricane center site. i like their "discussions." they're very technical and factual and non-inflammatory. however, they can throw out a sentence or two that really causes you to think, oh no! for example: " NOTE THAT ESTIMATES OF STORM TOTAL RAINFALL HAVE BEEN INCREASED WITH THIS ADVISORY...TO 20 INCHES."


excuse me! that is NOT what i wanted to hear!
----

my friend is on the 20th floor of her building and she's worried about wind . . i'm on the 4th floor and i'm worried about flooding. well, we all have our different concerns . . (hmmm, i wonder what the storm total rainfall was before they increased it . . i'll have to do some research . . )

after lunch, morgana and chanda worked on their squares while watching the lion, the witch, and the wardrobe. (korrina is at a friend's house in new jersey).

i kept very busy today. i vacuumed the whole apartment, cleaned the bathroom, and cooked ratatouille (around the world cookbook), beet salad (feeding the whole family), and anzac cookies (around the world, again).

by this evening the tide was up and the pilings covered by the river . .

now the bands of rain are increasing in length and growing heavier. greg just took jack out for a walk. m and c are now listening to the last battle, while knitting their squares. everyone is waiting for me to make tea to have with the cookies. stay tuned!