Hurricane Sandy

So we had evacuated AC the day before, Pat and Andrea and a lot of others didn't seem to bothered by the Hurricane warnings, well who could blame them with the ridiculously overhyped American media. Being in the throws of the election is making the hype worse! However Andrea and I did go shopping for a lot of meat and bread rolls, we intended on making home made meatball subs (I cannot tell you how much I want vegatables by now) and loads of other yummy home made stuff; we also stocked up on supplies of this stuff! YING LING LAGER!

The day was going quite well, then it was raining a bit but not loads, then later in the day the winds picked up. Around 5/6pm the neighbours, Jimmy and Emily came over with their two kids, Kelsey is ages with Chris and they're best friends. So the kids were happily playing in the living room watching tv, adults in the open plan dining room keeping an eye out and starting to open the beers. I was going between the living room and dining room. The winds got worse and worse, not easy to photograph and then it happened...

Andrea and Pat had always been worried about this wonderful tree in the neighbours yard, however it provided the added bonus of keeping the house cool in the summer. Well tonight folks, it came DOWN! However it fell in the best possible fashion. I was in the living room with the kids - adults in the dining room (all at the front of the house) when all of a sudden the tv went off, all the power went out - we were all like WTF. Pat dashes to the back play room and casually says oh its ok, the tree came down! LUCKILY it fell to the left and across three yards. It did take out all the power lines and poles that run the cable and internet to the whole block of houses to the left and right of Andrea and Pat, also the street behind them... Around ten mins after it fell all you could hear was the drone of generators on the block. NO ONE was hurt and everyone agreed it could have been way worse. The fire and police department where on the scene in minutes as they were on their way to another call, but they stopped and taped up the area (due to the massive live wires) and called PECO the electric company. The random thing was the landline still worked...I had text my mum 20mins before the tree fell and said she could ring me as we were staying in for the night, she called just after the tree fell (must of sounded like ww3) apparently that's not on a pole but underground...

We took the kids, food and beer across the street to Jimmy and Emily's house where there was electricity and a play room for the kids. We rode out the rest of the storm there. As the tree had only snapped in half Pat and Andrea where worried the rest of the tree would end up coming down on the house, if so it could wipe out the upstairs and roof easily. Late on about 11pm we decided as the eye of the storm was over us (therefore quiet, no wind nor rain) that we should grab some stuff from the house and take the kids to stay back at Fran and Ed's, who have three spare rooms. The kids saw it as an adventure which was grand. Good nights sleep after all the beer too!