It should surprise no one that supporters of the Republican candidate want to spread fear and confusion right before an election. It's not like it's something they haven't done before... over and over again.

I'm glad that you and Teresa are safe and dry.

@comfortablysmug is apparently living up to that handle. What an awful thing to do under any circumstances but especially last night. In a sane world, the followers would unfollow the account.

Somewhat astonishing that we're getting rain and (relatively) high winds here--in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I don't remember ever getting such obvious and direct effects from an east coast storm here before.

I'm also glad to see you're okay.

Anyone what to lay odds on comfortablysmug getting identified?

Glad to hear you're OK. And, what a jerk! That's the last thing anyone needs in an emergency.

Hope the recovery in Manhattan proceeds smoothly.

Much relieved to hear your okay.

Jesus. I wondered where that stuff was coming from, why of all the fake news that bit about the NYSE was getting picked up by news feeds. Tucson news covered it!

Glad to see you're okay.

Whoever @ComfortablySmug is, I hope someone explains the facts of life to him thoroughly. That sort of thing is unconscionable.

Thank you for the update. I kept looking at the maps and wondering how you guys were faring. I've been having the weirdest sense of failure in not being in the city during all this.

I hope @comfortablysmug gets outted. And shunned.

My sister and I are fine here in central Brooklyn. Our power flickered quite a bit yesterday evening, but never went completely out.

One of my neighbors, who didn't evacuate, reported last night that the ground floor apartments in our building had more than a foot of water from the storm surge at high tide. (My apartment's on the second floor, so is hers, but our foyers flooded.) That's roughly a two foot higher surge than Irene last year. Power was also out there. And the Nassau County executive closed ALL roads in the county as of last night, until further notice.

I was hoping to go back home tomorrow morning, but I'm starting to wonder.

Another vote for "glad you're OK", and "It's not really news if it's just trying to affirm what was predicted, is it?"

Glad you and Teresa are fine.

Glad to hear you're all right. Central Ohio seems to have dodged the bullet THIS time. I guess everything that could be knocked down got taken out by the big storm this summer.

It's cold, windy, and we had a little wet snow this morning. I'm so glad we still have power and I was able to make coffee this morning.

Personally, I wouldn't be interested in anything someone with the handle "comfortablysmug" would have to say in the first place; that's a self-labeling asshole if I ever saw one.

That said, I agree that he should be outed, and lose the account, under these circumstances. He's forfeited the right to anonymity.

rea, hint.fm/wind has a realtime map of surface winds; currently it shows that Sandy dominates the wind patterns as far west as Wisconsin, and as far south as Florida.

Good to hear from you, and hope everything keeps being good! Bummer about the tor.com account, though.

Twitter tells me that someone has put a name to @comfortablysmug . The other information they've given about him confirms a lot of my political prejudices. But of course, it would be a bit ironic for everyone to make a big deal out of a bit of unconfirmed info from Twitter in this case.

I'm stranded in Ohio (was at OVFF). It's worse in some ways. No way to know what things are like at the house. No idea the state affairs. May be living out of the pantry, without power.

Supposedly we fly home tomorrow.

I am very grateful that I never lost power -- been there, done that for every other major storm to come through -- and wish a speedy recovery to all without power at the moment.

Sister in Huntington has no power; charging phone in car.

Sister in Westchester doing OK. Trees down by no flooding or damage.

Parents in Sullivan have no power, but have a generator to run the pumps if there is flooding.

Still haven't heard from my brother in Locust Valley, or cousins in Queens (julia) and the Canal Street vicinity.

http://gofwd.tumblr.com/post/34640321762/shashank-tripathi-last-nights-twitter-villain

has more information on Mr. ComfortablySmug.

If New York is under a state of emergency, can the Governor have @comfortablysmug shot for treason?

Since Panix's servers are in Lower Manhattan, as I recall, they might be down, too.... best to check with those Is It Up? services, before sending email....

#24: Excellent idea. pipeline.com, which both of my cousins use, seems to be down.

So far no bad news... a moderate amount of no news.

I use panix. It was working last night and it's working now.

Power outage map of New Hampshire. As you can see, some towns have 81-100% outage.

We kept power at my house, except for a couple of flickers that the UPS handled easily. About 20% of the town is down, though.

Gavin #22: I hope Mr Tripathi doesn't walk down any dark alleys on his own. Of course, if he does I would not, for my part, feel any sorrow should any misfortune befall him.

Mary Aileen #11: Glad to hear it!

Glad to hear check-ins from all affected by the storm. Heard NPR report 18 dead from the storm; the admittedly slim chance (with such a small number across such a well populated region) that it might have been one of y'all was making me nervous.

Terry, here's good thoughts for your successful and as-comfortable-as-possible homecoming.

cgeye @24: Since Panix's servers are in Lower Manhattan, as I recall, they might be down, too....

Nope. Webmail, at least, has been up and running all day. See also the accounting server.

Neighbor of mine is marooned in Maine until Thursday. I think I'm really glad I don't work in the aviation industry, just now.

I believe I can confirm that @ComfortablySmug is Mr. Shashank Tripathi, a hedge fund analyst employed by Stone Street Advisors, who is also the campaign manager for Christopher R. Wight, Republican candidate for the U.S. House from New York’s 12th congressional district, and a fundraiser for the Romney campaign.

As Jack Stuef said in his article, his identification of Shashank Tripathi was

"Based on photos [Tripathi] censored and posted to the account but I found unedited elsewhere."

Tripathi has hastily removed that photo from his accounts. However, what he couldn't remove was the copy of the photo in the Google Images cache. It's still visible if you search there on "Shashank Tripathi," though it no longer functions as a link to sites where Tripathi was using it.

I saved copies of everything.

Aside from any other issues, how can anyone be stupid enough to think that a black bar across the eyes is enough anonymity?

There's probably no way to answer such a question.

@34: Well...it worked for the Lone Ranger!?

little chance of shashank redemption, eh?

The comments I'd like to make to Mr. Tripathi aren't ones that can be made in polite company. I'm quite firmly in favor of severe public shaming in his case; given that Twitter has become a major vehicle for information sharing before, during and after natural disasters, what he was doing last night is unconscionable.

"@comfortablysmug is Shashank Tripathi, a hedge fund analyst and the campaign manager of Christopher R. Wight, this year’s Republican candidate for the U.S. House from New York’s 12th Congressional District."--link. Because the 99% deserve to suffer.

All of my relatives appear to be accounted for. My brother, a fire department dispatcher, is reportedly earning a lot of overtime . . .

Ooops! Should have read upthread.

I am left with the sense that @comfortablysmug has probably invented a new crime. Malicious gossip is old news, of course, but the widespread distribution of it via electronic media is new.

I suppose calling it "Shashanking" would be a disservice to the many other Shashanks out there.

An English friend of mine who lives in rural France making copper fish sculptures went to New York for the very first time ever last week, on holiday with his family, and messaged "slightly annoying to visit the city that never sleeps and find it closed".

("Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit smoking/drinking/sniffing glue/avoiding New York" I quoted at him).

I'm glad you both rode it out successfully. I didn't feel I had anything useful to contribute to the other threads, but I've been following here over the last several days. I have two brothers in the Washington D.C. area, which seems to have escaped serious repercussions.

Narmitaj -- my sister-in-law and her boyfriend are also in New York for the first time. They arrived from Galway on Sunday night. They're safe, but their hotel has no power, and their uncle who was going to join them couldn't get there because of weather. It's not really the way one would wish somebody's first visit to North America would go!

Meanwhile we had some rain and a glorious rainbow.

Something smells funny about this story.

Why would this smughead -- Shashank Tripathi -- politically concerned and apparently somewhat well-educated -- go out of his way to create so much mischief and panic during a national disaster, all the while airing his "alter-ego" in public as a Mitt Romney supporter?

Either:

1) Tripathi is transparently sociopathic, and this is him fraying at the seams

2) Tripathi is an Obama plant, meant to preempt any negative political backlash from a Katrina-type storm by deflecting attention toward vicious Romney PAC-men

3) - for the even money - Tripathi is a Romney plant masquerading as an Obama plant

For someone working in the financial sector, intentionally spreading word the NYSE building was flooded would be a move of astounding idiocy. The rest of the rumor-mongering was nasty and calculated to infuriate people, once they found out he was lying, but that own counts as shitting your own nest.

DanR @ 45... Tripathi is a Romney plant masquerading as an Obama plant

What an in-fern-al plan.

I've heard from my friend with the shore house in NJ: he wasn't there but the neighbors stuck it out and said the damage wasn't too bad. A little ways north in Mantoloking the damage is terrific: the ocean crossed the island and obliterated a huge area.

The wind map is nice; I've put the link in with my weather apps. Looking at animated radar and satellite maps shows Sandy currently at about half the size of the US and rotating at a scary rate, and large areas are at the top of the total precipitation scale. When I checked a couple of hours ago, the eye was in Ohio, but it now seems to be in central Pennsylvania. I don't have words for this.

Has anyone heard from Xopher? Hoboken got hit pretty hard.

Regarding Comfortably Smug,

It's an opening maneuver, to draw in an initial audience; think parkour. Think, carefully, before responding; these fellows will be aiming to play the blogosphere like a violin.

50
I've been wondering, too, but maybe there's no phone and no power in his area.

A friend was on the Bounty. He's safe, thank God, but grieving. I have cousins in NJ, not on the shore: I'm waiting to hear from them. Most of their community has lost power, so it may be a while until they respond. I'm trying not to worry. I have multiple friends up and down the coast and inland. Some are without light, heat, etc. but so far that's all I've heard.

PJ: That's my suspicion, because Hoboken got hit pretty hard.

Sickened #51:

I don't think he's sorry; I think he's sorry he was caught.

Lizzy L @ 53... I wondered about him when I heard about the Bounty.

Xopher was ok last night.

rea @3: Somewhat astonishing that we're getting rain and (relatively) high winds here--in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I don't remember ever getting such obvious and direct effects from an east coast storm here before.

It's been a while, but I remember Agnes (1972) causing a washout of our central MI lake vacation. (Supposedly, we were without power yesterday morning. I think the resolution of DTE's outage map isn't what it should be....) I dodged a lot of fallen trees on my drive home Monday night.

A friend of mine in Chicago posted a picture of Sandy's western cloud edge.

I'm glad for the check-ins.

Looks like I won't be going home just yet. I had hoped to return this afternoon, despite the power and phones still being out. But last night there was an explosion at the local sewage plant. Water restrictions are in place for southwest Nassau County (where I live), and working toilets are doubtful. My sister has been very accomodating, but this apartment is pretty cramped.

Still no word on when I go back to work, either. That community has been without power, water, or sewage since Monday night. The library where I work will definitely have flooded; I hope someone thought to rescue the Local History materials in the bottom drawers of the file cabinets, but I fear it was overlooked. If I'm right, there several hundred old photos and a quarter of our clipping files.

Serge @ 57: That's good to hear about Xopher.

Fragano Ledgister #9 wrote: "I hope someone explains the facts of life to him thoroughly."

Is "explaining the facts of life to" here much the same thing as what in England we might call "having a quite word with"?

Am I simple-minded? In hindsight, it seems reasonable to me to believe that the comfortablysmug guy is just a stupid, rich Republican who thought he could derive some personal benefit by reporting what he did on Twitter -- possibly something to do with his stock speculation, if he succeeded in getting people to believe that the stock market would be delayed in opening. There is the small possibility that he fell for someone else's rumor and passed it on, then got spiteful when people challenged him. The latter seems doubtful to me, as he didn't try to excuse himself, that way when uncovered. (It's also possible that he was vain and just stupid, thinking he could get away with making a guess about the flood level and then look like an accurate prognosticator. I wouldn't dismiss this last possibility.)

Anyway, he's caught. I would think there might be other problems to go after, now.

I know it's easy to feel that, being far away from the disaster zone. But I can't make myself interested in continuing discussion of comfortably_smug other than to cite his actions as campaign fodder for the Democratic opponent in that district, or to try to blunt his influence, directly, in the Twitter stream. I know Teresa works there, a bit. It's informative to learn about how disinformation can be exposed in the Twitter stream, but I'm not very involved in Twitter. I see that Shashank Tripathi has been exposed in USA Today.

I wish all of you in New York and New Jersey a safe and speedy recovery. I hope the natural anger and indignation some of you feel can be channeled in a productive direction. And P and T, have a good time at WFC!

Lenny, #62: I notice the article says he's "resigned" his position as campaign manager (scare quotes because I'll bet my betting nickel that was a resignation-by-command). Does anyone know how his actions stand vis-a-vis Twitter's TOS?

#62 ::: Lenny Bailes

I'd assumed he had a bad case of "I'm an asshole, aren't I cute?" rather than A Stupid Plan. Is there any way to tell the difference?

Ken Brown @61, I think it's safe to say the underlying meaning persists.

The bunnies and I are fine in Mamaroneck. I've been without power, internet or phone (landline or mobile) since Monday at 6pm, but the gas stove is working fine, I've got clean (if very cold) water, plenty of candles (running low now)/flashlights and plenty of books. I was going to take something out of the freezer for dinner last night, but all the meat I touched was still frozen solid, and there was still ice in the tray (rather than water) so I just slammed it shut and made pasta. I've had a pot of stew bubbling on the stove on low since Monday and that's done for several my meals (I figured it was better to leave the burner on low than to stick it in a dead fridge - the pot's cast iron and there's plenty of liquid in the stew).

Currently at work where there is power and internet but no heat, but we're only open 1-5 today. I may stop somewhere to try to get more candles - even if the power's back on, I'll need to replenish them for the next storm. I'm thinking about an oil lamp too (not quite enough light after dark with the current set up), but I suspect our local hardware store is out of those right now.

Nancy Lebovitz @64
John Scalzi puts it "The failure mode for clever is 'asshole'"

This looks like some good news about the subways (via Atrios). Lower Manhattan and lines into Brooklyn will be out, as expected, although it looks like a number of internal Brooklyn lines may return to operability.

It's a little bit of good news about the subways, although lower Manhattan and lines into Brooklyn will be out, as expected.

Just heard an NPR news item about residents in parts of Hoboken being evacuated.

The last post here by Xopher was October 29th at 8:13 PM. The latest tweet I see is also from the evening of the 29th. I'm hoping he's just conserving battery charge and/or doesn't have internet connectivity.

Ingrid @23:

Treason? No. He has neither levied war against the United States, nor adhered to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort.

Chris @72 -- Unless you count the weather as an enemy....

Tom Whitmore @ #73: Unless you count the weather as an enemy....

The weather isn't actually helped or hindered by what people believe it's doing. (Now if only everyone agreed with that statement...)

Stefan @70: According to the most accurate-looking sources on the web that I could find, the city of Hoboken is indeed in the process of evacuating some of the residents: specifically, those with babies or very small children, those who are pregnant, those with worrisome medical conditions, and so forth. Other residents are being offered food supplies and water, if they'd like to stay, or evacuation if they need that. There was a shelter which has now been relocated to two other shelters; various reports suggest that there is a dispensing pharmacy in one if not both of those shelters as well.

I just talked with Sharyn November in Hoboken, in fact, who dictated a post for her Facebook. She's safe, well supplied with everything except power (and therefore has no cellphone or internet either), and is planning to stay put until further notice. She said the cat is so bored that it's fetching its toys out from under things. She also reports that she has four Screme Eggs and a bunch of candy corn, in addition to regular food.

There's a map giving locations of (some of the) downed live power lines at http://hoboken411.com/ -- bear in mind that not all are shown. The National Guard is recommending that people stay in their homes, and if they need help, go to the lowest dry level and signal, but do not come outside. (People are going outside anyhow, from reports, but live wires in water are Not Good.)

The power company allegedly was making noises about "maybe Monday" or "maybe in ten days" depending on who you listen to, but latest official reports say that they are now not giving any predictions on when the power will come back on.

The city of Hoboken is mostly disseminating information through their Facebook page. (And the city's not having an easy time of it, so they ask people to spread the word about the announcements there.)

Depending on where Xopher is, he may be watching National Guard trucks rumble by right now.

Oh, and the drinking water in Hoboken is just fine, so that's not a worry for anyone staying there.

I posted a bunch of info for Stefan @ 70 and anybody else concerned about Hoboken, but the gnomes have it for the moment.

Xopher tweeted on the 30th - and sounded okay. He said his building wasn't flooded. Dunno, but I suspect he's without power, still.

MacAllister @ 76: When I follow your link to Xopher's tweet, it displays "6:08 PM - 29 Oct 12". That's the same Monday evening tweet that I was referring to above. It is most likely that he's fine. Elise's report from Sharyn November was that she was without access to the internet, but otherwise was OK. Elise has more info for us once the busy gnomes get a chance to release it.

Janetl@77 - Ah. I expect time-zone differences account for the date discrepancy. I expect you're right, though, and he's most likely fine. I expect Jim or Abi will be along to wake the gnomes and give them breakfast, shortly.

Have we heard from Avram, and I just missed it?

MacAllister @ 78: I'm looking at Twitter in the Pacific time zone. I guess it's doing something "clever" to report in one's local time. I hates time zones, I does!

Im fine, after a day sans mobile Internet...my best wishes to all In worse shape, and If anybody talks to Doug please give him my cindolences.

possibly for bad typing on a phone? no treats here, sorry...

@79

Avram tweeted last night (10/31) at 11:11pm local.

Ah, OK, cool, re: Xopher.

Meanwhile, yay TexAnne! (I was assuming you were OK but likely powerless -- I asked about Xopher because of the articles and such talking about trapped Hobokians, but now my main wonder is to ask what a resident of Hoboken is actually called.)

We are at the airport. In NYC today probably not "home-home" until later; maybe next week. We may use the ferry to get some clothes, empty the fridge, water the plants.

I'm still at my sister's. Power is still off in my area, and I learned this morning that seawater got into the electrical lines in my apartment building, so no power there until all the wires can be inspected. Going to take a while. The only bright spot is that we don't have to pay rent until the building is liveable again.

The library where I work is in a community that is currently completely uninhabitable. They *might* get water and sewage back by next week. Or they might not. (Not to mention the universal power outage.) So I'm out of work for at least a little while. No word yet on whether or not I'm actually going to get paid.

If I have to go back to work before my apartment is inhabitable, I'll have to try to find a short-term rental. Brooklyn is too far to commute. And I can't keep staying with my sister. She's been very gracious, but this apartment is tiny. She should be moving to a somewhat larger place in the next few weeks, but I reallyreally hope to be out of her hair by then. (I could help her move!) She's buying a co-op; Monday's closing was postponed due to the storm, with no rescheduled date yet.

A lot of people have it a lot worse, but I'm busy freaking out at the moment. I'll figure something out.

Anyone in Wall St. who spreads a false story about the NYSE should be strung up by their bonuses.

He is an analyst, and ought to know what lies do. How can anyone rely on his analysis?

We need the Internet equivalent of those little hand-crank emergency radios.

Nothing's changed here. Putting off any assessments of what I've lost from the fridge/freezer until the weekend when I'm not at work during most of the daylight hours. I also need to figure out the most efficient way to wash dishes with no hot water (I've been stacking them in the dishwasher) and some plan for food with the cold storage gone. I established last night that it's a span of about 2-3 blocks with no power surrounded by areas with power, so buying fresh food is an option.

Hm. Hand-crank power for cell-phone, plus peer-to-peer networking....

Thanks to all for the updates; sympathies to all presently without power/mains water etc and/or in emergency/alternative accommodation, and good luck for a rapid return to relative normality.

Re: cold water dish washing

Wipe off as much of the fat/oil as possible with paper towels.

Soaking helps, even in cold water.

Use plenty of soap.

Rinse thoroughly.

If your stove works, you can heat water in a pot and at least wash in warm water. If the dishes are clean, cold water rinsing works just fine, although it may take a little extra effort to get all the soap off.

Cold water dish washing: My Girl Scout camping days had us using three wash basins. The first had some soap and was preferably warm water. The second was plain water for a rinse. The third had 1 tablespoon of bleach to a gallon of water and was for sanitizing. If your water is running you don't need a basin for the rinse, of course.

All friends and family are accounted for. No homes ruined. But power outages all over. It sounds like an awful mess.

My sister, in Westchester, has power and offered recharging, ice, and food to friends, but some cannot be reached due to downed trees.

OtterB, the Girl Scouts had it right -- that's the same system food service places without dishwashing machines are expected to use, although generally with quaternary ammonium sanitizer instead of bleach.

You can pick up quat sanitizer at most restaurant supply places, if you should want to keep any on hand.

The water is running, so I'm not worried about contamination. I was mostly thinking logistically - which pot is big enough to heat water on the stove, do I pour it into the sink to mix with cold water or wash stuff in the pot, then rinse it in cold water, etc. It's a bit different than when this was the norm because I probably wouldn't be working all the daylight hours or I'd have non-electric light in the kitchen and I don't want to be carrying a large pot of hot water after dark.

And if I still have no power on Saturday, I'll be checking the hardware stores and camp stores to see if they have oil lamps left. The candle/flashlight thing is getting old.

I did extensive research on sanitizers for our child care center because we were hearing a lot about h8ow almost everything you can imagine is "better than bleach." What I discovered is: nothing is as good as bleach, in the dimensions that matter to us. Thymol and Quaternary ammonium both require being let sit on the surface for several minutes before being thoroughly rinsed off (especially quaternary ammonium, which is poisonous: thymol is not considered toxic by US authorities but it is by UK authorities, for whatever that's worth). That time element alone was enough for us to choose bleach. Furthermore, bleach doesn't even have to be wiped or rinsed off a surface unless you're going to use it immediately, because it breaks down completely in the presence of light. It works immediately and in small dilutions. And it's cheap and available at any grocery store. Its only drawback is that you have to keep it in an opaque container and mix a new solution every day, because of breaking down in the presence of light.
So -- I'd say, sanitize your dishes with bleach, not quaternary ammonium.

I've heard that dubious drinking water can be made safe by cutting it 1-to-4 with cheap wine or other booze. How true is that?

Ken Brown #61: I'd say the two terms were exactly congruent.

Lee #98:

I don't know how true that is, but it sounds dubious. It suppose it also depends on what you're trying to make the water safe from: PCB and heavy metals, nothing's going to help.

If it were me, I'd drink the wine straight from the bottle and boil the water. If I couldn't boil it, add bleach or iodine.

MacAllister @79, I checked in over at LiveJournal yesterday. And kept up a running stream of comments on Twitter through the storm; our Internet went out only once, briefly. Thanks for asking, though!

There was never a chance of our neighborhood flooding; we're so high above sea level that the city stashed emergency vehicles up here during Hurricane Irene. (Not this time, though. I don't know why not.) Our power flickered occasionally, but never went away entirely. We lost some (but not all) cable channels partway through the Colbert Report, but they were back the next day. No service at all on one of our local subway lines; the other has service, but doesn't leave Brooklyn. I was even able to go out yesterday and replenish our bagel supply.

Lee @98, Jim @100:

Given the history of watered wine, I'm inclined to think there may be something to it, at least with regard to microorganisms.

Avram @101, I'd have sworn I follow you on Twitter -- but I'll double-check. Glad to hear you and yours are safe and well and provisioned.

I'd heard that the practice of adding water to wine in the ancient world was because a lot of their wine was nasty.

In the Homeric poems, all wine is as sweet as honey -- of course, in the Homeric poems everyone gets to eat roast meat for every meal as well, while dressed in fine wool and linen.

(And in the poem "The Frog-Mouse Battle" there's a hilarious reference to "honey-sweet water"....)

The context in which I heard about the wine-in-the-water thing was specifically microorganisms. It was mentioned as being a preventive for dysentery or Montezuma's Revenge.

My parents told me that they're allowing themselves 8 hours a day of generator time, to conserve propane in case there's a flood threat.

I asked how they're keeping their food cool. They're keeping it on the screened porch. Apparently winter has started in the Catskills . . . it is 31 F up there!

David Goldfarb, 105:

But in Homer, the sheep are violet, the honey is green and the ocean is burgundy. So either some serious perceptual disconnects or really unreliable narrator there.

CZEdwards and David Goldfarb, and the dawn is rosy-fingered. Always. Damnedest meteorological phenomenon I've ever read about.

CZEdwards: Bronze Age people used some words in different ways than we do? Gosh. I may have to sit down for a minute.

108
I thought the sea was just dark as burgundy, or more likely the unfiltered stuff they had in Homer's time. (Italian neighbor made cloudy red wine. Probably the closest you can get to the stuff back then.)

CZEdwards @#108: Actually, that's an interesting thing. Apparently Ancient Greek color words were more about value than hue. That is, they were concerned primarily with brightness rather than what we'd call "color" in English. So, for example, mint green was considered the same as yellow or pale pink, while forest green was closer to, as you say, burgundy or navy blue or charcoal. The sky is bronze because it's bright like bronze, not because it's golden; the sea is wine-dark because it's dark like wine, not because it's purple. And so on.

I'm afraid this is a [citation needed], because I remember reading it but I cannot recall where.

CZEdwards #108: Yeah, the best explanation I've seen for the Homeric descriptions was simply a different set of visual/narrative priorities -- where we would look first to something's hue to describe it, they went to luminance and perhaps texture. Thus, the sea was dark as wine, never-mind that it's dark blue instead of dark red. The sky bright and smooth as a polished shield, again regardless of hue, and so forth.

Carrie S #112: And we both got there at the same time. I may well have gotten it from a class back in college. ("Greek Heros", by the inimitable Dr. Greg Nagy.)

Primus: back in NYC.
Secundus: not yet back "home"
Tertius: The music store across the street informs us our place, as yet unpowered. That worries me because it's supposed to freeze and the etrogim and the pomegranate will not do well if they freeze.

All in all that's really small beans, painful as it might seem to me it's because we didn't suffer more, and now that I think on it I'll bet the music store would keep them for us.

I love my neighborhood.

re descriptors: I would say I have seen both the "wine-dark sea" and the, "rosy-fingered dawn". The qualities of light are able to do both. Add the different ways different cultures use metaphoric language... e.g. my saying once (and I think not originally, "Winter comes with catlike tread."

I will say I have had "Water, sweet as honey," and after a battle is a likely time. Recall Gunga Din.

Patrick, I don't think your Tor password issue matters. I unthinkingly wrote to a few of our colleagues about an Amazon problem with one of our books and the emails have been generating annoying mail subsystem error messages ever since. I presume the Macmillan mail servers are down due to the blackout.

I linked to that same NYT oyster article on my FB wall. I highly recommend the book that inspired it, THE BIG OYSTER.

Oysters are just part of a larger wetlands ecosystem that used to protect our shores. See Jim Dwyer's article about that today:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/02/nyregion/a-refreshing-argument-about-climate-change-and-what-to-do-about-it.html

I am at a conference on the west coast of Canada. The representative of a major academic publisher is present. He arrived from England. His books are not present. They should have come from New York. New York is currently not open for business.

I did point out that in Hertford, Hereford, and Hampshire hurricanes hardly happen. That didn't seem much help.

A bit more from my shore-house friends: the area around Seaside Heights is still inaccessible and likely to remain so for weeks on end. The Mantoloking area is absolutely impassible (read, largely washed away) and the bridge is hopeless; the Route 37 bridge has been deemed passable but since the roadway at the shore end doesn't exist that doesn't help much. The police and such are actively preventing people from coming ashore in boats. OTOH NOAA has run a couple of passes of aerial photography over the area, and it's pretty clear that the worst their particular neighborhood faces is flooding and sand blocking the streets. And of course the lack of power and water and gas: they're cutting the gas off from the mainland and will have to rebuild the distribution system afresh.

Tracie reported on the open thread that Xopher is fine.

Oh, and basically the same good news about Xopher posted on HOW COULD WE POSSIBLY HAVE FORESEEN from Moshe Feder.

I wanted to make a donation to a disaster relief effort (and my husband's office has offered matching donations). Was thinking of the Red Cross; anyone have anything else to recommend?

#122: I sent a big lump to Red Cross earlier today.

I generally spread my charitable giving over a dozen or more favorites, but after seeing the unholy mess in New Jersey and southern Queens / Brooklyn, it seemed the right thing to do.

I'm not sure what other group is in the position to help *right now*. In the longer term, I imagine Habitat for Humanity will be doing a lot of work in the Northeast. (They got a token payment.)

ALSO: NYC/NJ charities that provide electrical and heating assistance.

Haven't read all the comments yet (limited power), but just wanted to let you know that Xopher and I are okay. Our neighborhood is still without power and heat, and it may be a few days yet, though I now see streetlights on nearby. We have limited cell service, but plenty of food and hot water. The floods receded on Wednesday. Our building is fine as far as we can tell (Xopher's place is on the top floor and mine the second). I'm wasting gasoline charging my phone, getting warm, listening to the radio, and reading by carlight.

ShelterboxUSA - they have tent packages. I suspect theirs will be going to Haiti.
Doctors Without Borders is also good.

84 Kate - we say Hobokenite.

Information on places to donate for Sandy relief-- including Haiti and Cuba.

Another organization that's doing Sandy relief in Brooklyn:

http://www.brooklyncommunityfoundation.org/brooklyn-recovery-fund-1

I'm glad to hear that Xopher was tracked down and is doing good work.

The Brooklyn Community Foundation sounds like the kind of outfit that would be worth supporting all the time.

Fragano's last line @118: +1, would read again. Add to mental cart.

(I have nothing substantial to contribute, other than that I think I'm going to try to get in touch by phone with my relatives in NJ to-morrow, since email hasn't produced a response yet...)

--Dave, crossing a finger or three

Hi, all -- sdn here in Hoboken, updating Elise's earlier update. We got power back on our block on Thursday evening, and wireless yesterday (thanks to my rockin' landlord). All things considered, I got off VERY lucky. I had running water, HOT water, a gas stove, no water damage (top floor apartment), and a land line (as well as a corded phone), so i was able to dial up as long as my laptop battery held out. When it didn't, I recharged from one of the charging stations on Hudson Street (people with power ran cords out of their windows to the street). This city is amazing.

I had made the command decision not to attend WFC days before, so that was one less worry, although I am very disappointed not to be there.

I went a bit farther afield today and have established that most of the power is back on in my area (though there are still sections where it isn't, like my 1/2 mile stretch on rte 1). The police are out directing traffic and dealing with the long lines at the gas stations. I'd refilled my tank the friday before the storm and since then have only driven short distances. I'd walk to work some days next week, but until the power returns, I'll have to visit the supermarket every day for salad for my spoiled bunnies and that's a longer stretch than I feel comfortable walking without streetlights.

The supermarket near me was starting to restock on Thursday, and now has a spotty selection of frozen foods and a good selection of produce. The other supermarket I was at must have just got their power back because they had almost nothing perishable on the shelves. The children's bookstore in the next town just got their power back this morning.

I've been buying candles at all sorts of odd places (and am a bit surprised at the selection) - Pier 1 and Home Goods came through on that end. While I was in Home Goods, I also found a AA battery powered mp3 speaker thing that will also charge gadgets by USB and bought a lap desk with built in light.

The first attempt at heating water on the stove for washing dishes was a success. Carrying the pot wasn't as bad as I expected, so I'll start doing that after each meal or once a day at the very least.

At the moment my biggest concern is the lack of heat this weekend. I'll be fine but I'm a little worried about the buns. I might leave a blanket or two they can burrow into in the living room - it's not quite as cold as outside in here, and they're free to move around the room. I could leave the oven on for heat, but I'm wary of doing that overnight. Other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

In other news, being without power is very annoying but I'm finding ways to cope. I'm just hoping that we get power on before Monday (local high school is two buildings away) or Tuesday (Town Center/my polling place for the election is in between my building and the high school) or even Wednesday (another potential Nor'easter brewing).

Hilary @133: Please DO NOT use your oven for heat overnight. The risk is carbon monoxide. You could die. Please don't. We like having you around.

Hilary @133:

You could make a heat source for the bunnies by putting uncooked rice into a cloth bag (for instance, a pillowcase) and heating it up, then wrapping it in towels to keep the beasties away from the surface heat.

But rabbits in the wild do survive in quite chilly conditions. Unless it's actually snowing inside, you can probably keep them comfortable by insulating their space enough to keep their own body heat in.

But yeah, please, not the oven.

Hilary: I am a big fan of hot water bottles as a long-lasting mild heat source. It doesn't take long to heat a kettle to fill it, and if it's in a cozy or wrapped in a towel or blanket, it stays comfortably warm for hours.

Yeah, I really wouldn't even consider the oven. I haven't even tried to light it since the power went off - the pilot light is towards the back and I'm very wary. Also my fireplace lighter is dying, so I wouldn't even consider trying to light the oven until I get a new one. It was scary enough lighting the stove for dinner. I had a few false starts and finally turned the gas off, worked with the lighter until it lit and then turned the gas back on.

The buns don't seem too bothered by the cold. There's no wind in here and they alternate between moving about and cuddling together. Last I checked, they were sitting by the sliding door.

I don't have a hot water bottle (makes note for future) and I'm not sure I could find the rice right now - last I saw it, it was towards the back of a cabinet. I think I will leave the throw that's usually on the sofa on the floor and they can burrow into that if they want - it's down so it's relatively warm. They've got the run of the place and I'd rather not close them in the hutch tonight, since it's against an outside wall and it would limit their ability to find someplace warmer. This building retains heat well enough that I doubt it will be anywhere near freezing inside tonight.

On the other hand I did find a water based hot chocolate packet so I've got a hot beverage before bed and I can always throw another blanket on my bed - I'm not even in my warmest pajamas. But sitting in the dark is getting old really quick.

Home again. We have power/water. Area in a bit of a mess, but we are ok.

I have power! Just got back from charging my gadgets at work to find light and heat and hot water. I never realized how much I appreciated being able to navigate the building's garage without a flashlight, use the elevator when I was carrying heavy objects, and being able to see to put my key in the lock.

I may now have all the lights on. The kitchen is a bit of a disaster, but I will clean it and restock the fridge and freezer tomorrow morning before work.

And now I'm going to post to LJ and Dreamwith and then take a hot shower. Priorities, I have them.

Random -- probably pointless -- question: does anyone know if Sara and Bob Schwager were affected by Sandy, or got through it okay?

To all the ML folks who are planning for the next disaster: may I recommend battery-powered lanterns? They and the batteries that power them are way more expensive than candles, of course, but also way, way safer. Many years ago I purchased 4 or 5 fluorescent battery-powered lanterns; more recently, I picked up a battery-powered LED lantern. Here in California I don't worry about hurricanes, but while waiting, as we all do, for The Big One, I have used my battery-powered lamps in a number of emergencies that left me without power for several hours. Coleman makes a selection; Rayovac does also.

Hilary Hertzoff (139): Hooray!

Lizzy L @ 141: I stocked up on battery-powered LED lanterns a couple years ago after getting through a (brief) power outage with just one of them. They are so much better for general light than a flashlight!

I've also made a note to add a hot water bottle to my supplies. We plan to go through the stash next weekend and replace thems that needs replacing.

The CDC has posted this notice for the New York/Tri-state area:

THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE IS TRANSMITTED AT THE REQUEST OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION (CDC):

IN THE WAKE OF SANDY...IT IS IMPORTANT FOR CITIZENS TO REMEMBER THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION TO PROTECT YOUR LIFE AND HEALTH AND THAT OF YOUR FAMILY:

* DRINK CLEAN...SAFE WATER AND EAT SAFE...UNCONTAMINATED FOOD

* KEEP GENERATORS OUTSIDE AT LEAST 25 FT FROM DOORS...WINDOWS AND VENTS

* DO NOT GRILL INSIDE YOUR HOME...THE FUMES CAN KILL

* NEVER TOUCH A DOWNED POWER LINE OR ANYTHING TOUCHING ONE

* USE 1 CUP OF BLEACH FOR EACH GALLON OF WATER TO REMOVE MOLD

* NEVER MIX BLEACH AND AMMONIA...THE FUMES CAN KILL

* WASHING YOUR HANDS PREVENTS ILLNESS

* SEEK HELP IF HAVING TROUBLE COPING

FOR MORE LIFE SAVING HEALTH RELATED INFORMATION CALL THE CDC AT 800-232-4636...TTY 888-232-6348.

...COASTAL FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN UPTON HAS ISSUED A COASTAL FLOOD WATCH...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT.

* LOCATIONS...NEW YORK HARBOR...THE LONG ISLAND SOUTH SHORE BACK BAYS...THE OCEAN SHORES OF NEW YORK CITY AND LONG ISLAND...AND PECONIC AND GARDINERS BAYS OF EASTERN LONG ISLAND.

* TIDAL DEPARTURES...3 TO 4 FEET.

* BEACH EROSION...LARGE BREAKING WAVES OF 8 TO 14 FEET ON TOP OF ANY SURGE COULD CAUSE SIGNIFICANT ADDITIONAL BEACH EROSION AND OVERWASH.

* TIMING...AROUND THE TIMES OF HIGH TIDE EARLY WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND AGAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT WEDNESDAY NIGHT.

* IMPACTS...DEPENDING ON THE TIMING...TRACK AND INTENSITY OF THE COASTAL STORM...MODERATE COASTAL FLOODING COULD OCCUR ACROSS MULTIPLE HIGH TIDE CYCLES. LOCALLY MAJOR FLOODING COULD OCCUR IN PLACES DUE TO CHANGES TO UNDERWATER SLOPES AND/OR LOSS OF PROTECTIVE DUNES BOTH CAUSED BY SANDY. WIDESPREAD FLOODING OF VULNERABLE SHORE ROADS AND/OR BASEMENTS IS POSSIBLE...HAMPERING RECOVERY EFFORTS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A COASTAL FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS FAVORABLE FOR FLOODING ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP. COASTAL RESIDENTS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR LATER STATEMENTS OR WARNINGS...AND TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT PROPERTY.

&&

...NY HARBOR WATER LEVELS FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...

COASTAL............TIME OF......FORECAST TOTAL.....FLOOD..... LOCATION...........HIGH TIDE.....WATER LEVEL.......CATEGORY.. ...................................(MLLW)....................

THE BATTERY NYC.....137 PM...........8.0...........MODERATE.. BERGEN POINT NY.....128 PM...........8.5...........MODERATE..

...SOUTH SHORE BAYS WATER LEVELS FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...

COASTAL............TIME OF......FORECAST TOTAL.....FLOOD..... LOCATION...........HIGH TIDE.....WATER LEVEL.......CATEGORY.. .................................(MLLW/NGVD).................

ROCKAWAY INLET NY...116 PM.........8.5.............MODERATE.. FREEPORT GAUGE NY...154 PM.........6.6/5.8.........MAJOR..... LINDENHURST NY......337 PM.........4.0.............MODERATE..

...OCEAN WATER LEVELS FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...

COASTAL............TIME OF......FORECAST TOTAL.....FLOOD..... LOCATION...........HIGH TIDE.....WATER LEVEL.......CATEGORY.. ...................................(MLLW)....................

MONTAUK POINT NY....311 PM...........5.6..........MODERATE...

Oh my goodness, Jim. That is totally awful news.

I am doing good work on a temporary gig, at a FEMA call center set up in the offices near home. Since I am currently on furlough from my usual, seasonal gig, this is good work and better money than unemployment. It is using phones but to help people, not to sell or try to make them do something they may or may not want to do.

But some of it is heartbreaking and sad. And having a Nor'easter slash back down on top of it will make it even harder.

Everyone up there, stay safe! I am hoping this passes a bit easier than the weather reports.

I'm back! Power was restored earlier this evening.

Now going to read this thread.

Xopher (147): Welcome back! We were concerned about you.

Xopher @147, good to see your pixels again

Yay Xopher!. If I'd known we could have put you up.

I think we ought to swap persinfo.

And, what with the weather, is of a scarcity mindset.

I'm sorry I didn't think of having "Gobby" update until so late. I was distracted.

still no power here, but I'm told the regular polling place will be open. I forgot to look up ballot measures and so on...anything I should know about?

Xopher: Do Not Apologise.

You were busy. You may even see it as, "distracted".

Don't worry about it. Yes, we wondered. I wasn't worried. I was concerned, mostly because being cold, and out of touch, sucks, and I didn't like to think of you being in a plight.

But that you didn't have the whatever to get word out, not something to feel bad about.

Yay for reXopherization!

Terry: Absolutely.

Welcome back Xopher!

* * *

Various friends & relatives in Jersey and on LI are turning up.

One is going to empty out a garage full of paint and tools to donate to Habitat ReStore.

Welcome back, Xopher!

Texanne, crossing my fingers for you.

Not to grill inside the home — the fumes can kill! Are we not Men?
Not to mix bleach and ammonia — the fumes can kill! Are we not Men?
Not to pull on a finger — the fumes can kill! Are we not Men?

Avram @159 <snork>

Not to Claw the FEMA agent; are we not Men?

FEMA has been great in Hoboken. So has the Army National Guard. (Full disclosure: they apparently screen the Guard guys for looks before sending them to Hoboken, so they're...distracting.)

Xopher @ #161, in your circumstances, I would think the distraction would be a feature rather than a bug.

Welcome back! And best wishes for the long haul.

Xopher, how about a past-tense distraction?
http://www.sfgate.com/giants/articleGallery/Best-Maybe-But-these-Giants-are-guttiest-4006470.php#photo-3673768
http://blog.sfgate.com/thebigevent/2012/10/25/the-1962-giants-like-it-was-yesterday/#8065-2

Off to stock up for the Nor'easter (and fighting a scarcity mindset).

Xopher... shoot me a line, if you are in need of a place, we can make room.

Terry: I think I should get through the Nor'Easter all right, though I should stock up. Thanks, and I'll keep it in mind for the future.

Xopher HalfTongue @161: Full disclosure: they apparently screen the Guard guys for looks before sending them to Hoboken, so they're...distracting.

We have the same problem with police officers in Boulder—both genders.

Nor'Easter caused no problem for me. I put in a word for those who were affected (and are still powerless or homeless from Sandy) in my morning prayer to Ganesh-ji.

my lights are back! real Internet probably Monday.

My apartment has heat and hot water again! They were restored late yesterday. The boilers were replaced Thursday, but the gas to the building had to be turned back on before the last connections could be made. (No one is sure why it was turned off, and the gas company hadn't mentioned to anyone that they'd done it. Grr.)

Phone (and thus Internet) still out. Verizon had told the building super "not before Nov.30"--which of course is now past, but phone cabling trucks have been working on my block every day since Wednesday, so hopefully that will be restored soon, too. All the flooded copper cabling has to be pulled out; they're replacing it with fiber optic cable.

Mary Aileen @169, So, silver lining... you should end up with faster internet....

Wow, it's been a month. How hard was your neighborhood hit?