12:41 AM

I know it's dark, but here's one of the trees at the end of my driveway, with a streetlamp shining behind.



Well I’m all cozy in my living room downstairs now, with my pillow and blankie on the couch and the AC on full blast. I figured it’s safer to sleep on the ground floor in case a tree should fall on my house. I heard an 11 year-old kid somewhere down south was killed today when a tree fell on to his apartment building, and so I made the decision to spend the night downstairs. Before heading to bed, I decided to take a look at the weather update so I know what to expect.



Of course, there’s wall to wall coverage on virtually every channel, which I don’t mind at this point, but finding the actual forecast took a lot of patience. Here’s what they’re saying for the NY Metropolitan Area:



The northernmost part of the storm is already here, which is evident outside. The winds have picked up and it’s pouring at the moment. They’re saying we’re getting the strongest winds so far here on LI, with gusts already over 40mph. The weather’s going to steadily worsen until about 3 AM, when the hurricane force winds and rain will officially start arriving. The bad stuff is supposed to last for nine hours, until about noon, and then things will dissipate to calm by afternoon.



Though I’m not scared at the moment, I am afraid of what’s to come during the night. I stepped outside before for a cigarette and the trees were swaying back and forth as if they were blades of grass. It made me realize just hopw small we really are. Well, I’m going to TRY and get some sleep before I’m woken up again by what I know will be horrible noises. I just hope the power stays on! Be safe!



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Photo Source: NY Times



I just finished writing a piece on Y!CN about the here and now, waiting for the Hurricane Irene to arrive. (You can check it out here.) It’s taken me all day to get into the writing mode and at the moment I feel as if I could go on for hours and hours, piece after piece, but who knows how long the power will last?



Nervous Anticipation



Truth be told, I’m starting to get a little scared. Everything’s eerily quiet outside and I’m here all alone. For the past couple of days I’ve been making fun of some of the people who’ve been proclaiming doomsday with Irene, and now that it’s close I feel a little foolish for not taking them too seriously before.



I’ve experienced two hurricanes in my life, Belle in 1977 and Gloria in 1985. That was a long time ago and back then I lived at home with my parents and my five siblings. I guess you kind of forget what it’s like after so long. Now I’m alone, and I’ve got a lot at stake. Out of all my friends who also sit at home alone right now, I’ve got the most potential for disaster. I have so many trees on my property and at least three or four of them hover over my house. I think I’ll be speaking with the Man Upstairs tonight!





Photo Source: Facebook



Don’t Believe the Hype



I need to make a little rant, just a little one…it’s about “Hype”…I can’t stand it!!!! Every time there’s a weather story to report, they’ve got coverage of every angle, wall to wall, 24/7. It happens everytime we get a snowstorm and now that Irene’s a coming, it’s all over the place, scaring people to death.



Yes, I realize that a hurricane is a serious weather and coverage is warranted, but I’ve seen the craziness all this hype does to people. They use words like “ferocious” and “menacing,” terrorizing” and “vicious.” How do they expect people to react? Especially old people! I mean, c’mon!



I know it will never change, but I just needed to get that off my chest.





Photo Source: Huffington PostIt’s Definitely Approaching



Well, since the time I started writing this the rains have gotten heavier and the wind is starting to pick up. I’m not going to lie….my stomach has lots of butterflies a fluttering and I’m scared. I’ll never forget Belle, that hurricane in 77’. It was a Category 1, I believe, but it came in during the dead of night. Those howling winds and the sounds of things blowing around and the lights going off send chills up my spine just thinking about it. Gloria came in the middle of the day, and although it was a bad one, it wasn’t nearly as frightening because of its arrival time.



They say that Irene will be here around 8 in the morning. If that’s the eye, or the center of the storm, that means some howling and such will come during the dark hours. I don’t think I’m going to get much sleep tonight and neither are many of my fellow Long Islanders and New Yorkers…



Oh, and my friend Nancy Lou just informed me that there’s also a tornado watch in effect for Suffolk County, my county, until 5AM. Great! Just great!!!



To any of you in the path of Irene, please stay safe!

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Photo Source: Press TV



Long Island is in the upper middle of the map....yikes!



It’s Friday night and the big storm is looming! Yes, hurricane hysteria is here and I say let’s just get on with it already! I’ve had a pretty crappy couple of days and come hell or high water, I’m going to party tonight…



Ugh, Men!



All week long I’ve been anticipating today’s procedure (a colonoscopy) and yesterday’s, um, prep for it, and so my mind has been somewhat preoccupied from the other issues in my life. I don’t know, but dating men is the last thing on my mind these days…I’m just not feeling it…and yet suitors seem to be coming out of the woodwork for my attention. I’ve never been very good at letting anybody down, and though I’m trying my best, it all just gives me a big headache!



I’m starting to think I may become celibate and not ever seek out anyone for any sort of companionship, sexual, romantic or otherwise. Oh, who am I kidding? Maybe once school starts and all of this weather nastiness is over I’ll be in a better mood and…



Anyway, I’m going to Splash tonight for one last hurrah before the big one arrives sometime tomorrow night and I’m going to do my darndest to have a good time.



Prep Not Fun



Yesterday was the prep for today’s procedure and what everyone told me was spot on! I had to fast the entire day and around six o’clock I had to begin “the prep.” The name of the powdered stuff I had to drink had the word “bowel” in it, so you can imagine what it does. By the time I started it I was so hungry I could have eaten a horse, but I digress…



I had to drink this 16 ounce mixture twice, at six and at then again at two in the morning. My friend Ozzie came by to hang with me beforehand and we went to get me some yum-yums (lime jello and chicken broth! Tempting, right?) to dine on for the evening. Oz was pretty good until after I took the first dose and my stomach started grumbling, and then the little jokes started coming. Sheesh, I know that this particular procedure touches on the more embarrassing things about the body, but… Hehe... Before long I had to kick him out and the rest of the evening was spent….aw, you can just imagine!





Photo Source: Medline Plus



The Colonoscopy



Nancy Lou, who I dedicated today’s “Song of the Day” to earlier, showed up at my house at 10:15 sharp and we headed out to the surgical center in Shirley. I really wasn’t too nervous because I was just thinking of the nice big breakfast he and I would have afterwards. The whole thing lasted about two hours and again, what people told me was dead on. The anesthesia they gave me put me into the most blissful sleep and before I knew it, I was eating Lorna Doones and drinking a can of fruit juice, groggy in my bed.



I had a polyp, which was removed, and justified my going for the procedure in the first place. The doctor told me that all polyps eventually become cancerous (in about 10 years), so I’m happy I didn’t wait the four years to have it done.



A Vivid Anesthesiec Dream



I know, I know, anasthesiec is not a word, but since I was under it when I had this weird and vivid dream, I just wanted to use my own made-up word. Any-who, in the dream I was in a nightclub with my mother (very strange!). The club was similar to an after-hours place in Jackson Heights I used to go to years back, like an apartment turned into a disco. We were dancing, something like the Watusi, and I saw ‘him’ and three friends sitting on a chair across the room. He looked over at me and then turned and walked away, down the stairs. I looked over at my mom, who was still getting down, oblivious to the scene and boom, I woke up! So real and so weird!



Irene’s a Comin’



Well it’s been 26 years since we’ve had a major hurricane hit Long Island and this one looks like a sure thing. Wall to wall coverage of it is making everyone frenzied. There’s not a battery or a bottle of water to be had anywhere. Details are sketchy, as they always are with these things, but it looks like we’re right in the track of this thing as of tomorrow night and into Sunday.



Of course, I am a little worried. As I said the other day, I’ve got a lot of old, gnarly trees around my house and even the last thunderstorm that hit us I lost several huge branches. I did a lot of prep work today and I’m going to finish tomorrow by putting all of my plants and loose yard stuff in my garage. I did my shopping, and other than that there’s little I can do but wait and sit it out.



Local municipalities are taking this thing seriously, though. I got a phone call earlier that they are issuing a mandatory evacuation for all points south of Montauk Highway in Patchogue, my town, which is only about a mile and a half from where I live. So even though I don’t have to evacuate, my friend Blanchie does. Yikes! At least we have at least almost another full day to prep, and like I said, all anyone can do at this point is wait it out and hope for the best.



In the meantime, I think I’m going to have a bona fide hurricane party tomorrow night, you know, with lots of booze and a few good friends. Should be a fun way to ring in Irene! Tomorrow’s gonna be a busy day! I’ll keep you posted…



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Happy Hump Day everyone! It’s yet another beautiful summer day on Long Island and here I sit in my office, in the middle of the day, typing away, lol. This is my last bit of writing for the day, thankfully, and then I can get on with doing stuff I should be doing…outside! Here’s the latest from my so called life…





Photo Source: cbs news



Come on Irene!



For the first time in a long time, we here in the northeast are under watch for the latest hurricane, Irene, which seems to be heading in our direction. We’ve had these types of warnings many times in the past and a lot of them turned out to be nothing more than some rain and a little wind, and I hope that’s the case this time, too. They’re saying Sunday, so anything can happen between now and then. We haven’t had one since I bought my house in 98 and I shudder to think about one hitting here full force because I have a lot of trees in my yard. Fingers crossed and stay tuned…





Photo Source: Watt's Up With That?



Earthquake? What Earthquake?



I think I am probably the only person I know who didn’t feel the Earth trembling at yesterday’s earthquake, which struck in Virginia but was felt all over the Eastern Seaboard. I spoke to a couple of people who felt it around 2PM, but I didn’t even know about it until much later. They say it’s the strongest earthquake to ever hit the area at 5.6 on the Richter, and of course the end-of-the-worlders are out in full force. Gimme a break!







Opening up



As I told you the other day, I’ve been struggling a lot lately with the things I put on this blog. It all started when I got a nasty and derogatory email from a reader that made me do a lot of thinking. More than a week has passed now and several friends have given me cause to keep doing what I’m doing and not be affected by such malicious nonsense. After all, this is my space and if anyone doesn’t want to read it, they don’t have to.



Though I have no idea specifically what the emailer was referring to in his rant, I had removed a piece I thought he might have been responding to, a poem about my recent face to face encounter with him. At the moment I have no plans to republish it in full, but here’s an abridged version of the original that I had penned a week ago Sunday:



Yet another regretful episode in this muddled story

A chance meeting unforeseen

At almost the very spot where we first met

We’d both imagined this in our minds

Yet neither could know what really to expect



It all happened so suddenly

I looked up with disbelieving eyes into your face

And saw you looking into mine

And in a flash, all I could think of to do was turn and run

But you saw me as I saw you and called to me from behind



At that point, the deed was done

The circumstance of our encounter was settled

You were excited and I was terrified

My reaction dampened your evening and mine

The latest in a series of miscommunications between us



Running away was not the mature thing to do

Yet it was an impulse borne out of months of despair

And yes, anger, at the very thought of you

I regret the action and wish I could take it back

But what’s done cannot be undone



I don’t know how you expected me to react

With a smile and a hug, perhaps

Some genuine catching up of old friends

I laid it all out for you the last time

In a way I believed to be noble and complete



Whatever happens from here forth

Please understand that there were reasons for my action

Perhaps a little subconscious hurt thrown your way

In return for the hurt I’d endured

A little bit of karma in action



I know you couldn’t see

Through all of the discomfort between us

That deep down it was nice to see you again

In the flesh

The same person I so cared for once upon a time



So take good care of yourself

I’m happy to hear you’re in a better place these days

Should there be a next time, don’t worry

I promise not to turn my back again

Next time I’ll flash you a brilliant smile, I promise!



Reading this over once again, I don’t think there's anything about it I need to feel bad about writing, either on myself or on him. It's just the openness and feeling that I always express in my writing, no matter the subject. Yes, my experiences with him were some tough moments in my life and even though I’m in a good place now, contact of any sort inevitably brings back memories, bad and good. So I make no apologies for penning the piece, and I’m glad to share it once again with you.



It’s funny, but things have taken a sad turn even since I wrote the piece. After not having seen him for seven months, I ran into him three straight times at Splash, the last time being last night. Though I meant what I said in the last stanza, things haven’t gone exactly that way in subsequent encounters. There’s kind of a distant iciness there now, like we're both sort of pretending not to see each other while we’re standing just a few feet away. It's weird and uncomfortable, and no fun at all. I guess the circumstances from that night have brought us to this, starting with my reaction almost two weeks ago.



It’s a little unnerving and sad, but I guess that’s just the way it’s going to be. At least there’s just one more week of Splash Tuesdays and/or Thursdays for me, and so I’ll return to going there on Saturdays again afterwards and these random contacts shouldn’t happen anymore anyway.



Related post: Untitled



Writing Wednesdays



Well, I already missed the second week of Writing Wednesdays, and so here are links to some of the pieces I’ve been up to…



Gather



Amy Winehouse Tributes by Green Day, Coldplay and at the VMAs



Gaga’s “You and I” exemplifies her musical versatility



Spotlight on new music releases for the week of August 22nd



Preview of the 2011 VMAs



Yahoo Contributor Network



Elton John's Top Twenty Songs



Pesto: Easy, Delicious and Versatile



Volunteer's Corner: Working to Protect and Preserve the Environment of Long Island and Beyond



What Are You Listening To? Summer 2011



Examiner



Fun outdoor activities on Long Island this weekend



H is for "High Rise"



During my "Song of the Day" posting in dedication to Nick Ashford, who passed away yesterday, I mentioned another of Ashford and Simpson songs that I loved whose title just happens to start with the letter "H," the next letter in our Z-A Blogger's Challenge. Bonus! The vid's a little grainy, but the song is oh so sweet sounding! Enjoy!











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It’s Monday afternoon and the first day of a long, rainy week. Whatever happened to “April showers bring May flowers?” I mean, we had a pretty wet month of April and so now aren’t we supposed to be enjoying some May weather, beautiful and sunshiny, with lots of flowers? Well, the flowers are out, but the sun really hasn’t been around too much since last Friday and from the looks of things we won’t be seeing it again until maybe Saturday or Sunday. I guess I’ll be doing a lot of writing this week…



W is for Weather

Weather permeates our lives at all times without us ever really realizing it. From severe weather to frigid winters, rainy days and heat waves, the weather that’s going on around us affects what we do, how we feel, and how we act. Here in New York, the four seasons of the yearly cycle of weather give us the best and worst of what weather has to offer:

Lazy, hazy days of summer

A cooling breeze blowing off of the ocean over a white sandy beach



Ominous skies warning the arrival of an afternoon thunderstorm

Crisp, refreshing autumn air

Freezing cold temperatures and dreary skies

Inches upon inches of snow, oftentimes keeping in plain sight for weeks upon cheerless weeks

Crocuses and daffodils emerging from a long winter’s sleep



Rainy days and Mondays

Reawakening of the spirit upon the return of spring



I’m sure that many of you can relate to these scenarios of the four seasons and the weather events they produce. With each of them come associations with which we can all identify, feelings and sensations related to each of these circumstances. Weather can make us happy and it can make us sad. It can awaken within us all that is the glory of Mother Nature and it can hunker us in towards a long, melancholy state. But of course, this isn’t all there is to be said about weather.

Weather can be fascinating …and deadly!

Part of the wonder of weather is the sheer force with which it can sometimes strike. I’m lucky enough not to live in an area that’s affect too often by tornados, which to me is one of the most fascinating weather occurrences on Earth. These dark funnels that reach down to the ground from the sky instill a sense of beauty, fascination and terror to those lucky, or unlucky, enough to experience one. I sometimes wish for the opportunity to witness the majestic power of this force, but I think I’m better off just seeing them from afar.



Another fascinating and deadly weather phenomenon is lightning. Like tornados, lightning can be an absolutely magnificent thing to behold, but with the frightening potential for danger. I remember my ex Joe always being fascinated with lightning. Whenever a thunderstorm would approach, he’d make his way out to the front stoop or the back deck to catch a better glimpse, while I stayed as close to the inner part of the house as possible. Lightning terrifies me, yet I can’t deny its allure. I’ve spent many a summer’s day in Florida, where enormous streaks of lightning permeate the sky almost every day, and the experiences are ones I’ll always remember for both the beauty and the fright it would often bring.



Of course, another deadly, yet fascinating weather event is the notorious hurricane. Here on Long Island we are affected by them every once in a blue moon and there are two I remember distinctly. Hurricane Belle was the first hurricane I ever experienced back in 1976. It struck in the late night hours and it was absolutely petrifying. Within minutes of the first howling winds, electricity was lost and we were left in complete darkness with only the horrifyingly scary noises that the wind brought.



Nine years later, Long Island was hit with another hurricane called Gloria. Gloria was expected to be much worse than it was and it turned out to be somewhat of a dud, though it did cause considerable damage and of course, power outages. The eye of the storm came right over the island and it was eerie, getting sunny and beautiful for about twenty minutes as it passed over us, paving the way for the second half of the storm. This one struck during the daytime hours, so to me it wasn’t as terrifying as Belle.

Of course, what would a blog post be from me without music? This one’s an oldie, but goodie from late Long Islander Laura Branigan. It had already been a hit, but gained somewhat of a resurgence in the days approaching the onslaught of this storm. It was and still is a great song!





I’m sure we all have weather stories to tell. Weather is all around us and I think we often take for granted the power it has over our lives as well as our psyches. I’ve been mentioning lately that my mindset has been in a good place lately and I think it has a lot to do with the spring weather. Though I do enjoy the warmer months, I don’t think I could ever live in a place that’s beautiful all the time. To me, trudging through the cold, bleary days of winter only works to make you feel that much better when spring comes.

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