3:24 PM

Its been over a week since Irene, but her effects are still audible. The wind (or possibly just poor workmanship) was responsible for a chunk of vinyl siding coming loose off my neighbor's house, and its been flapping in the breeze against their wall making a very annoying noise. 24 hours a day, since last Sunday. They claim someone is coming to fix it. Right. Its been A WEEK. No one is coming. I will have to live like this until we move. IRENE! You're keeping me up at night. I can't think straight!

9:55 PM

vermont is totally screwed, which sucks because why do bad things happen to good states?
i just want vermont to know i'm still thinking about them. hang in there vermont! what doesn't kill you something something cliche something.

also, my friend liz has a new blog. its not about the effects of irene, so it might not interest my primary audience, but i encourage you to expand your horizons and think about other things as well, like apples. after all, if irene taught us anything, it was that we should get out more and see things the way they are now, before they're gone. life after irene means life with more apples.

applelogs

also, i'm drinking a watermelon mint rum beverage. its delicious.

7:40 AM

TB is making espresso. I am incapacitated by looking at the photos of Irene destruction in Vermont:
Vermont Flooding 2011

Here's a place you can go to see how to help, which will be your immediate reaction after looking at those photos:
http://7d.blogs.com/blurt/2011/08/after-irene-how-you-can-help-vermont.html

7:32 AM

getting ready for another day of work. yesterday was so weird, going back to work after irene. things seemed so... normal. it was like nothing had happened at all, except that i didn't do laundry on sunday like i normally do, so i had to do it last night, which just felt.. off.
also the bananas i bought on saturday weren't quite ripe yet, but i had to use one anyway, for my breakfast shake. so maybe that's why everything felt off. that, or the laundry thing, or irene. not sure which, actually. i can't wait for everything to just be back to the way it was. sigh. someday.

6:19 PM

more friends came by with a neighborhood scout report. the charles river is flowing backwards! and trees are down in at least two locations. dpw was on the scene already with caution tape, so the site has been secured, but still- be careful out there everyone. the aftermath is awful, just awful.

6:03 PM

playing Risk with friends. lost most of my stronghold, but iceland prevails. the man in black is a tyrant. he's like irene. heartless.

3:59 PM

we made it! the storm is over. it was harrowing at times, but with the help of espresso, this blog, and a camera, TB and I pulled through in one piece. time to experience life post irene. we're stronger and better people now, and TB has jean shorts.

to celebrate, we're having some friends over for drinks and the classic game of world domination. Not even Irene can keep us from a Risky Sunday afternoon.

12:51 PM

The worst seems to be over. Occasional gusts of wind, but overall just breezy and drizzling. Radar indicates that the rain has passed, and it might be partly sunny later today. TB cleaned out his closet and made cutoff jean shorts. I put on thick heathered boot socks, 90's style. Irene has set fashion back 20 years in our household. This storm was a monster.

11:18 PM

got word from facebook that conditions in JP are extremely treacherous. thank goodness its so far away, i can't imagine living like that here. an entire branch fell off a tree in his yard. terrifying. nightmare. i'd offer him asylum in our place, but it would take him days to get here on foot. and all public transit is closed anyway.

11:09 AM

TB called his parents in RI, to see how they were doing. Their neighbor's fence fell, but the real damage happened when they called the neighbor to come out and do something about the fence panel that was slamming against their windows. The neighbor refused, due to the extremely wet conditions in the yard. TB's mom was a hero, and kicked down the offending fence panel before it broke her window, but that neighborly relationship will never be the same.

11:03 AM

very windy. not so windy that the plants blew off the porch railing or anything, but still, the leaves on the philodendron were really bustling about. heard a loud motor type noise and TB and I decided to venture outside to see what was happening. turns out DPW must have just found out about the storm- they were cutting a tree limb off that was hovering above a power line. appeared to be preventative, as nothing had actually fallen, and we still have power. thank goodness they're on top of the situation.

9:26 AM
woke up and TB made espresso. noticed my window fan was wet on the top, prob due to the rain. was able to remove the fan from the window and close it. phew. close call. if i had slept longer, it might have gotten water onto the floor.

obvs made it home okay last night, around midnight, but was too exhausted from the walk around the corner to post. basil lime gimlets weren't that good afterall, (no rose's lime juice. hard times.) but neighbors had made a delicious rum fruit punch. perfect for the weather.

still raining and gusty winds now. never got the update from my sister. wonder how BK fared through the night. TB getting concerned. he brought the hurricane candle holders in from the porch. i would have thought they'd be okay out there- hurricane being in their name and all- but he disagreed. things are tense and his concern is spreading. i'm thinking i might bring the bird feeders in. the birds are long gone anyway.

TB wants assistance identifying our flashlight locations. i hope we make it through this.

9:05 PM

at the neighbor's house. there is a biker party happening downstairs. yikes, these guys know how to party. can't imagine it'll be much longer before the cops come. they rigged up a ridiculous tarp and are toughing it out in the rain.

8:48 PM

still raining. dinner worked out fine, thank goodness. now attempting to go to the neighbors for some change in scenery. TB already left. Its erie here all alone with the TV and the lights on. found gin in the liquor cabinet, but no vermouth. reached further back into the darkness and came up with half a bottle of vodka. managed to scrape together scraps from the fridge for martini ingredients- basil and limes for gimlets. hopefully this will keep me sustained until we're able to make it to the store again. might not be for days.

rain appears to be letting up some. taking this opportunity to make a run for it. hope there's no flooding on the driveway.

8:36 PM

raining.

6:21 pm

I just got back from Microcenter. I needed to buy a USB keyboard for my broken laptop. Then I went into Trader Joe's to get some more beer. The only thing worse than people who go to Trader Joe's is this letdown of a hurricane. Also, did you know you can buy a USB keyboard for $6. $6!!!!! There's something wrong with that.

5:31 PM

the worst seems to be over... for now. Stopped raining and the sky has lightened up a lot. TB is going to try and make dinner. Hope it comes out alright, everything is sticky now from the humidity. Not exactly optimal conditions for baked chicken with feta and capers.

5:10 PM

update from some friends- apparently people are hunkering down and watching the movie 'midnight run'. there's a dog in it. makes me wonder how many dogs aren't going to get walked today. all because of irene. sadface. this hurricane is an animal.

4:23 PM

some people in my hood were having a party and irene wasn't invited. TARP funds were.

4:11 PM

Been raining hard since the last post, but lightening up now. Espresso is ready, finally. My sister is in Brooklyn, and it sounds like she might have it worse than me. Says her fish are not evacuating though. Strong swimmers. Good for them. I invited her to post, to get a different perspective on our situation. Stay tuned for that.

3:31 PM

raining really hard, but no wind. flash of lightning and some thunder.
moved to the porch for a better view. can't see any of the usual back yard squirrel/bird residents. where did they all go? do they know something?

eating melba toast. crunchy, but too dry. espresso not ready yet. TB is standing behind me singing weird al's 'eat it'. slight breeze just blew some rain onto the porch. i'm not ready to run for cover yet, so i'll tough it out. i'm like the weatherpeople on TV. staying out here for my readers. the truth must be documented. and the truth is rain.

3:20 PM

stopped raining again. sometimes its hard to tell if its raining or if its just the sound of the trees dripping water. not sure how to handle that. could go on the porch and look, but i'm hesitant to take the laptop with me.

TB turned on the espresso machine. could be our last one for hours.

2:55 PM

stopped raining. TB is taking his Irene-anxiety (irenixty? irony?) out on enemies in Call of Duty. His machine gun is tiger print. I'm messing with my blog font color options. just went public on 'the book'. just started raining again.

HQ update

2:28 PM
8/27/2011

Decided to blog the effects of Irene on the greater Central Square area. Tune in here for live updates.

Sunny until about noon. Cloudy until 1:54, then started raining. Rain alternates between light and heavy. Had an ice cream cone. Noticed on the TV they're showing live outdoor tennis from Winston-Salem, NC. Didn't appear to be raining there. TB is eating a roast beef sandwich. Moods are apprehensive, yet complacent, (prob due to ice cream and sammy)