Sixth Week of Nursing School

October 29^th, 2012

Dear Hurricane Sandy,

My sixth week of nursing school is nonexistent. This is the week of Hurricane Sandy. School has been cancelled Monday, Tuesday, and the school hasn't decided whether or not classes will be cancelled as well. Is this a blessing in disguise, is the world giving me time to catch my breath? Or is this a horrible nightmare? The "perfect storm" has made me miss my off campus Adult and Elderly midterm evaluation and my Health Assessment and Promotion midterm exam as well. If there aren't classes Wednesday, I will be missing my HAP Simulation evaluation too. From the looks of it, all exams will be pushed back to next week and then I will be in deep, deep trouble. Next week, I was supposed to have my A&E on campus evaluation and second Pathophysiology exam. The combination of this and next week's exams is going to be killer. I may be relaxed right now, but I am trembling at the thought of what is to come next week.

            Currently, I am sitting in the 12th floor hall way because the power went out about 45 minutes ago. The resident assistants told us that the generator is probably only going to last us another 45 minutes. Internet access was disconnected soon after the power outage and my phone only has service at random places on the floor. Since there isn't much nursing for me to talk about this week, I guess I'll talk about something that happened that extremely bothered me. About ten minutes after the power outage and right after the resident assistants warned us about how the generator will last, a group of students decided it would be a good idea to take the elevator down to the third floor for finger sandwiches and scones. I could not for the life of me wrap my mind around how young and stupid these kids were. Besides the fact that we should be conserving energy, the power outage means that these kids could have been stuck in the elevator. I'm only a few years older those kids, and I am greatly disturbed over how immature they are.

Goodbye Hurricane Sandy,

Clos3tGirlyGirl

Oh Hurricane Sandy...

10/28/12 6:38 PM Windy Weather & Dark Grey Clouds

As a Cali girl, I have never experienced a hurricane before and just don't know what to expect. School has shut down for Monday October 29th, 2012, the subway is to be shut down, and although some parts of NYC are being asked to evacuate, the dorms are not. I'm not sure if the news and government are just trying to overly freak people out just to force us to prepare for the storm. I've come across a wide array of people this past weekend, all who have different opinions about the upcoming "perfect storm." Most of the people I've talked to aren't very worried about the storm and even laugh that I'm prepping for the storm. I almost feel like I'm on the higher end of the spectrum of freaking out. I've got some supplies... my flashlight, batteries, water, and food...anything else I need? I even pre-downloaded material for me to study for my exam on Tuesday in case the power goes out. Even though the people I've talked to aren't freaking out, I've noticed that as I was gathering my supplies that the grocery markets are filled with people and the lines are incredibly long. I'm used to earthquakes, but not hurricanes...any advice is appreciated!

10/29/2012 11:17 AM Episodes of Wind & Sprinkling Here n There

So I've been keeping up with the weather updates through the Weather Channel's live feed on YouTube. Apparently Hurricane Sandy is strengthening and approaching faster than expected. I'm definitely staying in today. No stopping by Bath & Body Works for their 2/$20 sale for me. There's so much I have to do before the storm gets here! I still have to shower in case the water is compromised, prepare coffee to store in my thermos, complete my online assignment before 6:00 PM in case the internet goes out....haha I know first world problems. From what I can tell, the only thing that has really changed since last night is that the wind has strengthened when it does hit. At times, I can see the small plotted tree on the roof of the building across the street swaying viciously. When I look down at the street, I can see that cars are still driving on the road but there are very little people walking about.

10/29/2012 1:17 PM Raining Harder

Just got notice that school is cancelled for tomorrow (10/30/2012) as well! News says Hurricane Sandy is going to hit around 5:00 PM EDT with 90 mph winds. O.O Oh my...

I started following a bunch of people on Twitter to keep myself updated: 

@weatherchannel

@MikeBloomberg

@twc_hurricane (Hurricane Central)

@NotifyNYC

10/29/2012 4:00 PM Much, Much Windier

There's no point in me posting a picture because outside it looks the same as it was 3 hours ago. The thing is...it's definitely windier! I can see the trees flailing and debris flying about horizontally. Of course the wind comes in episodes. I'm glad that my dorm building walls are muffling the sounds of the wind or else I'd probably be freaking out more. A notice was just sent to us to prepare for a possible power outage and to prepare a "go-bag" in case we need to move buildings. Woohoo for being a worry wart cause my bag is already packed. If I can get the chance, I'll try shooting a video clip with my phone, but of course I'm not guaranteeing the quality.

10/29/2012 6:41 PM Scary Wind and Sirens Sounding

I hear the wind outside and its kind of scaring me. It sounds like debris and/or objects is hitting the outside of my dorm building. I hear sirens from far away and passing by every 5-10 minutes. I'm wondering what is going outside out there. They say the worst of the storm is going to be 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM. I've set up shop on the other side of my dorm room, just in case my window does for some reason gets knocked out. I doubt if my window did break, that my effort would help. I've got my stuff together in case I for some reason need to move locations. I'm starting to wonder if I should move into the hallway where there aren't any windows. Uhh...as I type this update it sounds like a tree was just uprooted outside...I guess the plus side is that I still have power and internet access.

10/29/2012 7:04 PM I Don't Give A F***

Ok seriously hearing the wind outside, I just kept imagining my window shattering and glass piercing my face. I moved my computer and "go-bag" to the dorm halls and I'm just going to camp here until the worst of the storm is over. I don't care if I look a little crazy!

10/31/2012 05:12 PM Wow...A Lot Has Changed

The power went out at my dorm around 9:00 PM on Monday. Luckily, my dorm has a generator so our hallways stayed lit, a couple outlets scattered throughout the building worked, and I was able to access water. We didn't have warm water to take a shower with until this morning, so yesterday I took a cold shower because I just felt gross from sitting around all day. Everyone clusters around the one outlet that works on our floor to charge their phones/laptops, and go down to the lower levels for internet access. I've heard a lot happened when Sandy came and I'm not sure if what I've heard are rumors. Apparently a crane dangled from atop a skyscraper, a transformer blew up at Con Edison and most of lower Manhattan has no power, ground zero turned into a waterfall, hospital generators failed so patients had to be evacuated, and the subways are out of commission until who knows when.