On Nature's Fury

A little over a week ago, it began snowing here in New Jersey.  Coming from northern Indiana, I was not too freaked out about snow in October.  It seemed a little early, but I also didn't expect that it would hang around too long.  And it hasn't.  After a week, nearly all of the snow had nearly all disappeared.  But it was what the snow did while it was around that was eventful.

Around 4:45 last Saturday, my building lost power.  This was something of a surprise, but since I had been hearing branches cracking under the weight of the snow outside, I figured that a power line was down, and that later that day, things would be sorted out.

At 11:00 that night, I was still reading by flashlight, and the next day, twenty-four hours after the power had gone out, my roommate and I left our apartment to crash at the home of a commuter and fellow grad student.  Apparently, either because of the heaviness of the wet snow or because of trees already weakened by the aggression of hurricane Irene, there was significant damage done throughout the Northeast.  Far more branches came down in this snowstorm than were amputated by the hurricane (though admittedly, fewer trees were uprooted).  It was bewildering to be outside afterword.  A few still-green trees of summer were coated in snow, others had been torn apart, branches stood topsy-turvy where they had fallen like upside down trees, young maples had their leaves completely stripped off and stood like rows of spears in the snow, and scattered everywhere in the sky and on the snowy ground were the brightly colored leaves of Autumn.  It was like walking around in an expressionist painting.  There was no way to make order out of the chaos you saw.  No doubt, the clean up crews had a similar problem.  In the process of attempting to restore power and clean up debris, Drew was completely shut down for four straight days.

The four of us who took refuge together in a Jersey suburb for two days, took advantage of the opportunity for an impromptu fall break, watching lots of movies, going bowling, and carving pumpkins.  The unexpected break was definitely a relief from the academic demands on my brain.  And even with those two days of relaxation and minimal productivity, since I didn't have any classes and only one day of work, I managed to get an entire week ahead on homework--definitely a blessing.

However, the question that everyone keeps asking is what natural disaster will strike next.  In a little over two months since moving to New Jersey, I have already experienced an earthquake, a hurricane, and a snowstorm hailed to be a sort of freak of nature.  Perhaps an ice storm, or a late tornado.  Some people are convinced that a volcano will spontaneously form in the region.  Only time will tell...