“I cried because I had no shoes, then I met a man who had no feet”
— Conventional wisdom
“Tragedy is when I cut my finger. Comedy is when you fall into an open sewer and die.”
— Mel Brooks, comedian
“Eat your vegetables. Children are starving in Europe.”
— My mother (sometime in the year 1952)
From mild inconveniences to serious property damage, we all experienced loss as a result of Hurricane Irene and the remnants of Lee. It’s upsetting to drive past the Flats on the way out of town and see only brown and grey mud instead of cornfields and flowers.
I got off easy. Although I started to prepare for the power outage two days before the event, it never happened. I did take a large garbage bag, filled it with water, froze it and put it in the refrigerator. “This is pretty clever of me,” I thought. I was looking forward to seeing how many days it would take to melt.
In the aftermath, like most people, I endured annoying detours lengthening the time it took to get anywhere. More money was spent on gas than would have been necessary to get from place to place. Worst for me, was that I lost the remainder of this season’s distribution of organic produce from the CSA. I joined last year in great anticipation of providing for my loved ones’ healthful local produce all the way up until Thanksgiving.
Every time I open my refrigerator to make a salad I feel really sad. I keep telling myself that this loss pales in comparison with the deprivation that other people are experiencing all over Ulster County. I think about the “shoes and the feet” wisdom saying and I am appalled that those words only diminish my pain for a few fleeting moments.
Join the family! 
