The Sandy Survivors Are Our November 4, 2012 Pups of the Week

We have all learned to become immune to the storm of the century that seems to occur on a weekly basis.  Thursday night the pack and I were in bed watching the end of a local nightly news broadcast and the weather man said there was a possibility of snow this week.  The female anchor got very excited about this asked the sports anchor if he was excited and he said no.  She looked at him and said “Come on, blow this thing up, that’s what we do.”

And that is what they do.  Every storm is going to be the worst storm ever.  So when you get hit with the worst storm ever, even when you have been warned for days that it is coming, you are skeptical that it is really going to occur, so, you are never really prepared for what is going to happen.

I call this the worst storm ever because it was the worst storm I have ever seen, and the worst one Mommy and Daddy have seen, and so many of us on the East Coast have ever seen, but I am sure that others, in other parts of the country, or who have lived through the hell that was Katrina and Andrew, have experienced worse.  Then there are smaller events like tornadoes that are equally devastating, and the fires in the Pacific Northwest and Texas.  I don’t know if we can blame the bipeds for all this strange weather but I want to remind them that they don’t own this planet, they share it with lots of others, but only they have the power to destroy it, so please be careful with our only planet.

Just as I shouldn’t be, but still am, surprised at the ferocity of the recent storm, I also shouldn’t be, but still are, amazed at the concern, love, and prayers that are posted during these events on social network pages.  We were north of the storm’s path, but still got terribly scary weather, and we got hundreds of posts inquiring about us.  Some of these posts came from folks in the direct path of the storm, who were more concerned about us pups on the outer edges than they were about themselves.  It makes it much easier to ride out a storm when you know you are riding the hopes and prayers of so many others.

In the storm’s horrific aftermath those who could posted that they were safe, and others kept track of those who didn’t post.  We waited anxiously as one by one posts came in from our friends who got blown away by Sandy, and when someone did not post we had our little Shih Tzu bloodhounds, Tashi and Tiara, to use the Internet, the phone, and their sniffers to track down our friends like Willie and Jessie and Raider Sinca who went silent after the storm.

It does please me that the bipeds have learned lessons from the last storm, and let pets into shelters, but in one case that I know of, in Chestertown Maryland, Maya’s pack had to stay home with their Mom Kristie to face the elements while her humans siblings went with their Dad to the local fire station that did not admit pups.  Dear humans:  If you want to keep your humans safe you are going to let them bring in everyone they love in their family.  Humans are not leaving their beloved pups behind in a storm.  It is inhuman.  Luckily there was no damage to the house and Maya and her family were safe, but, if other towns were as close minded as Chestertown Maryland there would have been a lot more casualties.

We haven’t heard directly from Willie Nillie and Jessie yet.   They live in Long Island and, last we heard, and they have not had electricity since Monday.   Our thoughts and prayers are with them and we hope they get their electricity back on soon.

Our good friends Pokey, Maggie and Toby first had to worry about their Mom as she did a transport as the storm began to batter their house, and then about this big tree that landed in their play area.

Lil Guy’s pack also made it through the storm and were able to post to us, but their Mom Dodie has a cousin in Howard’s Beach whose house and neighborhood suffered significant damage.

No one made the reality of the storm clearer than King who lives with his pack near the Jersey Shore.  This is what his Mom posted as soon as she got her electricity back:  “My power is now on and I have connection to the internet. The devastation in our County is terrible. We are ok and so is my house. My sister is without power and so is my brother. They have been staying at our house. Stores are wiped out of bread milk and butter. Frozen foods in stores all went bad and they do not know when shipments will come in because it is too bad to come to the area. Gas lines to fill cars are reaching out of the gas stations and down the streets. I have taken so many videos and pictures because I have never seen such a mess. I have stocked up our house and by the grace of god we have food and gas and electric. Someone just gave my brothers in laws a generator for their house. I shut off the news because it makes me cry. I can not believe what is going on. As I look around I see how people are walking and looking and the pain in their faces just makes me sad. A stranger walked up to my Sister and gave her 31 dollars and told her to get stop leak and antifreeze for her car because it has a water leak. The stranger said that Jesus said to give it to her. He saw that she was having trouble with her car. People are coming together. My sister lost a friend due to the hurricane. I am praying that all my friends on DS are ok. I am thinking about Willie and Jessies Mommy are ok and everyone else during the storm. Our mail is not being passed and I can not get to my post box because they closed it down for now. I can not ship anything and schools are still shut for another week for my nephew.”

Although he is not a dog, I also read this account from actor Theo Rossi, who has appeared in lots of shows like Hawaii 5-0 and Lost and is best known for playing Juice on Sons of Anarchy.  He wrote this about his Staten Island neighborhood:  “It’s so bad here, a lot worse than how its being portrayed by the media. They are finding bodies left and right, elderly people who don’t even watch the news or who knew the storm was coming. I was just with one of my best friends from high school and college, and his house is completely gone. One story I heard was about this one guy who evacuated his house during Hurricane Irene but then it got looted. So when they told him to evacuate for Sandy, he said, ‘I’m not leaving.’ Now they can’t find him, his 13-year-old daughter is dead, and his wife is in critical condition at the hospital. These are the stories. My stepfather and my mother, I love them to death. But when they heard the storm was coming, they said, ‘It’s not going to be that bad. Irene didn’t do anything.’ They had two flashlights and a couple of scented candles. Little did they know. It’s just not worth it. If you’re told to evacuate, you need to get out.”

So this is for King, for Willie and Jessie, for Pokey, Maggie, and Toby, for Lil Guy, for Maya, and all the others pups and packs that faced this terrible storm and came through it.  May none of them, and no others, have to face such a terrible storm again.

If you can, please make a  $10.00 donation to the Red Cross by texting SANDY to 90999.

Thank you

“My City of Ruins” by Bruce Springsteen
There's a blood red circle
On the cold dark ground
And the rain is falling down
The church door's thrown open
I can hear the organ's song
But the congregation's gone
My city of ruins
My city of ruins

Now the sweet bells of mercy
Drift through the evening trees
Young men on the corner
Like scattered leaves
The boarded up windows
The empty streets
While my brother's down on his knees
My city of ruins
My city of ruins

Come on rise up! Come on rise up!
Come on rise up! Come on rise up!
Come on rise up! Come on rise up!
Come on rise up! Come on rise up!

Now there's tears on the pillow
Darlin' where we slept
And you took my heart when you left
Without your sweet kiss
My soul is lost, my friend
Tell me how do I begin again?
My city's in ruins
My city's in ruins

Now with these hands
With these hands
With these hands
With these hands
I pray Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for the strength, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for the faith, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for your love, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for the strength, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for your love, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for the faith, Lord
With these hands
With these hands
I pray for the strength, Lord

Come on, rise up!
Come on, rise up!