I'm Feeling Fringey

Two weeks ago the greeting here in SE. Fl was, “Hey! How’re you doing?” As of Monday, when we were finally emerging from our tin cans the greeting was a tentative, “Do you have power?” Today there is no greeting. There is a feeling of nervous energy as we walk into the supermarkets, seeing new water stacked up, alcohol is for sale again, but wondering if there is anything left in the canned food section. I got the last can of Spaghetti O’s… again. I did that last week. I bought soup we have never heard of. I found myself walking down the aisles starting that nervous shake again. Nobody was smiling. Nobody was talking. It was very tense. Ivan could hit us and we’re scared.

I got gas today and was so fortunate to only have to wait 10 minutes. They have employees in the parking lot directing traffic keeping people from cutting in line. I met the sweetest man/boy, early 20s, with the nicest disposition. I was laughing telling him how sorry I was that he had this crappy job of having to keep adults in line. I put on my best teacher’s face and said to him, “No Cutting in LINE!” and then asked him if he felt like a kindergarten teacher. He laughed and said no and told me he enjoyed talking to me. I made him laugh.

Traffic is hellish. I was venturing east to find something to read for my eldest. I turned around and came back west. It wasn’t worth fighting the traffic for a damn book. That’s what Amazon.com is for.

Power is sporadic still. It is frustrating and people are getting angry now. I’m staying out of town for fear of seeing things I don’t need to see. I’m feeling fringey. My new made up word. You know how fringe on a carpet or a pillow is pulled apart? Or how one can live on the fringe? Yeah, that’s me. I’m fringey. And so is everyone else.

The poor are suffering the worst as their homes flooded and they are sleeping on wet mattresses and the stench of rotting furniture, flooring and humidity fills their homes. The poor live east. They have no power and their homes are old and rickety so the power grids in their neighborhoods are not up to date. With the flooding and the magnitude of their electrical lay out problems, it could be weeks. It’s not good.

I guess it’s psychological for me now. We are blessed. Contingency plans have been made for our kids for schooling, our children being sent to different parts of different Parishes based on their age. We start again the 20th. We have power. We have food. We have water. We are alive. We are healthy. And I wonder deep down inside, when is my luck going to run out? Ivan is lurking and I wonder… is this the time? Is this the time it will finally all go bad?