Hold the Glamour

I am a full-figure model and working mother. I am a wife, a sister, a daughter, a friend. I am a Leo. I am a first-generation Aussie and mother to two amazing little native New Yorkers. I believe that fashion is important—but so is real life. I believe that all women are beautiful and strong. I believe in working hard and loving harder. I believe in eating delicious food and drink with close friends, in breathing deep the air of new places, in laughing until you cry. I believe that when our bodies and minds are healthy and balanced, anything is possible.

Tag: Hurricane Sandy

November 6, 2012

Life after Hurricane Sandy

Red Hook, Brooklyn - A business/warehouse has lost it all

Red Hook, Brooklyn – A business/warehouse has lost it all

It really is difficult to fathom such a catastrophe as Hurricane Sandy, even if you did experience it or something like it. My family and I are safe, dry and warm. We suffered very little if any damage to our home. We are so thankful and feel blessed to have escaped the wrath of the storm. Wild winds partially tore down a side of our courtyard fence however, it is nothing compared to what hundreds of thousands of residents in the area endured and experienced. My heart goes out to all of them. For them, I am truly sorry.

A full-on recovery drive is on and the clean-up has begun! New Yorker’s are pulling it together and donating their time, food, supplies etc. to assist those that need it most. Everyone I know in our neighbourhood is helping in some way. There are so many areas affected by Sandy with the closest to our home being Red Hook – all of it is on the waterfront and in Zone A (mandatory evacuation zone). We are giving them all we can.

Brooklyn - a local playground is locked up as trees are uprooted and unstable

Brooklyn – a local playground is locked up as trees are uprooted and unstable

So many of the local playgrounds are still closed because trees were uprooted and have become unstable. There is debris everywhere and it’s simply going to take a long time to get to all of it. The city departments are inundated with calls and requests – where does one start?

There was very little escape from the reality and destruction of this storm. Even the terrorist attacks of September 11 didn’t manage to successfully mobilise the city like Hurricane Sandy has. Mother Nature is reminding us who is in charge.

Last week was a weird and surreal time with all four of us home 24/7. Kids at home from school, no trains running or airports open therefore work had to be rescheduled. So many businesses below 39th Street didn’t get their power back on until the weekend. The city was at a standstill. Everything seemed frozen and on hold. You couldn’t really leave your local area.

Brooklyn - trees fell down like toy soldiers

Brooklyn – Trees fell down like toy soldiers

Brooklyn - the day after Sandy hits our neighborhood

Brooklyn – The day after Sandy hits our neighborhood

Brooklyn - This car is holding up the tree

Brooklyn – This car is holding up the tree

Brooklyn - The clean-up begins

Brooklyn – The clean-up begins

I love to see people pulling together, helping each other out so selflessly and unconditionally. I am so proud of the city that I live in. It is resilient and strong. It bounces back and some. It carries on and moves forward. It becomes a unified force. That’s why New York has a pulse of its own that you see and feel every time you are in the city’s presence.

Have you ever experienced such a storm or force of nature? I would love to hear about it.

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October 29, 2012

Hoping for the best and preparing for the worst – awaiting Hurricane Sandy

New York - a view of our courtyard as Hurricane Sandy approaches

New York – a view of our courtyard as Hurricane Sandy approaches

It started raining at 6.45am this morning and hasn’t stopped since. As I write this post from my home office this evening, my family like many, many others in the New York area await the wrath of Hurricane Sandy which is heading our way in a matter of hours.

The last two days have seen grey skies with rain and winds preparing the Northeast area for the unknown at this stage.

Our family and friends have been calling, emailing and texting us however, we don’t have much news to report at the moment. We are as prepared as one can be in the hands of Mother Nature.

With schools closed, work cancelled and all mass transit suspended since 7pm Sunday evening, there isn’t much to do other than relax, spend time at home with the family and simply wait it out. There are no appointments or errands to run and our busy schedules have all-of-a-sudden, ceased.

You can’t go anywhere for that matter. Thousands of flights have been cancelled and it will take many days to resume the normal schedule. It feels like a four day long weekend, although we know it’s not.

We have storm surge threats and power outages likely in the area once the center of Sandy nears close enough. Here’s hoping Sandy, like Hurricane Irene some 15 months earlier, surprises us by not creating as much havoc, damage and tragedy as first predicted. We want to be pleasantly surprised Sandy!

However, there is an urgency in the air. Yesterday, people were buying food, water and supplies to hopefully last them a few days. Today, most stores are closed and stock is sold out.

My husband and I, and some of our friends that live in our neighbourhood are not too rattled or worried to be honest (at the moment anyway). We don’t live on the waterfront and we live in apartments not houses. We remain sensible by staying indoors and have prepared ourselves as much as we can by buying enough food, candles and batteries etc. to see us through (we hope).

We hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

Stay tuned for more Sandy updates…

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