I was not able to bake my intended Halloween treat, thanks to Hurricane Sandy.  I am here in the NYC/NJ area and the storm packed quite a punch.  I got power back in the wee hours of Wednesday, however my office and many (if not most) of my neighbors remain in the dark.

Because of these power outages, I have been unable to return to work and have been suffering with a  case of cabin fever.  I decided, therefore, to lend a hand in the relief efforts just a mile away in Hoboken, NJ.  You may have seen images from Hoboken on the news because a large swath of the City remains underwater.

This morning I walked into Hoboken on streets that as recently as yesterday were still under a few feet of water (at least that is what photos tell me).  I spent the day handing out meals to 1,500 Hoboken residents who are still living without power.  The National Guard was in town rescuing people from flooded areas (which I was not able to see or approach), Duracell came with a “charging truck” for people to charge up their cell phones and the line was well over 50 people long all day, the few gas stations that were open were not accepting vehicles but had lines of people – again 50 people long – holding jugs for fuel for generators, and volunteers of all sorts converged on City Hall where they were assigned missions as needed.  It was a loooong day.  And I’ll be back there tomorrow doing it all over again.

That being said, I trust that you can excuse my lack of a Halloween post.  Below is a photo of some brightly colored Day of the Dead cookies that I decorated on Monday (before the storm hit, before we lost power).  Not only did these cookies keep me entertained for a while while I decorated them, but they have been a reliable form of sustenance during those hours without power!

For those of you who may have also been affected by Hurricane Sandy, I wish you well and and hope that you and yours are safe and dry.