We are just now getting a very thick fog, heavy rain and white caps in the Hudson River.

I'll go first. Here in Northern VA, it's been raining for hours, since last night. The creek is rising. The wind is picking up. I stayed home from work only because it gets worse hourly. It's really not bad, but it's too windy and wet now to be driving my car. With the diameter of Sandy being so huge, a lot of people are affected.

Central PA here. Wind starting pick up, rain steady but normal. Hunkered down just in case. No flashlights water lanterns available Walmart, Target supermarkets.

In Jackson Twp., NJ about 20 miles inland of Point Pleasant.....pretty much waiting for electric to go out. Wind gusts and bands of moderate rain. Watching satellite loop - seems like this is a biggie. Filled both tubs so we can flush toilet (we have a well which will not pump w/o electric) Also made a freezer full of ice so we don't lose all our perisable food like we did w/ Irene. Made a big pot of roasted garlic, tomato/cheddar soup. Will be stuck here w/ three women - wife & daugters. Bought ear plugs yesterday.

Looking out to the west, I can see that the
edge of the outer bands of this storm system must be out over Lake Michigan. It was a clear sky at 5 AM this morning, here in GR Michigan.

East Side of Manhattan. Raining and windy - but there are people on the streets.

Other than not having hot water - not much different than usual.

My brother and s-i-l live in the WV eastern panhandle ... waiting to hear from them. My sister lives in a flood area on south shore ... don't know what's happening there.

The entire state of Massachusetts has been shut down--schools, colleges, airports, the courts, government offices--except for the shopping malls. In western Mass., it's overcast, and a little breezy. Nothing notable yet, though the tv forecasters are in high freak-out mode.

Maryland Eastern Shore...have had 4" of rain earlier but it's really coming down hard now. Sideways. Wind about 25-30 mph. Satellite TV just went out. Lots of cars still on the road.

Upper Eastern Shore: It's been raining non-stop since yesterday morning. There's some minor flooding in the area but nothing major yet. The wind is picking up, with some heavy gusts. Small limbs down from trees, but again, nothing major yet.

''Will be stuck here w/ three women - wife & daugters. Bought ear plugs yesterday.''

LOL! Keep that sense of humor during this monster, #4.

Schools here in Staten Island closed today and tomorrow. Tunnels closed in Manhattan and bridges may shut down too. No rain here yet at 12:22 pm but very strong winds. Heard birds chirping frantically a couple of hours ago. We are an island so all coastal areas have been told to evacuate. I live on high hill so more worried about falling trees. Stay safe and indoors, Ldotters

We're in a northern suburb of Philadelphia and still have power, thankfully. It's very windy and raining lightly. I just turned fridge and freezer temps up to high and I'm going to get candles out and ready. We have a gas stove so I'll be able to cook on the stove-top if power is lost.

Most of all, I'm praying.

I work in a long-term care facility as a nurse and it's hard on the nurses and residents when power is lost since there are no emergency lights in their rooms. I don't work again until Wednesday, so I'm praying a lot for my fellow nurses as well as the residents.

I'm not in harm's way here in the Midwest but I pray for the safety of Lucianne and all her incredible staff and those of you up and down the coast.

Lake Ontario shore here, rain for now with moderate winds. Predicting 50 knot gales tonight with 20+ seas, annnnd a snow storm...gonna be wild.

Northern NJ, no rain moderate wind

Best of luck to all in the affected areas. Stay safe, dry and keep us informed.

If you have DirecTV turn to channel 349. it's a station dedicated to storm info.
Our prayers to all who are in the way of this monster.

Like you #13; we are watching, listening and reading from Wasilla, AK. Our prayers are for everyone in harms way and you are never out of our thoughts.

Boston suburb, heavy winds, leaves falling, slippery walking. Public transportion shutting down at 2,wall to wall weather staff in their glory with lots of face time.

Libya was never covered locally, and can now be discounted entirely.

Governor Danny Boy Malloy-D Connecticut ordered all but those delivering storm aid to be off the roads by 1PM.

20 miles south of Boston, light rain, wind. 20-25 MPH gusting to 45 MPH. Small tree down next door, several limbs broken, going to be an interesting night. Good luck and God bless all.

Hudson, NH here:

Drizzle and 5-10MPH winds. Nothing major to report...

Milford Ct by the coastline. I can see the harbor from our home...high tide water coming into the street . Wind whipping , leaves flying , rain just started. Husband took the train to NYC yesterday to be at work in mid town today so I am hunkered down. Getting lots of phone calls from neighbors checking on me. Took in my political lawn signs yesterday and put them in my ford excursion (diesel baby) for safe keeping.

Here in DE about 10 miles south of the Chesapeake/Delaware canal and 3 miles inland from the Delaware River, it has been raining since yesterday morning. The pond in our back yard (about the size of a hockey rink) was about a foot down on Sat is now full, and we have white caps on it. Wind is at a steady 20 miles p/h with strong gusts.

What worries me is that we are only about 75 miles from Atlantic City, and if you look at the track it is showing it coming directly over our house. Praying that the natural gas keeps flowing, we are lucky enough to have a house generator.

Longtime LDotters traditionally join together to get each other through whatever nature deals us. Glad to see this thread. I remember posting updates on hurricane threads in the past virtually around the clock.

California LDotters send our warmest wishes and our prayers to those in the path of this monstrous storm. We are with you in spirit.

Does anyone find the irony of DirecTV having a channel dedicated to this storm? In the Midwest, if there's a large thunderstorm, DirecTV is the FIRST thing to go out.

I hope all will be well throughout this event. The only GOOD thing about hurricanes are the advanced warnings. Hope everyone is prepared!

PS: Take good care, Lucianne! We need you...

I'm saying prayers for you all from the west coast! Pretty much my whole family is on the east coast and I've been tracking this storm for a week.

Be safe!

Sending my best to all stay safe.

By the way, I haven't seen any reports of blackouts yet. Anyone know anything on that score? Of course, it's early on ...

You should all feel safe since the won is on top of things.

Dispatch from Harrisburg, PA: Just took the pooch out and it was only moderately raining, but the wind is REALLY picking up. Huge branch flew by, and I have neighbors who still have flowerpots on their porch. I fully expect to see those fly past (hopefully not INTO) my window before all is said and done.

Stay safe everyone.

In Massachusetts, the wind and rain continue to increase in intensity, and we're told that the worst is yet to come. Severe flooding is expected in coastal areas, many of which have already been evacuated. And long-term power outages are likely to occur throughout the state because of falling trees and lost tree limbs resulting from the high winds and saturating rains.

Pray for our relatives, friends, colleagues and others (including emergency personnel) in what will likely be the worst affected areas (NJ, PA, downstate NY, CT and RI). God willing, may there be no casualties. But there will likely be much property damage and hardship for many people because of this storm.

Any word on airflight problems. if flights are canceled, where are the passengers? in airports? conditions there?

Hunterdon County NJ

Light rain, moderate wind

Lost power this morning for about one hour.

Power back on!!!!!

So far so good. 12:55 PM

My daughter and her family are in the Bronx,NY and so far just some wind and rain.

Son called from Manhattan yesterday - said he was watching the East River flow north due to the surge. Very bizarre.

#30, they are saying the power outages will come this evening. The wind gusts are only moderate now (25-35). By evening from Baltimore down to NOVA, they are saying sustained winds from 30-50.

South Central Pa. has cold rain, some wind, and dropping temps. No school today, Buster Brown trucks are still driving the streets.Storm drains are blocked with leaves. Aaaargh! No "D" batteries left on the shelves at the local discount store.

We have prepared for quite awhile for this. Added the finishing touches the past 2 days, although it seems as if you always forget something! Lots of wood in the wood pile in case we have to cook using the fireplace. Making muffins and peanut butter cookies for the comfort effect.

Using all the lamps and lights possible before we lose them. Just to make the eco-weenies crazy!

..AND what a GREAT opportunity for POTUS and his Axelrod puppeteered 'Media' to spend many days distracting from his horribly failed Benghazi wag-the-dog, than to 'act' concerned by something that has happened on the Atlantic and Gulf coast for a thousand years:

http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Trying-To-Reason-With-Hurricane-Season-lyrics-Jimmy-Buffett/20A27F95EF45DE1F482569A1000C5919

For something encouraging from this tempest, check out this photo of the sentries of the 3d Infantry Division standing guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during the storm.

http://instagram.com/p/RXyOHBRFHI/

Texas sends thoughts and prayers for the safety of all in harm's way.

20 miles from the coast in NH: Power flickered on and off 2 times already. Winds picking up. Otherwise - we'll just wait and see. No generator but got the tubs filled with water and the wood all stacked and covered on the front porch on Saturday so we'll at least be warm if the power goes. Dishes done. Just waiting to see. Just hate losing computer but will read lots. Mitt canceled his Milford appearance tomorrow night - we had tickets from online. But he has sent one of his big campaign busses to carry supplies to the expected worst hit areas. Go Mitt! Can NOT wait to vote a week from tomorrow!

I just heard from Martinsburg WV ... raining and wind had picked up quite a bit in the last hour or so.

I just looked out the window here in Manhattan ... earlier today I couldn't see the sidewalk through the trees (I'm on 10th Fl). The leaves have almost all blown off!

I'm in central New Jersey. It's a little windy and it's drizzling a little, but nothing too bad yet. I'm about 5-6 miles from the beach.

Stay safe, Lucianne, and my Ldotter family. You are all in our thoughts and prayers. Will be praying especially for those who are vulnerable, as #12 pointed out. God bless the care givers.

#4- So glad to see you are keeping your priorities straight! Nothing better than a sense of humor, when you can do nothing about the weather. We have resorted to using the water in our water heater, during an outage, when we discovered the plug on our tub leaked.

Northern VA here,
our creek is up over its banks about 10'on either side and we have two rivers of water flowing on either side of our house. This is only the beginning and our rain gutters can not keep up with the rain right now.

As a North Jersey resident who adores the Jersey Shore

(actual place, not the televised mockery) I am praying God

spares Cape May and Wildwood Crest and all the

surrounding areas with no loss of life. Its the closest piece

of heaven to travel by car. SAVE the Congress Hall !!!! My

ABSOLUTE favorite!!!

Breezy here 15 NW of Baltimore, but nothing worse than a summer thunderstorm. Steady light-moderate rain. Winds supposed to peak tonight before midnight. Power, water and internet stable so far.

Albuquerque wishes all LDotters on the East Coast a safe harbor during this storm.

I'm in weymouth,ma....windy and though not yet here, I have a tall tree down in my backyard from neighbors yard......

Like #1, I'm also in Northern VA, Loudoun County, near Dulles Airport. It raining hard; we have to put coats on the doggies to take them out. I just got back from the grocery store behind our house. We're getting ready to make tacos for supper!

Live just west of Philadelphia. Storm coverage is a constant with Ocean, Atlantic & Cape May counties of southern NJ getting tons of coverage. Apparently in some areas the bay has met the ocean. Christie ordered an evacuation of the barrier islands yesterday, but not everyone complied. The stragglers (fools?) will have to watch for the tide to drop, if it does, to escape or shelter in top floors of homes, etc.

Where I live, we've had steady rain today with some wind. The big event will be tonight. I worry about the trees in my neighborhood which have not lost nearly enough of their leaves yet. I'm praying for all in the affected areas.

PS- Forgot to mention I have Ding Dongs,ice cream and milky ways.....I will survive this.
BUT I don't think I will survive another 4 years of Obama!!!

Blessings from high and dry, dry, dry Kansas everyone. Please be safe and know that you are cherished.
(I'm trying to wrap my head around the thought of so much rain that it becomes dangerous.)

Coastal Fairfield County, CT here. Wind is really picking up, and our intrepid Governor has warned that power will be out for at least seven to eleven days, possibly weeks. He's probably hiding under a desk somewhere.

Don't flame me but Andrew Cuomo next store has done a good job of taking charge. Reminding people that the government can't do everything and they are ultimately responsible for themselves.

Nassau County, Long Island - it's been drizzly today, but now the rain is coming down harder. The wind is picking up too.

Lights flickered a few times. I expect to lose power soon.

As one who lived on the South coast of Oregon
and now the High Lonesome of NE Oregon.
also have Family and Friends back in the
Auld Sod of Appalachia- Prayers to all.
Storms are nothing to play around with.

Northern VA here, also near Dulles Airport. Rain has been heavy all day, and winds are starting to pick up. I haven't noticed any damage nearby yet. I'm lucky enough to live in a newer neighborhood (build circa 2000) that has buried utility lines and no tall trees, so that may explain it.

I'm hopeful my subdivision will be spared any power loss, but I can't say I'm optimistic. It only takes one downed tree in the wrong place to knock out a sizable power grid.

Drove up from Florida on Saturday, arrived in Maryland on Sunday outside of Columbia, Md. Rain since last night and winds picking up ... meh, we're from Florida - we don't even get out of bed for a Cat 1 but everyone here is in panic mode.

They are predicting 12 inches of rain which would be difficult for any community to absorbed so I believe we'll see some flooding and probably loss of power sometime this evening.

Advice for anyone not used to a storm: fill your bathtubs with water - if you lose power you can still flush toilets. And if you have a top load washing machine, fill it with ice - you keep things cold.

Here in NE Ohio it rained all day yesterday, is raining all day today, and is supposed to rain all day tomorrow and maybe Wed. too. It is a bit windy too with temps in the low 40s. Might need flippers by the time this is over.

My kid lives in a ground floor apt. in Brooklyn NY and went yesterday to stay w/ a friend on the upper east side. At least she's not alone - but now can't leave Manhattan if she wants to. She said the stores were all out of flashlights and batteries, but she found some in a local hardware store. There was still lots of water on the shelves when she shopped Saturday.

ready and waiting...everything's been cancelled and it hasn't rained one drop here yet~ ! Poughkeepsie, NY

SE Virginia. It's been raining here since Friday with some decent gusts. Half of Norfolk base sortied Friday, including my husband. I'm 20 miles inland from VA Beach (the actual beach) where people are kayaking down some of the roads. Parts of Norfolk are flooded also. Chesapeake (where I am) has ponding on the roads and in the yards. The lakes around here are getting really high. One of the local radio djs has taken to calling this part of the storm the "appetizer" to what will happen tonight.
#39: I made peanut butter cookies too!
Thank you for all the prayers, we need them.

warm, dry wishes/thoughts/prayers from FL ldotters for all of you in the path of the storm. I'm hearing/reading that the effects of this are going to be felt all the way to Lake Michigan and Chicago. Which means, I suppose, that LSD will flood. again.

In Worcester, Mass. we are on the "nor'easter" side of the storm. Gusty winds 35-40 mph, light rain, temp 56 degrees. Stongest winds supposd to be 2-7 PM. We had trash pickup today, otherwise most of local gov't shut down. I have a classical music radio shift at 9 PM and expect to have no problem at all doing it.

Lil' advice: Raised in FL, been thru every hurricane since Camille .... The worst ones are the wet ones, like this one; please do NOT go out; it doesn't matter what's going on outside, your life is more important. And avoid standing water; if you can't see thru it, don't stand on it. Remember there are live wires on the ground after strong winds. Prayers

Prayers for everyone in the path of Sandy from SE Texas. Heard on the tee vee last night that our crews from the power company here are ready to roll and on the way to help.

forgot to add - for any of us who live in flood, hurricane, storm, tornado, ice areas (and that does include most all!) we should have a waterBOB on hand. It gives you the capability of storing 100 gallons of water in the bathtub. Available online at Cheaper Than Dirt...

North Central Pennsylvania is just now starting to get some rain. Nothing major at this point. We're about 200 miles from the coast.

Here in Sumner, WA today thinking of all Ldotters affected by this storm. Please know you are never far from my prayers today. Cuddle up with your families, break out the Scrabble and Monopoly, pop some popcorn and stay safe. SO happy this thread is here - keep us posted everyone?

Helpful hints learned from Gulf Coast hurricanes:

Your cell phone will work fine until FEMA takes over and commandeers the cell phone towers. The newer phones need electricity to work, so get out the old dial phones without batteries from the garage and plug them in. They work w/o electricity.

If you don't have a generator but have an electrical device / charger in your car to plug into the cigarette lighter, plug in an extension cord to run to the house, crank up the car (out of garage) for a while to charge the battery on your laptop. Also plug in the router to the extension cord and you may be able to get internet.


For after danger has past but there is no electricty:

For fun with the kids, put a movie CD into laptop (or other device), plug laptop into car charger, have all the kids sit in the back seat and watch a movie. It's rather like being at the old-time drive-in movie. Be careful to keep windows down a bit if you have to crank up the car.

Extension cord to car also works w/ electric coffee pot, etc.

Invite the neighbors to a big cookout and use up all the frozen hamburger meat and deer sausage (otherwise known as "fast food").

Gov. Christie said something very thoughtful during his last press conference, ''I know the schools are closed and some children might be listening. Don't be scared. Stay with your parents or caretakers. The adults are taking care of things so don't be scared.''

#48 I know what you mean. No matter the time of year a part of my heart is in Lavallette.

Best wishes from Southern Oklahoma to everyone in the storm's path. May the Good Lord watch over and keep you safe.

Reading the post from #56 I wonder how all of this will affect the election and what shenanigans Obama will employ.

God bless all of you in Sandy's path.

Here in Tidewater VA, it is raining and the wind is picking up again. Tides are high but so far, not as high as Isobel. We expect to lose electricity tonight. The worst part is waiting for days for electricity to come back on. We cook out and pretend we are on a camping trip. We'll be fine if the trees don't fall on the house. I pray for all who are in Sandy's path. May God keep you safe and sound.

The wind has picked up considerably in western Mass. I live in a hollow, so I can hear it roaring over head like an express train. Not too much rain yet.

New Jersey Shore - Ocean County to be exact. Very, very strong winds, gusting at 65 mph, heavy rain. Worst is yet to hit - around 80 p.m. tonight.

Many have already lost power here. Shelters are filling quickly.

It's going to be a long night.

HI from East Hampton, NY. So far moderate rain. But the winds are really starting to kick up. Power is hanging on by a thread. We expect by early evening, power will be gone.

Stay safe everyone. Listening to Rush to keep me sane, as always. God bless you all.

Central NC, Raleigh-Durham--sporadic light rain, no gusts, but the temperature has dropped like a rock. Overnight lows to be in the 30s.

midcoast Maine

The wind picked up here about 2 hours ago and we're getting some strong gusts as well as high surf for this early in the storm. We have an oceanfront cottage about 15 minutes from the main house - my husband will probably be there at midnight during high tide just to watch! He says he can't sleep unless he knows the place is ok. Me, I'll be warm in my bed at home - he can tell me about it later.

I'd forgotten about the fill-the-tub-with-water thing. Our house has a composting toilet - it gets smelly when the power goes out but there's nothing to flush.

Prayers for everyboby in the path.

I'm near Harrisburg PA. Light rain. It gets windy at times. The Republican call center is closed. I had plans to volunteer at the phone bank today. It's quiet here. I guess the trains aren't running. I haven't heard them today. I've made a long list of things to get done around my home. I'm home long enough to use my crock pot.

Lucianne and my LDot family stay safe. I am in sunny dry Florida but thoughts with all of you in danger of Sandy and my family in NJ.

Here in NEPA it is raining, starting to blow up a bit; just about 10 minutes ago we had a flash of lightning which caused the lights to flicker, but still have power. Otherwise, just hunkered down. Stores have no batteries, bread, milk, water, battery- back up radios or flashlights. Of course, no generators. Everyone is in close contact, all friends, relatives and neighbors making sure we are all checking up on each other and will be together if things go awry.

Rte 395, Plainfield CT (20 miles N of Norwich). Rainy and windy, occasional strong gusts, nothing extreme yet.

Have been keeping in touch with many kinfolk and friends in the path of the storm. Prayers to all from the Gulf Coast of Texas.

Many thanks to Lucianne for this thread!

Sending best wishes and prayers to all to stay safe from here on the SW FL coast. I had an outside event Friday-Sunday, had a terrible time keeping my tent from becoming airborne so I certainly feel sorry for those of you who will be experiencing the worst this storm has to offer. That was the wind coming across the state (I think it's call wrap-around) after the storm had pretty much already gone by.

Lucky ones with gas to cook with. Hang in there, L-dotters. I also worry about you in NYC and wondering where did they set up shelters - on the top floors of buildings?

Heartfelt and sincere prayers to all along the eastern seaboard. We are all with you in spirit. This Sunday, your LDS neighbors all over the world will be skipping two meals and sending the cost equivalent to the church for helping the poor. I will put more in on Sunday, as I know that their volunteers will be in your areas helping with humanitarian aid of all kinds. We are also fasting and praying that there will be better days ahead for our nation with a newly elected President. God bless America!

Once by the Pacific

The shattered water made a misty din.
Great waves looked over others coming in,
And thought of doing something to the shore
That water never did to land before.
The clouds were low and hairy in the skies,
Like locks blown forward in the gleam of eyes.
You could not tell, and yet it looked as if
The shore was lucky in being backed by cliff,
The cliff in being backed by continent;
It looked as if a night of dark intent
Was coming, and not only a night, an age.
Someone had better be prepared for rage.
There would be more than ocean-water broken
Before God's last Put out the light was spoken.
Robert Frost

just spent over 2 hours bailing out my laundry room. five big soaking wet rugs. was it Sandy? NOOOOOO!!!! it was the idiot who left the hose out of the laundy tub after washing a large trash can. o.k., so I'm the idiot. now I really, really feel sorry for all the flood victims...we're at bullseye for Sandy...Western Phila. burbs. God help us all.

Central New York state here, specifically Oneida County; at 20 pm, gentle winds, cloudy. The worst for us is tonight through tomorrow-not much rain, but sustained winds at 40 mph, with gusts up to 80 mph likely. Not fun dealing with this in the dark. Stay safe, everyone.

So far, it's been the calm before the storm here in Cumberland Foreside, ME. Winds are picking up and the rain hasn't started yet, just misting. Hunkered down with my labradoodle, leftovers in the fridge and hope the power doesn't go out. Temps are in the high 50's and I thank goodness, it's not 20º below zero! Stay safe everyone. We expect high tides and huge waves and flooding. Schools, etc. are closing by the numbers.

Prayers and best wishes to all from Colorado.

I Wish I could send you some of our weather - sunny and high 60s.

Burlington, Vermont reporting in. Quiet for now. Very gray skies; lots of clouds. Wind is starting to pick up but no rain as of yet. Grocery stores are running out of water. Hopefully we will not lose power. All flights South of us have been cancelled.

Hello everyone. Just woke up from my daily nap here in the Capital of the Confederacy. Raining but no big deal. My only concern is losing power this evening. I want to see Monday Night Football and the WSOP. I know my needs. Good Luck to all.

Windy, cold and raining in the Detroit area. I don't think we are being impacted by this storm much yet but I have read that we may be. Hurricanes in Michigan. heh

Watching and Facebooking from Charlotte, NC, but my grandson is a first responder (fireman) in Stone Harbor, NJ. Some of the pictures from the barrier islands are just awful and tonight will be even worse. Maddening are the people who decided today (after the tide started coming in) that they wanted to evacuate. "I'm special - I don't have to do what everybody else does." Putting the burden on the first responders to try to figure out how to get them out with the access roads to the barrier islands already flooded!

#56 - is it true that the Connecticut Governor (D) predicted that the power would be "off" for 7 to 11 days?

Amazing prediction, if true.

Jersey shore here, a few miles from LBI. Very stong wind gusts, moderate rain. We don't have sewers so when the storm drains fill our streets will becomes rivers as they have in the past. We will get through this.

It is starting to build he in DE; wind is now at a sustained 24mph with gusts at 36 and landfall is now estimated between 6&8PM. Our yard is lake and starting to worry about trees. The Hurricane center says it's coming almost right over us. It will be a long night!

Here in south Fairfax County,VA it's light rain and mild gusts of wind. I live up top a ridge, so flooding isn't much of a concern unless the ground gets overly saturated then it seeps into our basements. Media has the DC area in a panic. I'm not overly concerned myself. I'm just riding the storm out, waiting for the fallout.