Sandy is coming, and here on the east coast we are waiting. Our preparations are done; water, batteries, canned food. If the power goes out, we hope we have what we need. I spent an inordinate time on Sunday buying all that stuff, and then looking for a portable radio. Time was that radios were on the shelves everywhere. I tried the usual places, remember Radio Shack USED to even have ‘radio’ in its name. Walgreen’s was out. Marshall’s had only iPod accessories. I finally found one at a tobacconist/newsstand in Denville, NJ. They even had the C batteries to power it, hallelujah. Radio used to be ubiquitous. Sunday’s search is a sad testament of how things have changed.

I keep hearing the strains in my head of a classic radio tune from way back when; “Sandy, 4th of July, Asbury Park.” It would be a cruel irony indeed if Sandy makes landfall on the Jersey shore. This storm is so huge though, that it will bring misery to many - wind and flood damage, disruption to normal life. Heck, it is not every day they shut down the NYC transit system. So if you are in the affected area, Godspeed through it all. May you and yours stay safe. Here is an offering from David Jacobs-Strain, “Ocean Or A Teardrop,” originally found on his 2004 album. Here is the Music Fog recording, filmed during Americana Fest 2010.

-Jessie Scott