I was shocked, the Thursday night before Nemo struck, at the sight of a large gas line on Hempstead Turnpike. My husband and I were leaving a restaurant and the line blocked the exit of the restaurant parking lot. When I asked the driver of the car that was blocking the exit to move his car a bit forward, he just ignored me and sat in his car until the gas line moved. And my husband and I sat in our car until he did so. In the past, while I recall running to the grocery store in anticipation of a snow storm, I don’t recall seeing gas lines as long as I did on Thursday night. The sight of the numerous gas lines as we drove home caused me to wonder whether people were reacting to the possibility of gas shortages  post-Nemo or the memories of the gas shortages we suffered through post-Sandy.

Approximately a month ago, I was at a dinner function that I have attended numerous times before. At the conclusion of the cocktail hour, the lights were dimmed to signal the guests to move from the cocktail room to the dining room. This simple signal was used by the caterer every time I attended this function. Yet, this time, when the lights went down I momentarily panicked and wondered out loud whether they had lost electricity. In all of the previous years in which I have attended this function, I never reacted fearfully to the lights being dimmed.

Perhaps, there are effects from Sandy that go beyond the damage we sustained to our homes and cars. Do you find yourself reacting differently post-Sandy?