I live in an apartment located in Newark where it’s rented per room. I have been living like this since I moved to New Jersey. I didn’t like the idea at first but I had to deal with what I could afford at the time. It has it’s benefits as far as cost, but it also has its disadvantages. I have 3 roommates in my apartment. I don’t have control of who I live with since it was all handled by my landlord, but I never really had a problem with anyone. I also met some really pleasant people through this living arrangement. During Hurricane Sandy, it was only me and another roommate in the apartment. The other two were MIA. (Not really. One was in the city with power, and the other one was in Rumson on high land.)
The Sunday before the storm my remaining roommate and I went to the grocery store got some food, snacks, water, and liquor. I had candles and matches at the house already. Didn’t really think to get a flashlight, because last year during Irene I had power throughout the storm. I cooked and we watched movies; chilled out and was cool….until the power went out! That’s when I got scared!
I posted this on Facebook:
“My power just went out!! This storm just got real!! Currently holding my Mickey Mouse and my Bible in hand!! GOD HELP US ALL IN JESUS NAME!!!”
Luckily, I had fully charged cell phone and laptop. Really wasn’t that bad until I woke up the next day and we still didn’t have power by the early afternoon. I had to start planning after hearing on the radio that we might be out of power for a few days. I’m thinking, get ice and a cooler to at least salvage the food for a few days. I made my roommate come with me to get what we needed, but every time I asked “You think it’s a good idea to do…” I would get a “I don’t know, dude.” (Which at first wasn’t really bothering me until I got the fifth consecutive one)
I ended up calling my other roommate in the city to help give me some advice on what to do since she was staying with her aunt who is prepared for the apocalypse. She was giving me some good ideas on what to do what to do with the food, and she started talking about our roommate. “He’s an idiot! You should know better to listen to him. If we actually had an apocalypse he would be the first one to die. Come on!” To my realization, what she said was true and made me feel better. I eventually got over it and started doing what I had to do to survive. I got ice and more water, tried to get gas, but didn’t handle that until later.
I cooked the food in the fridge that was most likely to spoil first (Thank God I had gas stoves.) The whole time I’m doing this, the remaining roommate is in his room not contributing to help or do anything which also infuriated me. He made me feel like I was by myself. I just let it go. I didn’t want to dwell on it because I would have just got angry over nothing. Survival is what’s important. Once I was done cooking all the food I could, I left and got gas. By the time I got home the power was back on.
When I got power, I was in tune with News 12 New Jersey more than CNN. They did such a great job with keeping everyone informed about updates with Sandy. I saw what happened to the Shore, Hoboken, Atlantic City, Long Island,
Staten Island, Queens, the whole tristate. The Shore was damaged the most. The damage was incredible. New Jerseyans didn’t just lose power, they lost their home and the heart of New Jersey; the Jersey Shore. Something that was so nostalgic was completely wiped out and left unrecognizable. After viewing and hearing all the stories about what others were going through I immediately was thankful for what little I had experienced during Hurricane Sandy.
During the hurricane I only lost power for about 24 hours, but was scared to leave my house because of the low gas supply. I was just thankful that I still had my apartment and I was able to salvage the food in my fridge. I honestly think the only reason why I got power so quickly compared to other residents in Newark (Jersey overall), had everything to do with my apartment being in proximity to a fire station, hospitals, and universities (UMDNJ, Rutgers, NJIT for those familiar with the area).
After seeing all that on the news, I decided to be a good Samaritan and started telling all my friends that I had power so come on over!
This is what I posted on my Facebook page:
“Good morning! For those that are nearby and still without power please inbox me your phone number…my doors are open to u!!”
I didn’t get too many responses but I did have a couple friends come to charge their cell phones and laptops, use the internet, or wash up in my bathroom if they didn’t have running water. (FYI, I like to clean with BLEACH.) I ended up letting my ex and his best friend come stay on the couch for two days since his best friend had to swim out of his apartment and my ex didn’t have any power. I didn’t ask my other roommate because it was a natural disaster and we were okay.
Well, apparently my guests staying overnight was a problem! He pulled me aside in the morning when I woke up saying that he needed to talk to me. He said “They have to leave today. You didn’t ask me about them staying here and they’re in our living room on our couch watching our TV. They’re strangers to me. You didn’t ask me or (the guy in Rumson who didn’t show up until Wednesday night). Your guests have been an inconvenience to me.”
First, the couch we had was provided by our landlord.
Second, the TV that he got was free and said it was for everyone to use.
Third, he was just mad he wasn’t in on the fun.
I was immediately enraged by what he said!
I rebutted by saying, “How have they been an inconvenience to you? For the fact that you have a roof over your head, power, and running water! Or because you’re always at the house by yourself and they’re messing up your little routine! This guy had to swim out of his house! I didn’t ask you because of the hurricane! I can’t believe you right now! You had plenty of chances to get my attention about them being here. It’s not like I was at work!”
The “strangers” started to leave when they heard our little squabble. I was so angry I was in tears yelling at this guy because of how selfish he was being. Everything was fine when I was helping him. Everything was cool when it was just us two in the apartment. I had to get out the apartment and vent before I punched him in the face. I called my other roommate in the city and she was shocked that he even said that. Even she said that they were okay on the couch and she wasn’t even there. The other guy (Rumson) was out in the living room being social with the “strangers” and enjoyed himself. He didn’t have a problem with them.
Once I completed my venting rant, I went inside and cleaned the entire living room and kitchen. I was going to do it anyway but the aggression I was feeling was all the motivation that I needed to get it done. I decided to go see my cousin in Elizabeth (former roommate, also knows this ungrateful dude) so I got dressed.
Before I left for Elizabeth, I calmly confronted him. I apologized for not asking. I apologized about him feeling uncomfortable and disrespected in “his house.” I apologized because that’s how mature people handle situations. I even told him about an incident in college where my roommate had some random homeless guy sleeping on our couch. I know how it feels to be uncomfortable in your own house. I also said “What made me so angry was when you said that they were strangers to you. You never once came out of your room to introduce yourself to them. You had an opportunity for them to NOT be strangers to you. All you had to do was say hello and acknowledge them, but you didn’t.” I went on to say who my ex was and how long he’s been around (which was way before he became my roommate) and how he’s been over before you just never acknowledged him. Our landlord even knows him! He said that it was big of me to come and apologize when I was only apologizing for the sake of peace in the house. I didn’t feel like dealing with that on a day to day.
This experience just demonstrated to me how selfish people are, even during a natural disaster. When people should be united in a time of need. You would think this guy would be more sympathetic in the situation and maybe I should have asked. Honestly, I didn’t care enough to ask. Anytime he needed help with something, I always did it without any complaints. Suddenly, I start helping someone else and helping others became an issue.
When I discussed this with my roommate from the city, she told me “Sometimes people just want others to themselves and they don’t like to share. Once you started helping other people he immediately got jealous and was too weak to speak on it.” Why do people feel entitled to do this to others? No one belongs to any one but themselves. Every decision I make has everything to do with what I decide to do for myself. After living with someone, you would think that you know them well until a hurricane comes along and brings out their true colors! All I know is that I can’t wait to move this summer!