The Storm that Blew Us All Away
Beka Ruehle ‘30 and Zoe Schweitzer ‘30
This past weekend, Sept. 25-27, many Sarah Lawrence College (SLC) students experienced their first nor’easter. A nor’easter is a storm that forms over the Atlantic Ocean and spirals onto the Northeast coast of America, differing from both hurricanes and SLC students in that it thrives on cold air. Meteorologists called for flash floods, gallons of rain, and racecar-fast winds throughout all of New York, and they certainly did not exaggerate.
Residents of Washington attending Sarah Lawrence state that saying goodbye to their loved ones on move-in day made them far less homesick than the intense drizzle and moderate winds they had to suffer through this weekend. After their first nor’easter, Kate Machiatto ‘30 from Seattle said that they were considering moving back “hoa hoa hoa hoa home,” and muttered “there’s no difference anyways” under their breath.
Students from other areas weighed in as well. SLC student Madison O’Deer (‘28), from Okonomowoc, Wisconsin, was sitting on the patio at Barb when I interviewed her. As students hurried in and out with umbrellas, she sat in a chair basking in the rain and watching the storm intently, and stated, “I’ve never seen anything like it — I’m used to sheltering in my basement during storms, so this is certainly a new experience for me, don’t y’know.”
As they pranced through the calmest winds they’d ever experienced, many Chicago residents stated that they’d take a nor’easter over a trip through Lower Wacker any day. California residents seemed inclined to disagree — although I can’t say for sure, because they seemed so intent on staying dry that I was unable to catch any of them outside in the light mist long enough for an interview.
International Student Pierre Valjean seemed mildly peeved when I asked him for a comment on the weather — but I was able to win him over — and he told me that the weather was quite similar to what he was used to in France, stating, “Laissez moi tranquille, je ne veux pas vous parler, urhg.”
All in all, the nor’easter certainly lived up to its hype as an intense, dangerous storm, and I wish everyone safe travels this week as they navigate the remaining floodwaters around campus.
