#we're doing better

[thatrandomgirlinthehoody]

“Someone please hold me, I’m exhausted from this world Someone please wipe me, I’m drenched with tears Someone please notice my struggles first Please acknowledge the poor me Please help me”

[ask-toko-toko]

Hope you feel better sweetie!~ (I think this is Shuichi who’s out and saying this but at this point I don’t even know 😅😅)

S-sweetie? Thanks...

[sicksua]

[three-headed-monster]

eh i feel like that's our expected loss

[areyoudoingthis]

i went through my first crowd since covid weeks ago and i just realized it today. I'm so glad it's finally calming down

[their-destinys-writer]

What I’ve learned from Hurricane María

It has officially been six months since hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. It has been only almost two months since we got electricity at home. Things have returned to a relative normalcy in my household. And there’s so much I need to say.

The reason why I’ve waited this long to write this is because I thought it would be best to wait for the return of electricity and Internet, so that I can take my time, and express myself as properly as possible.

There are many things I can say about this experience. There are many things I can complain about. But instead, I decided to do something different. I decided to write about what I learned. What has this event taught me. Ten lessons, to be exact, and a bonus revelation.

Lesson #1: You must accept change. Things won’t always be the same. Sometimes, things you’ve known your whole life can disappear in the blink of an eye. To live a more peaceful life, you have to learn to accept and embrace that fact. Don’t sit and weep over what used to be. It’s okay when it’s only in the moment of shock, but you can’t keep dragging that for the rest of your life. Accept your new reality and bend to it. And if you have the power, make it better, more attuned to what you want it to be.

Lesson #2: Show your love to the people you care about. You never know when will be the last time you talk to someone. If you’re not sure when you will see them again, make sure to tell them how much you love them. So that if it was the last time, you won’t have regrets about the last thing you said to them.

Lesson #3: Technology is a tool, not a saving grace. It’s great that we can talk to people across an ocean in a small device that fits in the palm of our hands. It’s great that we have created communities in a virtual space in which we share many things. But when all chips are down, that device becomes as useful as a rubber duck. Save for, perhaps, taking pictures. Don’t rely on it for everything. Keep backups, have alternatives, so when everything falls apart, you don’t fall with it.

Lesson #4: Taking things for granted could be your downfall. We are so accustomed to living a certain way, we often forget it all takes an entire community to make your way of life. Everything you know is moved by people you don’t even realize exist. You must be ready, in case everything stops working at the same time. Make sure to have a plan B for everything.

Lesson #5: If you don’t see trucks on a weekday, be concerned. It is truck drivers the ones who make the economy move. These guys bring all kinds of products that we buy every day, from clothing, to food, to gasoline. If they are not on the streets, the economy is not moving, and nothing is arriving to any store for anyone to buy.

Lesson #6: Electricity is vital. It is ridiculous the number of important things that require electricity to function. Water plants need electricity to pump the water to the houses. Many old people are alive due to machines. Cellphone towers need electricity to provide signal. Many chronic illnesses require refrigerators for medicines. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s a luxury.

Lesson #7: Cellphone service is vital. “What if you’re hurt and alone and you dial 911 and no one answers?” A line from a movie of a cyberattack became true for us (Live Free or Die Hard). When there are blocked streets fill with people desperately trying to get to their loved ones, you know a system has failed miserably. Cellphones are no longer a luxury; they are our only way of communication in the modern world. A very faulty one. In this case, a radio scanner becomes your best tool.

Lesson #8: A machete will be your best friend in a disaster. Make sure to have useful tools. Maybe not a machete, exactly. It could be an axe, a chainsaw, anything that can cut a tree. And it’s good to have a large vehicle too.

Lesson #9: Do not depend on the undependable. If someone, or something (government), has failed you time and time again, do not rely on it. Rely on yourself and those who don’t fail you. Government, whether federal or local, should be at the bottom of that list. They won’t come when nothing is working.

Lesson #10: Water comes first. While electricity is vital, water is life. No water, no life. In the case of an impending disaster, stock up. Never take it for granted.

And the most important lesson of all: WE ARE VALID. We are resilient. We persevere. We are strong. We are capable.

For years, decades even, we have suffered from collective low self-esteem, saying how all the good things come from outside, that we are not talented, that without the USA we would be nothing. Yet it was us who opened the streets, tearing away at all kinds of debris. It was us who went house to house, delivering the supplies that we could get out hands on. It was us who reinvented ourselves and created new jobs that did not exist to survive. It is communities that are uniting to reestablish the electricity. It is communities who stood guard when criminals took advantage of the crisis. It is our artistic and sports heroes who united and sent millions in donations (thank you Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jennifer López, Marc Anthony, Daddy Yankee, Luis Fonsi, Mónica Puig, René Pérez, Ricky Martin, Carlos Arroyo, Carlos Beltrán, Yadier Molina, J.J. Barea, Bruno Mars, Chayanne, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Rita Moreno, Benicio Del Toro, and so many more).

It is still not over, but unlike many may think, our spirits have never been broken. And never will be. We have stared the Apocalypse in the face, and we triumphed.

Boricua de pura cepa. Puertorriqueña con corazón bravo. Y una de los millones de guerreros jíbaros que no permitió que su Verde Luz se apagara durante el temporal. ¡PUÑETA!

(All pictures were taken in the town of Cidra, Puerto Rico, by yours truly, between the dates of September 20th and November 11th 2017. DO NOT REPOST)

[lynati]

My ride to a meeting today just called. “Just letting you know I’m going to be late because there was a car on fire on 76.” Oh, Philly.

[benolsens]

Day 4