Hurricane Sandy and a K-pop Concert or How Social Media Changed My Life Part Deux

    When we last visited New Jersey post-Hurricane, I was stuck on a gas line that stretched from the local highway Route 22 to my apartment.  Luckily, my little fuel efficient Volkswagen Jetta was poised to be fueled up, as I was number ten in line.  This was two o'clock in the morning on day five.  The aforementioned police officer who received a few of my choice words, North Jersey vis a vie  osmosis, was breaking up the gas line. This gas station would not be functional until ten hours later.

     As I worry about having gas in my car, I am also concerned for people who are traveling into New Jersey for the Big Bang concert.  The media is not covering the event from the perspective of fans, which is unfortunate.   There are devout fans who are traveling by car, mass transit, and plane from as far as the west coast, as well as Canada, and Puerto Rico.  Mass transit has gone into absolute disarray due to the storm and worse yet, there is a Nor'easter scheduled to arrive a day prior to the first show.

    Through my anxiety, I continue to post mass transit updates and ways to travel to the state of New Jersey from various surrounding areas.  What remains unspoken is that I still do not know the state of mother's well being.  A breakthrough on that front, comes through my sister-in-law who disperses her father-in-law, a firefighter and National Guard member.  Via communication from my sister-in-law, I discover that my mother is doing well and assisting others in her community. Within hours, I receive a phone call from my mom, solidifying that one of my last remaining blood relatives on earth has not yet perished.

    When I receive the news that my mother is alive and well, I have the complete opposite reaction of what I normally would.  Instead of being apathetic about the plight of people in New Jersey, I decide that something needs to be done.  Within the Facebook forum community, I begin to organize a clothing and supply drive for victims of Hurricane Sandy.  To say that it was difficult to organize a clothing drive surrounding a K-pop concert in New Jersey, is an understatement. With the assistance of members of Occupy Sandy New Jersey, I was given the contact information of a community organizer in Newark, New Jersey.  
     
     To be a community organizer in Newark in not an easy feat.  In a recent Facebook post, Tobias Fox illustrated how his bike seat was stolen from his bike (his only means of transportation other than public transit) , while he assisted organizers of a rooftop community garden.  Tobias is an awesome person, with much of the spirit of Morpheus from the Matrix.  Community organizing in Newark is difficult for someone who is trying to unite what is viewed by outsiders as a downtrodden city, but Tobias does not appear to be discouraged. 

     My entire family is from Newark.  My mother and father met and were married within the city.  My siblings went to school there; it is where my parents attempted to make their mark upon America.  Unfortunately, this was prior to the riots of the 1960's that ravaged the city.  After the riots, my parents and subsequently most of my family fled from the city.  The last hold out was my grandmother, Nora Biera, who died living in Newark during the 1990s.  In reality, my attendance of this concert was surreal because it would be the first time I had stepped foot in the city of Newark, since I was twelve years old.   I am a Jersey Shore girl, born at Jersey Shore Medical Center and raised in Manchester.

The inside of Newark City Hall can be as intimidating as the outside.

      In my attempts to organize what should have been a simple supply drive, I discovered many of the obstacles both residents and politicians in Newark encounter on a regular basis.  There is a sentiment of disdain towards the monolithic Prudential Center.  In the largest city in New Jersey, the politicians had no knowledge of the magnitude of Big Bang or the amount of attendees of the show.  8,000 to 12,000 people would be in attendance, on two nights.  This would be the largest show to be held in New Jersey, after Hurricane Sandy.  Yet, no one from the Prudential Center was addressing the fact that there were thousands of people without power, food, and running water within miles of the stadium that was hosting the concert.

Hell's Kitchen Lounge was willing to help when other locations could not.

    With the assistance of Tobias Fox and local politicians, I was able to hold a small clothing and supply drive.  Hell's Kitchen Lounge, a local rockabilly bar, allowed us to store our donations.  A fan of the band, Big Bang, Autumn Maura traveled from New Hampshire with her vehicle filled with supplies.  Although, we were unable to collect at the Prudential Center, we were able to secure over a truck and a half load of donations.  These donations were provided to the 24 hour Emergency Rescue Center at New Hope Baptist Church in Newark.

Donations from the clothing and supply drive, along with fan signs and our banner.

       The concert was an amazing experience with one of the most diverse audiences I had ever seen in attendance of what was essentially a pop music show.  Big Bang is comprised of consummate performers, who made the arduous trip that many concert goers made, worthwhile.  As Spin magazine illustrated in their coverage of the concert, Big Bang used K-pop to heal New Jersey.There was a general sense of excitement; the electricity that emmanates from anyone who is performing before a very eager audience.   In a darkened stadium,  fans waved light wands that glimmered brightly like beacons of hope.   

A banner was passed amongst fans to sign in order to get word about our supply drive out.

     

     In a masochistic way, I am thankful for Hurricane Sandy, because she taught me about me about the triumph of the human spirit and the beauty of a city I had long forgotten about.   Prior to Sandy, I would have hastily driven or taken mass transit into Newark, without a second glance.  Now, I consider Newark to be a second home.  I am looking forward to attending another k-pop show in Newark.  I have spent the past few weeks proselytizing about the great architecture and wonderfully helpful people.   Sandy may have taken away some of my childhood memories at the Shore, but she has assisted with the restoration of those that were within the city of Newark.
    

Hurricane Sandy and a K-pop Concert or How Social Media Changed My Life: Part Un

This is the first in a series of posts:
  
     As a New Jersey resident, the last week of October was definitely more of a trick than a treat.  The Mr. (my husband, that is) and I traveled down to our ancestral Shore towns, the weekend prior to Sandy, to assist our parents in preparation.  Little did we know, the shore from our childhood would cease to exist, days later.  The night the storm arrived on shore, I spoke with my mother, who justifiably believed she was having her last conversation with me.  Apparently, a tree had fallen against her window and she was awash with fear that the worst was yet to come.

      Simultaneously, I was engaged in a conversation with some of my co-workers via iPhone messaging.  The girls at work and I would regularly gossip about daily events and share relationship woes.  On this night, however, the conversation had taken a dark turn towards that of fear for our well being and the safety of our loved ones. As we engaged in conversation, green and yellow lights flashed brightly outside our windows.  We would later discover that this psychedelic light show had a direct correlation with the widespread power outages.
 
       Prior to the arrival of Hurricane Sandy, my biggest concern for the month of November was attending the concert for one of my favorite Korean pop bands, Big Bang.  Big Bang was touring in the United States with two shows at the Prudential Center in Newark.  I had tickets for the second night and was sharing the concert with a fan whom I had met via a Facebook fan forum.   The Mr. had suggested that I find people with similar interests in Korean pop music, which led me to actively engage in various Korean pop (K-pop) related forums.  I had been enthusiastic about the show, for weeks, ordering my light stick and head band from retailers in South Korea.  There were various fan projects surrounding the show, including simple crafts like the star below  to display allegiance to the band.

Part of a Star for Big Bang Project

       During the dismal days following the storm, my mother and my in-laws faced widespread power, phone, and cellular phone outages.  Even in central and northern New Jersey, centralized locations like Bridgewater Commons Mall resembled refugee camps for the wireless and electrical challenged.  Frazzled teens and businessmen, alike, could been seen squatting with their laptops plugged into any available power outlet.  To someone who had lived in New Jersey and the tri-State area their entire life, it appeared as if the world was coming to an end.

Children playing on storm debris.

      The Mr. and I were fortunate in that our power was restored after only twenty four hours.  When our power returned, half of our apartment complex could be heard cheering.  The other half of the complex would remain without power for four more days.  In the midst of the power and communication black out, I was unable to contact my mother.  My mother lives within a guarded senior citizen complex, where other slightly technologically challenged seniors were trying to figure out why their cellular calls were dropping.  The fact that a cellular tower may have been destroyed by the storm went unnoticed and spoken by them. So, for five days I was not able to verify that my mother had fared okay through the storm.

       By the second day, the Mr. and I were doing quite well.  Our power had been restored, which meant that the adjacent shopping center was functional, as well.  We were able to replenish our groceries, visit the liquor store for some potent potables, and purchase a hot cup of coffee.  This, however, was all done with the knowledge that our family at the Shore was probably not faring quite as well.   I should also add that we live in a town that was decimated in the nineties by a hurricane. The run on joke is that if you live in Bound Brook, you should own an inflatable boat. Our families, unable to gain access to information and without power, feared the worst for us. 
   
       As the days trudged on, with little word from our family members, we continued to care for our dog and ourselves.  Having a shopping center within close proximity helped. On day three, the Mr. and I ventured out to Bridgewater Commons Mall to lunch with my two of my friends from work.  The normally well-heeled patrons of The Cheesecake Factory looked absolutely bedraggled.  Children were crying hysterically and stay at home trophy wives appeared to be absolutely unhinged.  Within the area of Bridgewater, there were widespread power outages that extended into the tony area that is known as "The Hills".

     By the fourth day, I had started to become more engaged with the online forum I had previously only been an observer of.  Young people from throughout the country were planning to converge on New Jersey for the K-pop concert, which was scheduled on November 8 and November 9.   Language barriers inhibited the concise production of travel advisories and official information from the management of Big Bang.  Conservative Korean families were urging their daughters to remain at home and not to enter the disaster zone, as many were referring to it.  As I read their posts, I scoffed at their concerns.  This was because where I lived was not as hard hit and due to the power outages, we hadn't traveled too far.   New Jersey didn't truly seem to be a disaster area, to someone like myself.
 
    By the time day five had arrived, the realization that FEMA and the Red Cross were descending upon the disaster zone that was New Jersey, had hit.  In a desperate effort to obtain gasoline for my car, I remained awake twenty four hours, following traffic trends and posts via the social media GPS application known as Waze.  I had still not spoken with my mother and was concerned about my husband returning to work.   I had been out of work since Sandy had hit, with little promise of power being restored to the school and work center.  A lifetime law and order person, I was reduced to yelling at law enforcement officers who were attempting to control social order through monitoring gas lines.  

Part Deux...