My mind is swimming on what I can write that will do some real good—to make the helping continue for those who lost everything to this monstrous natural disaster when these unprecedented losses are no longer big news. But first to say thanks to our political leaders for being up to this Herculean task, which 
This week power returned downtown, kids went back to school and the crane dangling 74 stories above West 57th Street was secured. In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, however, New York City is far from fixed. More than 70,000 residents remained without power on Monday. The inundated Brooklyn-Battery and Queens-Midtown tunnels remained closed. Ruined homes 
On its “Donations” web page, Central Park accepts gifts of five set amounts, from $20 to $500. A sixth option, “other,” also lets donors choose their own amount: $25, say, if $20 is just not quite enough—or, as in John Paulson’s case, $100 million. The New York-based hedge fund manager announced this sizable gift to 
What is it with writers and whales? Ever since Herman Melville’s magnum opus, Moby-Dick, was published 160 years ago, cetaceans have provided an interesting allegory for man’s quest to defeat others and understand himself in literary forms. Just last year, Melvillean influence permeated Chad Harbach’s The Art of Fielding, arguably the best novel of the year. 
After Hurricane Sandy blazed its path of flooding and power outages through downtown Manhattan, many residents and groups plunged right in to help their neighbors, showing that even a mega-storm and unprecedented damage won’t keep New Yorkers from helping each other in times of crisis. The headquarters of Nazareth Housing, at 206 E. Fourth St., 
By Paul Bisceglio Sandy hit New York on Monday evening with the fury promised by ominous forecasts and left behind a wake of devastation wrought by the 80 m.p.w.-plus winds and extensive flooding of lower Manhattan. The grim numbers began to roll in as the post-tropical storm faded on Tuesday: over half a million residents 
Electricity was restored to parts of the Lower East Side and East Village on Friday, and hopefully all of Manhattan will have power soon, but relief efforts are far from over. Look to the links below for continually updated coverage on relief efforts in your area. Twitter: @FEMA @RedCross @RedCrossNY @ConEdison FEMA.gov/Sandy NYC.gov RedCross.org 
