Superstorm Sandy Bitchslaps Halloween

Thankfully I picked the right time to leave New York after last week's visit to see friends and family.

As I write this, my parents are without power (and water), a tree has fallen on my father's Nissan, and a rollercoaster I used to ride during summer vacations in Seaside Heights, New Jersey has been washed away by the Atlantic Ocean (below).

The incoming pictures are horrifying, and although a part of me wishes I could be there to rough it out with loved ones, I'm counting blessings (no one I know has been injured).

To my friends in Manhattan, stay safe, help each other out, and be patient. I know your city's been through the ringer, but a wise American Idol winner once sang, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

To the countless kids who were excited to go out trick-or-treating tomorrow, I'm afraid Halloween might be cancelled this year. Stay inside. You're better off watching watching horror movies (if you don't have power, work those imaginations and tell ghost stories around a flashlight) and guilt-tripping your parents into letting you eat ice cream sundaes for dinner -- before it melts -- and all-you-can-eat chocolate for dessert. And hey, you may not have school the next day! Try to look on the bright, dryer side.

To those TV viewers on the East Coast who watch NBC's Revolution, I hope you took notes on how to survive a massive blackout; who knows when the power will be turned back on? I hope you're well stocked. If not, at least you'll enjoy a nice sugar rush from all the Halloween candy you bought for those trick-or-treaters who most likely won't be knocking on your door.

@TheFirstEcho