I got out of the apartment to deposit some checks and get gas for the ride up that night, then I went to H. Titty to get pudding ingredients (milk), and since it was FREEZING, I left my groceries in the parking lot to go to the GAP to return a sweater that Jon hated because it was too itchy and browse whatever leftover holiday sales there were. So I returned the sweater, bought a blouse and dress from the GAP, visited JCrew and Anthropology, and then went to PaperSource to get a shower card for Mital.
When I got upstairs, I needed to warm up, so I checked my reader and email before unpacking everything. Then while I was putting away the dishes, I also put away some groceries...you know to mix things up a bit.
About halfway between doing all of this, I heard an alarm of some sort. It was either two or three "beeps" and then it would stop, and then it would start again. It sounded faint, so I didn't think much of it. About five minutes later, it was still going, so I checked out the window looking for the building on fire making all that racket. It looked calm and cold out, so I thought that maybe I should check my hallway to see if anyone else hears it.
When I went stuck my head out the door, I heard the alarm a lot more clearly. The silent parts? It was saying to evacuate the building immediately. The woman down the hall by the elevators was also in the hallway, but I didn't ask her what she was going to do--I mean the voice said to evacuate, so that was what I was going to do.
So I grabbed my coat, boots, and purse, and made my way down the steps. My cellphone was dead, so I couldn't reach Jon immediately to tell him that our apartment might burn down. Jon and I really don't have a plan for emergency situations, which is dumb because the survival book I worked on said to have a plan.
At around the eleventh floor, I got tired of running down and around and around and down. I was also a little more wary--I mean what if I was running straight into the fire? Jon and I live on the twenty-first floor, which is the top (besides the roof), so if there wasn't a fire on my floor, it had to be below us, if not the roof. And maybe tired isn't the right word, I was more dizzy than tired really. Anyway, it wasn't until about the sixth floor that I saw anyone else evacuating. And by the time I got to the lobby, a lot of people and their pets and kids were there. I guess it was a false alarm?
I was a bit traumatized, and I didn't want to stand around waiting for something to happen, so I went to Jon's building to try to talk to Jon about this situation. As I was exiting, a firetruck pulled up. I don't know what happened after that regarding the alarm.
I went to Jon's building, and I tried going up, but after 6 PM you need a key card to go upstairs, and it was about 6:15. Of course, I didn't realize this until I realized that I wasn't moving. So I gave my cellphone one last shot and called Jon down. We decided to eat some Thai food until it blew over and the elevators weren't inundated with people returning to their apartments.
By the time we got up, it was getting late, and we still had to drive up to NJ that night. I also still had to finish unpacking the groceries (they were still thawing out, which was a good thing since I hadn't put away all the perishables), make the pudding for my dad, and wrap the booties/write out the card.
The pudding didn't take too long. The recipe was very easy. Note: These photos suck, but we really had to leave soon or risk falling asleep on the road.
Pudding in the Pot:
Fancy star tins for the birthday boy (I love these tins!):
Cupcake tins (removed parchment liner) for single-serve pudding cups. NOTE: Pudding is hot so it is a good idea to use a muffin tin to support the sides while you are spooning it in as well as using it to maneuver so that you do not directly hold the muffin molds you have finished or are working on. I figured this out and left two of the molds empty for my hands to grasp--plus you can use the tin for transportation.:
While waiting for it to cool a little more, I wrote out the card and wrapped up the booties. Then it was time to go!
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