I have a lot of friends on the East Coast, and they all agree: there’s a storm a comin’. They are battening down the hatches, stocking up on supplies – mostly wine, according to Facebook posts – and preparing for mass power outages, scary flood scenarios, and extreme wind damage as Hurricane Sandy moves closer and closer to landfall. My friend Rebecca reports that the MTA is shutting down the subway tonight at 7 p.m. and buses will stop running at 9 p.m. She has one bottle of wine and is contemplating picking up another before it’s too late. Most everyone seems to think this is a good idea. Just in case.

Experts predict Sandy will make landfall on the Northeast Coast sometime on Monday and rip through parts of Virginia and West Virginia, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and continue into Canada. Effects will be felt as far west as Wisconsin and Mississippi. Dang, y’all.

My advice? Fall in love with the storm. Let her keep you up all night. Because: it’s all you can do.

The rest of us will light candles, we’ll keep you in our thoughts and hearts and hope for the best. Because: it’s all we can do.