It’s 1 am on Halloween night. Driving through the darkened streets of a foreign city after being rejected by countless cabs, a flutter of fear clenches my tummy. Thrown into a situation I cannot control and have no written step by step plan for. The remnants of my control freak type-A inner child screams her frustration and impertinence.

We are staying the night at a virtual stranger’s house in Brooklyn. When I met her four days ago, I didn’t know then that I would have to call upon her hospitality for me and my friends. And now, here I am, spending the night in an unknown place with a new friend. (Thank you Karen Seifert!)

The generosity of those willing to help us FLOORS me and I am moved to tears if I ponder it too long. In a few hours, we embark home, on a journey that, I’m sure will bring many memories.

After a mass meeting of the minds, we decided that instead of sitting in hotel lobbies all day (or finding any place that had wifi) for a possible 4 days before we could get a flight out and trying to find any accommodations– be it an expensive hotel (with our already dwindling funds) or burden strangers (who were already burdened by the effects of Hurricane Sandy) for shelter, it was time to take matters into our own hands. Collectively, we decided to rent a car and make the cross country trek home. It will be an adventure for sure and we’ll be making memories. A much better option than sitting in an overpriced hotel in the middle of a city of refugees or at an airport trying to get a flight home.

I started this year saying that I was going to do stuff that I normally would never have done before, and look where life has taken me. We set up a Go Fund Me account if you wish to donate to our trip. Already, as people heard about our plight, we’ve gotten a discount on our car rental, offers of hot meals, people opening up their homes to us cross country and money to help us on our journey. We look at each other in awe and gratitude every minute as people cheer us on, donate, share on Facebook, offer to help. It’s been incredible to experience. This trip has made us think creatively at every step, has sealed our friendship (“We’re the three best friends that anyone could have…”) and we have met the coolest people along the way (Ted – fellow stranded visitor from OKC; Karen, of course, Asi – who offered up his electricity-less and water-less home to three strangers, Aurora – offered to house us in CT even though she had no electricity).

This trip has pushed us all out of our comfort zone and at the end of the night as we lay down in the warm apartment of a stranger, we agree that this trip is way better than a trip to see the Met, the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State Building –all things on our “must-do list” that got waylaid.

Thank you just doesn’t seem like enough to express what we are feeling. But please know that we are so grateful for your support.

If you wish to support us, we need prayers, encouragement, shares on Facebook/twitter/Instagram, or a couple of bucks. If you can, please share our page: www.gofundme.com/getmehome