In a city ravaged by a mysterious plague, a woman tries to understand why her world is falling apart. An algae bloom has poisoned the air that blows in from the sea. Inland, a secretive corporation churns out the only food anyone can afford -- a rovolting pink paste made of an unknown substance. In the short breaks between windstorms, our narrator tends to her few remaining relationships: with her difficult mother; with the ex-husband for whom she still harbors feelings; with the boy she nannies. Yet as conditions outside deteriorate, her commintment to remaining in place only grows -- even if staying means being left behind.