we aren't at five feet high yet, but after the deluge rains earlier this week, the lake near us and the river downstream from the lake's dam and locks are all rising rising rising. we are up almost a foot about normal. it's a scary time, watching the water creep around us, moving closer to us, and ruining things everywhere. water is a shockingly powerful force of nature.
the river is crossing roads, overrunning the tenney park lagoon, ruining bike paths, compromising bridges, and seeping towards our house and basement. this make traffic a nightmare, and repairs impossible. it's raining today, and more water puts more stress on a maximally stressed dam and locks system, located one block from my house. the park, the beach, the lake that make our neighborhood and home location such a pleasure are now the very threat to our safety.
here's another song that comes to mind, and really describes our true worst case scenario....
but we cannot control nature, we can only control our response. our response has been to remember that this is all just stuff--just material possessions--at risk, and that is not the sort of thing that really matters. we've also been taking the measures recommended by the city: sandbagging, moving prized possessions out of the basement, checking the sump pump. our basement construction project was poorly timed because that's a big financial loss if it all is ruined in a flood, BUT we can reframe that with positivity by remembering that the plumber put in a new and more reliable sump pump, new drain tile, an updated cement floor that is much thicker and more water proof, new wall coverings, and a back flow valve to prevent sewage back flow. i'd say that it was lucky timing, after all.
and i am in the paper, in a weird twist of events. there was a journalist and a photographer hanging out at our neighborhood sandbagging station, and guess who she thought to photograph? me. link here.
at first, the day or two after the rains, it was amazing to see the river rise, but we didn't have much concern about our home. instead, the significant damage all seemed to be west of town, which david discovered on his tuesday morning ride to work, during which we encountered washed out bike path, raging rivers that had been tiny streams, standing water everywhere, and when he finally reached work, a closed building, without power, and over 10 feet of water in the basement, wreaking havoc for their paper files, infrastructure, and servers. he came home. there was nothing he could do. and lots of folks west of town are in very similar, very dire straits.
on wednesady evening and into thursday, the lagoon in the park one block from us flooded enough to cause a major street to close. here's picture of the lagoon, covering what should be grass.
that night, we packed our camping packs in anticipation of the big trip we've planned all summer: to take the kids backpacking in the porcupine mountains. i couldn't help wonder even then: are we really going to be able to get away this weekend? (spoiler: no, we are not going. but i'm not unpacking those packs....yet.) will the basement stay dry and looking as nice as it does right now? (spoiler: so far, so good.)
the kids went to explore (in a safe manner) the river as it took over the bike path.
thursday, the worries became too much and i left work at noon to get home and start loading up sandbags. the city supplied sand and bags, and all the neighbors have been working together to make sandbags, and get them into position. even ramona and our neighbor friend lily helped with a few loads.
later, the kids tired of sandbag work, and instead gave out all the oj and lemonade they could find at our house (with the help of their sitter lizzie, pictured here, and some sweet little neighbors). they carried it all over to the sandbag pile, and got everyone hydrated.
closed road behind our house. you can't see it, but there is rising water sneaking stealthily across that street and toward our back yard about halfway down this block.
but then, thursday, the scene got pretty serious in our neighborhood. and it's raining right now.
this is the lagoon at tenney park,
and this is the scene on the closed road one block behind us.
the bike path through the park.
and some frog hunters in the park, pictures and adventure courtesy of our babysitter this morning.
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