County of Residence: Save My House; NBC: Save My Chuck

Here's the deal: On Tuesday, there was nothing seven of my neighbors and I could do about the water. We got more than 6 inches inside our house for over an hour. Everything is wet. Thank God we have flood insurance. If you are one who prays, please pray for the majority of my nieghbors who did not have it. My computer was damaged, so there won't be much blogging - but you all are used to that by now anyway, right?

One nice thing about flooding is that I get to have my giant living room t.v. in my upstairs bedroom instead of the 20" t.v. we normally have there. It makes me feel very glamorous. (I don't have much to go on right now, so just give me this, OK?) Yesterday, I watched the season finale of Chuck. I have nothing to say except this: Awesome. I've only been watching the show for about 6 weeks, but I have gone back and watched most of season one on Hulu and will catch up soon. It is already my favorite thing on TV. How is this show in danger of cancellation?

That's it for now.

It's Raining, It's Pouring

About that whole "maybe we fixed it" thing?  Not so much.  

It hasn't made it in the house, but it was less than 1/8" away, and we were doing everything we could to divert the water away from the house.  Once the water covers the drain outlet at the street in front, all bets are off for the improved drainage in the back, and we seem to have some trouble with the storm drains in the street.

Storms

I used to love storms.  They are, after all, the best time for a nap.

Once upon a time, the main sewer line going out from my house broke, my house flooded with sewage, and we had to replace the whole downstairs.  We had to change some things in our back yard after that, and the result was that every heavy rain brought water into our back door unless we took an active role in keeping it out.  Then, about 2 years later, this little hurricane named Ike came through and we had to replace everything again.  Now, when it rains, my husband and I enter a state of low-grade panic.  We have visions of water coming in under the walls.  We remember what the bare slab looks like in our living room.  We do not sleep through storms around here anymore.

After getting our home all fixed up after Ike, we started talking about moving.  Then the whole economic meltdown thing happened and we decided that we really needed to wait.  So we are waiting.  And today it is storming.  We have done some re-grading in the back, added a ditch to hold water when the drains are at capacity, and we have learned how to open up a drain from our porch into the sewer lines for emergency added drainage.  We had the city come out and inspect the sewers in the front for blockages.   The rain we are expecting here over the next 24 hours should put all that to the test.  If we make it through and stay dry, maybe I will be able to sleep through storms again.

Here is something I hope I never see again.  The water actually got up to the bottom of the mailbox before it started going down.  

And for cuteness sake, here is an old picture of Isaac helping us get ready for Ike last year:

Enough

Do I love them enough? Do I make every minute count enough? Is it even possible to do that? These are the questions that come to mind when I read about the wind of tragedies sweeping through the parent blogging community these past few days.  When I read about these families, what kills me is how normal their lives were just days - just hours sometimes - before they were turned upside down.  

You know, I get that life it fragile.  I do.  This stuff makes me full of this crazy panic to turn up the intensity - to somehow squeeze more something out of me that would make me able to soak up every minute.  It makes me seethe inside at the memories of the times I have been angry or harsh, and pine over the hours lost when I was just too tired or too empty to be really with them even though we were sharing space.  

What really gets me, what wedges this lump in my throat so solid that I want to spit rather than swallow it down, is knowing that some day in the near future, these feelings will fade and I will be back to life as usual.  I will be back to squandering the moments and bruising the precious times with my own short-sighted nonsense. 

Happy Easter

Easter is my favorite holiday because: 

#1 - I love Spring.  I hate all the pollen and the weather changes, but the all the flowers and the green coming back to the trees brighten my spirits so much that it outweighs the downside.  Spring means that Summer is coming, and soon we will be escaping to the beach every weekend that we can and spending our Friday evenings in the pool.  It means that winter and all the heavy clothes, runny noses, and hiding out from the weather is past.

#2 - Easter embodies everything that is hope and victory.  To a Christian, Easter is the day to celebrate that Jesus conquered death, rose from the grave, and gave humanity the hope of life.   This is the day that the Lord reconciled his people to himself ... the day that reminds me that He has the power to make all things new, on earth and in heaven.  Every day I need that hope, that promise and power.  I love the way things bloom at this time of year - as if nature can no longer contain its glory and is unfolding to reveal the beauty of His creation in honor of His finished work.

#3 - I really dig the candy.  

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