Friday, August 8, 2008

It Stormed in Camelot, or Noah, Noah Build Me an Arky, Arky

Some you may have read here about my life in Camelot and the lovely weather that we have had throughout the summer in northwest Indiana. Well, this last Monday evening, the rains came and the winds blew. A change in the weather is not necessarily a bad thing. However, extreme weather can have extreme results. Last Monday night on August 4th, we received 2.47 inches of rain in about 3 hours.


Majestic Stream by our home

Since we live on a stream (drainage ditch), we frequently experience seepage when the creek rises in front of our house. A little water in the basement is irritating, but we have learned to live with the nuisance. The water usually recedes in a few hours and our home dries out quickly. We have a submersible sump pump that removes this extra water from the outside world. The electrical pump works fabulously as long as we have power.


Daddy D in the receding waters of his Inner Sanctum

Maximum depth of basement floodwaters was about 12 inches.

Unfortunately, Monday evening the power went out during the storm, and the water rose in our yard and in the basement. Many people, who live in similar circumstances, have purchased generators to run the sump pump when there is a loss of electricity. However, King Arthur and Queen Guinevere must have believed that they lived the charmed lives. Meaning Daddy D and I never bothered to purchase a generator. We talked about buying a generator. We looked at generators at Home Depot after the last big storm. But, did we have a generator on Monday night? Absolutely not. Did we buy one Tuesday morning? Absolutely!


Although we have sustained minor damage and lost a few belongings, we feel fortunate that our loss was minimal. Our hot water heater, washer, and dryer all still function. We need a new furnace anyway. Thus, with our brand, new, sparkly, shiny gasoline generator, we can return to the charmed life in Camelot.

17 comments:

ChrisB said...

Oh my goodness that must have been awful to see the water rising. Now you've bought a generator it probably won't ever be that bad again. Hope it dries out soon and you get back to normal.

storyteller said...

Sorry to learn of the storm damage but glad it’s minimal and manageable with the new generator. Hope the flooding is over and good luck cleaning up the mess.
Hugs and blessings,

Anonymous said...

i hope things get back in order...asap!!
take care...

SwampAngel65 said...

Oh wow! So sorry that happened, but at least it was bearable. Hope things get back to normal soon for ya!

Jenni said...

Ugh! I'm glad the damage wasn't too bad and you've got it under control.

Kaytabug said...

WOW! That is insane! I'm glad you guys didn't loose too much!

willowtree said...

I sure hope things are returning to normal for you, I've never had to experience that, it must be awful.

Anonymous said...

WOW! It's a miracle you didn't have any really bad damage! Yay for the new generator, though.

Anonymous said...

Yikes, MJ! I hope it doesn't take too long to clean up.

Jan said...

Oh, man, hope the clean-up goes well and you never have to use the new generator.

daddy d said...

Maybe, the kingdom needs a backup battery power sump pump. That would cover all possible bases. The basement is about dry. Moreover, those old Windows-95 books were not too much of a loss.

Margaret said...

That is frustrating to watch the water rise and know that you will lose stuff--but still, it's just possessions and not lives. Mr. Stargazer and I live on a hill far away from the closest river; we do have a generator that we've never had to use--fingers crossed!

Debbie said...

Glad to read that you didn't lose very much. I hope that what you did lose wasn't too dear. (ex. photos) Good that you have a generator now as well.

debi said...

Oh Gosh, Thats terrible. I don't think the rain in my livingroom was that bad.I know it wasn't.Glad you didn't lose anything too sentimental.I didn't take pictures but tonight we had lots of tiny piss ants in our bed. Tis the rain dammit.

Aoj and The Lurchers said...

Oh Molly :( Thank goodness you didn't lose too much.

Water is so destructive.

Anonymous said...

We bought a backup battery powered sump pump about 10 years ago. It turned out to be one of the best purchases we ever made.

That was a horrible storm. Those poor people in Griffith and Hobart. Thank God no one was seriously hurt.

Anonymous said...

I hope things have improved for you? love Judyx