Scenes from a Flood Disaster Recovery

There are signs and sounds of recovery from last week's creek flood all around us!

Neighbors are salvaging what can be salvaged, hanging things

out to dry and ripping out and tearing down what cannot...

It's so true what they say... Water always wins. Seeing debris lines

in driveways reminds me how truly lucky we are that ours stops...

In the back yard and, that the water never reached our house!

Because the very dirty little secret is that flood water isn't just water...

Forget the flowery descriptions others might share about the odor

being offensive, because I'm just going to tell you... It stinks!

And, what didn't recede back into the creek remains as a smelly,

thick, sludgy-mud. Coating everything it touches like concrete!

So while I was thrilled to see the garden bench rise out of the creek

nearly in one piece, I can't lie and tell you that it didn't take hours to

scrub away the evidence of muck that came with it being swept away!

Just when I thought the worst was behind us, I came home

last Thursday night to find things had only gotten much worse!

You see, after nearly three days of continuous filtering, the koi pond had

to be drained in order to be cleaned. There was just too much sludge...

The hiding holes for the fish were completely full! What's worse, this

confirmed that seven of our 13 koi and goldfish did not survive. Also,

this meant the beneficial algae and the whole eco-system that was in

place to clean/sustain the pond naturally had also been washed away!

So the pond was drained, the liner cleaned up and the water
replaced. Along with a load of new mulch to go around the plants...

That have thankfully managed to pop back up!

New mulch reminds me that I owe you an update on the cabinet I picked up for

the kitchen to display part of my cake stand collection. While I was initially very

excited to refinish it, I received just as much input suggesting I leave the cabinet

as I found it. Being torn, I decided to live with it for a while until I could be sure

which option was best. I believed that if I listened carefully, the piece would tell

me what it wanted. But the cabinet wasn't speaking to me at all. And, the more I

consulted, the more I heard things about how difficult the interior construction

would make it to add the beadboard I wanted and, how difficult it would be to

match the existing shelves with new shelving I wanted to add to this cabinet!

And, when the third contractor I brought in asked me how much I paid

for the cabinet and then rudely replied that I got ripped off... I fired him

and decided that my destiny was not to have this cabinet. I decided instead

to re-list it for sale on Craigslist where I found it. And guess what? I sold it

within three hours of posting it. And, I sold it for $100 more than I paid!

But on Friday morning when the buyer phoned to say something came up and

she couldn't pick it up as planned, Army dad and I ended up taking the cabinet

with us since her house is on the way to the mulch yard in Wallburg! We

get all the mulch for our gardens there. Anyway, on the way home we stopped

by LA Reynolds for more new plants and, I couldn't resist also picking up...

A new set of windchimes to help ring in the recovery of our gardens!

Indeed, everywhere we look things seem to be getting a bit

better. See? The neighbor's septic line is back over the creek...

And, while our bridge is still stuck in the trees...

There's a solid plan to replace it very soon!

Because we refuse to let a creek flood keep us

from enjoying the other half of our property!

Army dad's been working non-stop to put the gardens back together...

Last evening, while I shopped for dinner...

He installed the new lighting fixtures around the koi pond...

And, I watched... Until a snake slithered up and chased me away!

Then, dinner was immediately put on hold while I arranged my new roses...

And busied myself with other things around the house until

my skin stopped crawling, and my appetite returned!

Honestly! Why can't all garden creatures be this lovely...

And non snake-like?

Yes... We're talking about you!

After dinner, and after trading my sandals for knee-high

boots, I ventured back out to the garden to see the new light

fixtures glowing and to take in the progress that's been made!

It's been a long week but...

We are getting there!

Click here to listen for yourself!