My mom has asked me how I thought to take that picture (which I took from the bottom step because as you can see, the apartment was already pretty flooded). I took it because somewhere in my chaotic thoughts, I feared that the insurance company might not believe we had gotten flooded. I know that sounds silly now but that's why I took it--to prove we'd sustained water damage.
I wrote a lot about the flood over the course of reconstruction; if you search on the word flood, you'll find those posts.
What happened on October 28, 2009 sure opened my eyes to how devastating water damage can be, and how pervasive it is. Today I find myself identifying with people whose homes get flooded in a way I never did before.
I'd love to say this whole thing is behind us, but it's not. I am still jumpy when I hear unexpected water sounds. and Wally is far more skittish than he was prior to the flood.
I think I wrote about what he did that day. I was in the bedroom trying desperately to stuff unwilling cats into their carriers. He got free of his and ran out to the office area which is right by the back door. I know he wanted to get to his safe spot, our cat perch. But it was out in the deepest parts of the water near the door, which meant he ran ran through the rising water. (Quick aside, yeah that sounds like a cliche but honestly our house was filling like a bathtub.) He came tearing back into the bedroom with wet legs and tummy, all wide eyed and freaked out. I have never seen a more terrified animal than Wally was that minute.
So the event is over but the effects linger on. It's that way with any significant event, I guess; over time the immediate intensity of emotion fades but it probably never goes away entirely.
2 comments:
Yowza. At first glance, I thought that was a big piece of plastic sheeting caught in the door and then I realized that was water! Wow. Those tribes who build their houses up on stilts knew what they were doing. Jeez.
Nope that was the water.
Here's the funny/stupid thing I did: when I realized that the volume of water far exceeded the outdoor drain's capacity, I probably spent 90 seconds yelling "NO!" at the water while I grabbed our few towels and threw them at the back door.
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