Tuesday, August 2, 2011

I'm Sorry About Your House, And Your Cat, But...

So, how often does your sister start off a conversation like this: "I'm sorry about your house, and your cat, but at least you have something to blog about."

Yup, it was that kind of weekend.

You know how they say bad things come in threes? Well! Let's just say we've had event one and two, and I'm very afraid for number three. It all started Saturday night. Kid A, my hubby, and I stayed up late watching a show. When I stumbled into bed past midnight and started drifting into blissful sleep, I heard the unmistakable sound of a cat screaming in pain just as a car passed our house.

Sleep vanished, and long story short, someone hit our cat. Poor old kitty. Thankfully, he's alive and kicking, but we didn't think he'd make it through the night. *Sigh of relief*

Then Sunday evening it started to rain. And rain. And rain. Monday morning I bolted from sleep at 5:45 to the sound of rushing water. Being the worry freak I am, I went to see what was causing said rushing, even though Hubby told me it was JUST the rain. Rain doesn't fall in biblical proportions, because when that happens it's called a plague. Let's just say it was plaguing outside.

The sound led me to the basement where I found our window-well filled three-fourths of the way to the top with churning, muddy water. And as if that wasn't enough, Niagara Falls had somehow moved from Canada/New York to my window sill. It looked like this:



But muddier. And meaner, because it wasn't pouring into a river. Let's just say couches and carpet and and basements are not meant to receive Niagara Falls. Ever.

I screamed, shoved the wet couches out of the way, and grabbed some towels. Ha! Towels cannot stop the Falls. As soon as I discovered this great fact I ran/splashed for buckets. Lots of buckets. Then I yelled for help.

Kid A stumbled from her room to the sweet tones of: I need more buckets!

Soon Kid A, Hubby, and I were in a race against Mother Nature and her plague. We filled and dumped (outside--not back on the floor, just clarifying) a four to five gallon bucket of water every two to three seconds for an HOUR AND A HALF. See? Plague.

What were kids B-D doing during all of this? They retreated to their bedrooms and cranked their stereo to the song, Uncle Noah's Arc. No kidding. We bailed out our basement to a theme song. At least it added some humor to the situation.

I also called in reinforcements in the form of my brother, his wife, and my sister. They came armed with sump pumps, shop vacs, and love. The plague finally stopped falling from the sky, and they all helped me suck out copious amounts of water from the basement--and move everything upstairs to dry out. And I do mean everything. The carpet now lives in the garage with fans provides by sweet, sweet neighbors (who also helped bail out several other victims of the plague). The basement has fans of its own, and in a few weeks we'll move everything back after someone re-installs the carpet.





Oh, and the cat lived through the plague just fine. So did we, but can you see why I'm afraid of bad thing number three? Yeah, I may just stay home for awhile and cower. But, at least I had something to blog about today. Ahhh, silver lining.

How was your weekend?

7 comments:

Jonene Ficklin said...

I'm so sorry about your kitty and that Niagra Falls came to your house! Don't worry about bad thing # 3. That's in the waiting . . . for the house to dry out, the carpet to come back, and the backache to go away. You're clear! But if you must cower inside, I'm excited for all the writing that you can do - and I'll bet you're ready with lots of leftover adrenaline from your calm, quiet weekend. : )

Irene B. Gardner said...

Wow! I just got an email from a former neighbor who lives up your way about the canal flooding into their back yard. I guess they must live close by you.

It can be so shocking when your cat gets hurt. They shriek something fierce and your adrenaline goes into overdrive.

Thank goodness for wonderful family, friends, neighbors, and even strangers who saw a need and stepped in to offer help.

Bless you all,
Irene

Jenilyn Collings said...

Wow! That sounds like quite the weekend. I'm glad you all survived, though. And the Uncle Noah's Ark thing is hilarious. :)

Hermana Maw said...

Jonene, I do hope to get some writing done this week. *Crossing fingers*

Irene, thank goodness indeed. :)

Jenilyn, I stopped filling buckets for a second when the song came on. I'm still laughing about it. So funny.

Sandy L. Rowland said...

Oh Leisha. That is terrible. I've had the water plague before and it wears you out. So sorry.
My cat did not survive the car.
I'm praying the clouds part and the angels keep you from anything else disaster related.

Another superior post.

Cherie said...

Still a good story the second time around.

Holly said...

You have quite the talent for writing stories. Maybe you should give that manuscript another chance and include a scene like you painted here. ;-)

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