Raindrops Keep Fallin' On My Head

Oh, the humanity! Fargo has had something like 36 feet of rain in the last three days.

Alright, I'm exaggerating. The paper says it was 4.5", but I call bullsh*t. It is ridiculously soggy around here. So soggy, in fact, that OUR BASEMENT FLOODED. Something about the drain tile not being able to handle the amount of water raising the water table. Two words for those of you home owners new to the area: sump pump. If you're not familiar with it, the term sounds like something dirty. Like many, many other things from this area as well. We'll go into that another time.

Back to the 1' of water in the basement: I have to admit, I was kind of excited. We're talking a girl who grew up in the damn desert, people! Not a whole lot of basements back home, much less the opportunity for them to flood.

I got an education in water removal, let me tell you. If it weren't for the soon-to-be stench and the back-breaking work, I'd have said it was kind of fun. Sick, I know ... but it was a new adventure for me, remember? My husband, on the other hand, took it as a personal affront to his very existence. First there was the withering answer to my "what is wrong" question; " Laura - OUR BASEMENT IS FLOODED." Right. Flooded. That is precisely the first thing my feeble mind settled on when being woken up by a light being flipped on at 1:30A.M. Then came the inquisition, "Laura - what happened with the weather while I was sleeping?!?" As though whatever did have the gall to happen was clearly something I should have reported immediately. Oi vey!

I am glad to report, though, that I have wonderful friends. Stef answered the 9am wakeup call to action and came to move furniture with her beau, Rocco. Mike's friend, Matt, helped man a shop-vac. (The boys were rewarded with TCBY, Stef will receive a portion of my future lottery winnings.)

Jackson (the black kitty) lost his mind. He followed whomever was in the basement around (walking through the water, mind you!) crying at the top of his lungs. He got himself so worked up he actually barfed. (on a bed, of course) We finally had to carry him upstairs and stay with him until he fell asleep.

One dehumidifier and two fans later, the carpet is slowly drying.

Now if only the rain could let up for two or three days in a row ...