The Non-Event

I suppose I shouldn’t call this flood a non-event yet, should I?  Maybe I’ve jinxed us.  Let’s hope not. 

Neighbor Al came over yesterday and helped Ole get all the cars moved out of harm’s way and to lift a lot of things up off the floor in the shop and the pole barn.  The front yard looks like a used car lot – currently five vehicles and a riding lawn mower parked in front of the house on top of our “little hill.”  That’s when the river seemed to stabilize and then drop a good 8 inches overnight!!  But you know darn well if we hadn’t prepared it would have kept rising.  That’s just the way things go, isn’t it? 

There’s the old saying, “The good Lord never gives you more than you can handle.”  He must have known that Ole and I were just about at our breaking point from all the years of flooding.  I think if the predicted forecast of 17.9 feet would have occurred you could have shipped me off to the loony bin. 

The stresses have accumulated over a long period of time – not just when the river is on the rise.  The stress of dealing with the government entities over the last 5 years trying to get a dike built or get a buyout, and not getting anywhere has been added to in an over abundance this year.  The weather bureau and the news media started with the flood hype back in January, and it’s been nonstop ever since.  Every TV or radio station that you tune to, and every newspaper that you pickup has been filled with talk about the spring flooding and how terrible it’s going to be.  The constant bombardment has been overwhelming.  The snow melt has been quite delayed this year – so the anticipation of when that’s going to happen wears on one.  The longer it stays cold in the spring means that when the temps do warm up the melt could very well happen within a few days and it would be like flushing the toilet with water running into the main stream.  But I think we caught a break this year as we couldn’t have asked for a more perfect melt – slow and easy. 

I’m tired and I have a headache.  I don’t think I’ve slept more than 4 or 5 hours any night for the last two months.  In my lifetime I’ve found that I hold up pretty well during the issue – whatever it may be – but once the stressor has passed is when I fall apart.  The headache is the indication of the beginning of that falling apart.  It’s like, “Maybe I can actually breathe again,” and during the process of all the anxiety washing away comes the let down with all the side effects.  But it’s okay – I’m Norwegian and I will get through it!!

You’ve all heard the story about the little boy who cried wolf one too many times?  When he finally was actually being chased by a wolf no one would believe him and come to help him.  There was an article in today’s paper stating that the Moorhead mayor is upset with the complacency of the residents not wanting to sandbag.  He’s afraid they’re going to wait too long to see if the river is actually going to rise to their predicted high, and then it will be too late.  I know exactly how they feel.  I’ve lost my trust in the weather bureau’s predictions, the information that the news media puts out and many of the emergency management people.  This has been going on for years.  The Buffalo was predicted to crest at 17.5 feet.  According to the gauge that’s just downstream from here it reached a height of 16.2 feet, stayed at that level for about 24 hours and then dropped rapidly.  Ole and I have lived along this river for over 35 years.  Historically, this is how it has acted in previous years – stabilizes for 24 hours and then drops.  At this point they’re still telling us that it hasn’t crested yet and won’t until Friday with another level of 16.5 feet.  I don’t know where they’re getting that – but I guess they have to do something to keep the public stressed.  Yes, I understand we’re to have some rain showers toward the end of the week – but depending on which station you listen to – it could either be just a trace, not enough to more than wet the sidewalk, up to a major rain event.  So which is it?  And why such a huge discrepancy? 

Personally, I think it’s over for the Buffalo River - I may be wrong – but I doubt it. 

I’m soooo tired.

Love, Lena