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The Kitchen Table

Rain, rain, go away

13 years ago

This is no way to start the day!

There was thunder, lightning and heavy rain here from the time I went to bed last night until about nine this morning. At a little after 5 a.m. I heard the ejector pump alarm. So did our Westie, who is freaked by loud noises like that. He's crying and hurling himself at the back door to get away from the sound, so I have to calm him before going to the basement.

Water was coming over the top of the foundation in two places and rising high enough in the ejector pump to set off the alarm. It was no real problem since our basement is unfinished, and the sump was working fine.

The creek that runs alongside our lot was raging all morning. Our street was flooded well up into our driveway. A car got stuck on a neighboring street where there's a low place in the road. Hwy. 41 (northern extension of the Edens) was closed in two places where there are viaducts due to flooding.

Now the sun's trying to break through the overcast and the temp is rising. We're on the edge of two fronts (hot/cold) and may have more wet 'fun' later today. (Hail? High winds? More rain?)

Given what's happening in other places this is a piece of cake, but I don't have to like it.

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Comments (9)

nicole__
13 years ago
chisue....where are u? and sorry this is happening to u...
msmarion
13 years ago
Could you send the rain here...pleez! I've been doing the rain dance for three weeks now. I'm getting tired of draging the hose to water my orchids and others.

Sorry it's such a crummy day.
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I know, my peppers are looking a little droopy with all the rain, and I think I have EB on my tomatoes. We've had about 2.5" so far (about normal, maybe a little over) this month (would have been more but the 3 days of rain we did have were light rain, even though they predicted heavy). Just wish it were spaced out a little more so we don't get the flash floods. Can't complain though, June 2013 was a washout, July a heat wave and 2012 the whole summer was a drought. Lots of places still in drought. So I'll take this moderate weather though the daily T-storms we've had the past few days can leave ;-)
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I managed to get a few things planted yesterday. Today it's pouring rain on and off, causing us to remain in our car, along with others, at one nursery until it ebbed. Die-hard gardeners weren't going to let some water keep them away. ha. Everyone was mowing yesterday too while I planted. I should have gone back out even tho it was late and mowed too because now it's soaking out there and the grass is high. It does make weeding easier in most places, gotta watch plant roots don't come up with them too though.
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I had lots I didn't get to plant yet too. It actually didn't rain here yesterday it was a nice day but got cold last nite. It is 58 rite now. This is almost July. Potatoes look the best. Cabbage and broccoli are making okay heads I guess, but I feel they are growing so slow but that is due to late frosts and not enough sunshine. I can only get a handful of carrots to come up I'm sure the seed got washed away. Beans grow ing slow. Tomatoes growing slow. Peppers I only have one kind doing anything, that is Hungarian black they have beautiful purple flowers. Other peppers are same size as when I transplanted them. Eggplants too. I planted lots of dwarf tomatoes in strategies and they look okay. Okra are tiny not gonna do nothing. Strawberry are good but now I'm discovering I have some Asian spotted fly and I think it is in my raspberries too. My blueberries look good have unripe berries. Everything is late. Usually by now id have a ton of squash and zukes and cukes. These plants are tiny. Fingers crossed for good warm weather with normal rain fall, destructive winds, hail, and storms to stop. Anyone know a good recipe for grass cuz that's mostly all that's growing. I guess I'll cook it on my compost pile.
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LatinLady, they look healthy and happy. :-) Btw, the summer here has been cold and rainy. We have had 3, THREE, days in total with temperatures around 25C/77F since the end of JUNE. No wonder that my "Vitopod adeniums" outside have been more or less dormant in July and August. But thanks to my grow tents, I have been able to actually "grow" some adeniums. ;-)
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patti43
13 years ago
In a perfect world, it would only rain at night while we sleep. Hope everything is okay in your basement and that the sun comes out soon!!
chisue
Original Author
13 years ago
nicole -- I'm 30 miles north of Chicago.

msmarion -- Well! *I* have an orchid too! (Just one, a Mother's Day gift, but it's actually staying alive and has two more new blooms opening on it. Remarkable for me!)

patti43 -- Trouble is it rained HARD all night. I'm still hearing helicopters overhead, so I guess others have a lot bigger problems than a damp basement.

I've just noticed that there is water in the conservancy behind our house. Bet houses on the far side of it have pumps emptying into it. I haven't seen that before; we've been here since 2001.
patti43
13 years ago
Oh gosh, Chisue. My niece and family live in Gurnee. Do you know if they are flooding? I should call them this evening. Hope everything has settled down now in your area.
glenda_al
13 years ago
Hoping things have improved for you.
susanjf_gw
13 years ago
we had flooding watch here in detroit...
chisue
Original Author
13 years ago
patti43 -- We lived in an apartment in Gurnee while our house was being built. Construction took longer than expected, and we'd closed on our prior home. I heard that the bad economy may force Gurnee residents to pay property taxes now -- not necessary when all those megamalls were booming!

I don't think they took the same hit we did. We had a month's worth of rain overnight. (Over 3 inches.)
patti43
13 years ago
Thanks, Chisue. She posted on our family website so I knew she was okay. I didn't know they didn't pay property taxes in Gurnee. WTH? I sure never heard of a town not charging property tax--even if they didn't need it. They could've been building up a nice fund for salary increases for teachers, firemen and police!

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