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Sunday, April 21, 2013

What a week! (warning - long post!)

This past week was a terrible week for many people. The tragic loss of life in Boston, another earthquake in China, in our area there was a missing 51 year old woman who was later found to have drowned. The news has been depressing to say the least and it reminds me that I can be thankful that this world is not my permanent home, and God is in control!
So here's whats happening in my little corner:
1) Thanks for the prayers for my Dad.  His surgery went well, but they found 4 more spots on his heart that needed to be ablazed.  The Dr feels that more are likely to come since these all showed up since January.  They are now planning to implant a defibrillator, possibly in about a month.  He's back home and doing well right now.
2) Every year our Nursing Home gets a week long visit from the state inspectors.  This past week, they showed up.  It's always a dreaded time for us.  We know it's something that needs to be done, but these inspectors are not known for being friendly and will give us a write up for the most picky sort of thing.  They ask lots of questions and watch what you do with a clipboard in hand.   But - we survived!  They are gone and we did well.
3)  Last week I told you about the rain we had and that more was predicted.  Well, it came.  The result is lots of flooding.  The Grand River is breaking all known records for flooding.  It's supposed to crest today (Sunday) in Grand Rapids, so we're hoping things will soon improve.  Further down the river where I live it's supposed to crest on Monday night. I know lots of people who've never had a problem with it, who now have water in their basement.  There are lots of roads closed along with plenty of businesses that have had to close either because they are flooded themselves or no one can get to them.  The big hotels in Grand Rapids were evacuated and another of the businesses that had to evacuate was a nursing home.  I got called in to work to help with 5 admissions that came in at 10 pm.  That's a tough day for those older folk!
Here are a few pictures of the Grand Rapids area to show you what it looks like.  I took some of these and others are from our local paper.


Don't drive into water!

The on ramp to the highway is impassable.

 This is from one of the local news stations.  The top picture is from December, the bottom one was taken on Friday.  Look at the height of the water by the blue bridge!


Downtown Grand Rapids.  Do you see the stairs going into the water?  There's usually a walkway that goes along the river that the stairs go to.  This was taken on Friday.  I saw pictures taken on Sunday that showed the water is now just below those hanging lights and covering the little patio area.  You can also see how high the water is on the bridge on the right.



 Another picture shared by the news.  Someone took this out of a office window, which is still holding the water out.  The building you see across the water is the Public Museum.


This is probably the office that picture was taken from.  Take note of the lights that aren't too far above the water.




So much water!




This train track is usually a long way above the water.


Looks like these trucks are ruined


Streets in a nearby town


It's going to be a little hard to get to the playset!


Last but not least - this is what happens when you go out to take pictures of flooding and back into a tree.  :(

I'll show you my pictures of our area tomorrow.

18 comments:

Jean said...

Wow,wow,wow!!! Truly, when it rains, it pours - literally and figuratively!!!

I HATE floods!! The first year we were married our little town of Manheim was terribly flooded by tropical storm Agnes, and I've made sure that we NEVER live anywhere that could possibly be threatened by flood water. I hope your house and nursing home will be okay.

Don't back into any more trees!

ancient one said...

WOW... you have water... In our area we had flooding from Hurricane Floyd... so I know about some water... but Thank GOD nothing even close to my home. I hope you and yours miss out on the flooding. I hope all you will have to remember are your pictures and the "ouch" on the car.

Thanks for sharing. I don't mind long posts. In fact, I love them. Stay Dry!!

Debbie Jones said...

Let's hope next week brings better news for all! That is quite a flood you are having there. So glad that care center where you work made it through the state inspection.

Terri said...

oh no - your poor car. i didn't know about that.

LL Cool Joe said...

Oh no your poor car, but you captured some amazing shots, but still, that looks expensive!

I can't believe how high the water is, I really hope you don't get more rain!

Unknown said...

The flooding is tragic, but your pictures are really good. Poor car....:( Hope this new week will be much better and the water will be way down or gone soon. I am new to your blog and hope we can become friends.

Anonymous said...

I saw your area on the news this morning and it looks bad.
I Pray that you and yours will be safe and dry and that the water will not get to much higher.
Sorry to see the booboo in your car.
Prayers and Hugs

Betty W said...

That is so scary....so much water!! I can't imagine the damage it is doing. Hope you guys are safe. Sorry about your car. Such a bummer!!

Brooke said...

yikes!! try to stay dry!

Cherdecor said...

I hope these flood waters do not come closer to you. May everyone be safe!

I am happy to hear about your father. I hope he does well.

I know how badly you feel about your car. It gives one a sick feeling. It doesn't look too badly, but it will probably cost you a lot. You could get some of the fancy duck tape they are selling now and do something creative on your bumper. Yes, I am one of those kinds of people. I should tell you about how I hung my curtains in order to save money. Ha! Ha!

Aleta said...

Wow. I had Katrina flash backs with those pictures.

I'm glad your dad is home. Prayers continue.

Just Mom said...

You've had tons of rain. We've been getting tons of snow. I think I'll take the snow.

Anonymous said...

Too bad you can't send that to places with drought conditions. It looks like a little more than you need.
My mother-in-law was the director of a nursing home for several years, so we're familiar with inspections. Sadly, they need to be done because there are too many places that don't measure up.

Pat said...

My poor Grand Rapids, I love that city and it's people! It's terrible to see the water so high and the threat it brings.
And your car! Oh the price it paid for doing the job of a roving reporter!

Jenny said...

Oh Mari, your car! Yikes, I am so sorry! But your pictures are fantastic. Thanks for sharing these. Not only have I never seen anything quite like it, but I was not even aware that this was going on in your neck of the woods. I have a good friend who lives in Holland MI, just a hop skip and a jump from you. I'll have to check in on her. Meanwhile stay safe ... and high and dry!

Sue O said...

Oh my goodness, I haven't been keeping up with the news (nothing good any more, it's all depressing) and I had no idea this was happening. What crazy weather you are having. Your bumper's sacrifice is appreciated!

Anita said...

I haven't visited here in a few weeks, so I'm just hearing of your dad's health issues. Please add my prayers to the others.

When I look at all your photos, I think of how much time and money it's going to take to clean up!

And your precious car... so sorry! Guess it could have been worse though.

Unknown said...

You certainly did have a doozy of a week last week. I am glad that you are ok! We have mean auditors from the state come and visit our agency also. I don't understand why they can't be friendly. That puzzles me.