Howdy,
With Jasper out of school on holiday, today I took the three boys up to Epa and Grandma’s in Mariposa.
The creeks gush with flowing water, ponds gather full, and grass grows green (and, for now, the sky grins great big and gorgeous blue).
Here’s a quick, five-second video my mom sent me last Tuesday. It’s a pond and a creek, and it’s just jamming!
My mom just — as in this very moment (almost like an interruption, except I’m using it as a quote 😉 ) — said they know someone who’s “four-foot-wide creek expanded out to a 100 feet.”
So, yeah, there’s water, water, everywhere, and there’s more coming. My parents said that they’re hearing that the next set of storms is supposed to bring another 5-10 inches of rain. That’s on top of the 62 inches they’ve already received. (All numbers unofficial, but, it’s safe to say it’s been wet.)
The pond on the property is full, has been for awhile now, after a drought season of drying all the way up for the first time we’ve ever seen. It was a shame, lots of good fish and fishing lost.
Readers know I like the rain, and I even thought we may enjoy a storm while we were up in Mariposa today, but it was a sunny afternoon — also fantastic of the boys to play. We’ll take a sunny afternoon, for sure, and there are some who need it.
I was going to say, though I like the precipitation, I don’t want to write about all the rain and rushing water, with more on the way, without making mention of Northern California’s critical concern.
I’m sure most people are aware of what’s going on with the Oroville Dam and its damage and potential flooding danger, with 150,000-200,000 people in the area evacuated earlier in the week and watching closely in the imminent days.
Some of those people are family, as my parents graduated from Gridley High School, and I was born within the evacuated area. I don’t live there now and don’t have any specialized, insider, information, other than some communication about crazy traffic, long lines for gasoline, and stinking, scum looters taking advantage of pending disaster, but I definitely pray for everyone’s safety.
We are even to pray for our enemies — but can we still call looters scum? Seems appropriate. I mean, it’s informal, but it’s by the book as far as definition. “Scum (noun) … 2 informal ‘drug dealers are scum’: despicable people, lowest of the low, dregs of society, vermin, riffraff, lowlifes.”
What a terrible thing to do while neighbors are running for their lives.
Google “looters” and you get an early autofill of “looters will be shot.” So, no, not appreciated.
Such a sad sight, an even darker side of disaster.
I have an uncle who lives even further north, above the evacuated area, and he’s on the Sacramento, and he was talking about sandbagging the buildings on his property to coax water around and into the river rather than through his garage, which isn’t a garage but rather a sweet man-cave.
California needed the rain, and we’re thankful for it, and I pray that we can keep it safely in paths and reservoirs that help rather than hurt.
Be safe and helpful out there, Good Samaritans and sandbag stackers if necessary.
We want water, water, but not everywhere.
—Billy
Reading. Writing. Living.
Word Count: 67,710 / On Pace: 67,650 / Year’s Goal: 200,000
Please subscribe to mailing list for the Reading Writing Living journey we’re on and get my newsletter goods. Thank you.