Of Flood and Birthdays

Our trip to Canada ended last Wednesday 23rd September and we came back home around 10:30 pm not too sure as to what to expect as we had heard that there had been some hard rain and flooding. As we drove home we saw the above sign shining in the dark on the road just outside our house. Our house is on a hill but as soon as we opened the door we knew something had happened because of the bad wet carpet smell and the musty odor. The den/family room which is on the lower level and has a large sliding door to the garden had the carpet all wet. There was no standing water then as the storm was most severe on Monday 21st but the carpet was soaked and mold was starting to grow. Unfortunately before we left we started to clean our garage and placed many boxes and books on the floor in the den. Many books are a loss. I spent a long time sprinkling corn starch between the pages of some of my new cookbooks hoping that it will help. We have been working on this flooded den since then – our suitcases are still unpacked and it is raining hard right now.

These are the pictures, below, showing why our road is closed ahead – the Allatoona Creeek overflowed, less than ½ mile away. This is a dormant little creek which turned into a torrent.

Click on pictures to enlarge them

I called our home insurance company, but unfortunately this water damage is not covered. We cannot complain because apart from removing the carpet and installing new tiles on the floor as well as discarding wet books and other wet items it could have been much worse. Many family homes very close to us sustained major damage. Vice-President Joseph Biden came to our town yesterday then toured metro Atlanta by helicopter to look at some portions of the area still under water. At least 11 deaths were blamed on the storms. I have some pictures obtained from the City of Atlanta I can show you below. I shall indicate the roads for family and friends who know the neighborhood.

The following pictures were taken in our county, Cobb County.



Unfortunately many pets were left in flooded houses and barns. Below is the Fox Hollow Barn, but some horses were stranded inside.

Fox Hollow Barn

In my post of July 1, 2009, called Trails along the Chattahoochee River you can see how pretty this river is and how large and muddy it is now in the pictures below.

Houses close to small creeks or ponds were flooded - some to the roof tops, as you can see below.


Some parts of major highways in Atlanta were under water and closed for several days, as pictured below.


On Thursday morning when it was light we saw that instead of finding our outdoor plant dead it had grown beyond its little pot. The seeds in the bird feeders had sprouted and some unknown mushrooms had grown amongst the weeds. An empty bucket outside is now full of water, about 21 inches high. It is dark outside even though it is only 3:30 pm now, rain is pounding the roof and we are expecting another 6 inches before tomorrow.


Upon our return, we had planned to go out and eat at Canoe – a restaurant close to the Chattahoochee River. One of my blogging friends had recommended this restaurant to me not long ago and my husband and I were going to celebrate our daughters’ birthdays there. Our daughters are in California fortunately (floodwise) but we were going to celebrate anyway. Our celebration has been watered down (excuse the pun) to a TV dinner at home. Below is a picture of the restaurant.


Hopefully the river will soon be back resting in its bed and may look like the serene painting of Norwegian painter Fritz Thaulow (1847-1906.)


Today, September 26 is our daughter Jessica’s birthday. On September 29 it will be our daughter Céline’s birthday.

Below is a painting by Sir Thomas A. Kennington, English (1856-1916) called Mother’s Love.



I shall not post current pictures of Céline and Jessica as I did not clear this with them, but I have some pictures of when they were little girls. Below is a picture showing Céline with her long dark hair and Jessica with her blond hair.



Below are pictures in front of our former house in Decatur, Ga, in the Fall and during a rare snow day.


Three pictures below are showing them with their pet Bantam chickens, at the beach in Florida and in front of a wagon loaded with a cotton bale.



They could spend hours playing with their dolls. I do not have a picture of them then but here is a painting by Russian painter Alexei Alexeivich Harlamoff ( 1848-1925) entitled “Sisters” 1888.


We wish them a happy birthday time together with much happiness the whole year long.

Here is a vintage birthday card for Jessica’s birthday, today 26 September –


Here is a vintage birthday card for Céline’s birthday, for Tuesday 29 September -


I hope they will be taking many photographs but in the meantime below is a representative "sister" picture painted by English painter Sophie Gengembre Anderson (1823-1903.)



So far we have cleared only about 1/3 of the family room. There is a lot more to do before the carpet can be removed. I had planned to write a nice post, but the unforeseen rain event took precedence. Tomorrow the sun is scheduled to be back and the rain will go away.

Painting by John LaFarge, American (1835-1910) Wild Roses and Iris, 1887, watercolor and gouache.