Dave and I are back home again. Thank goodness! The driveway was walkable yesterday afternoon, and driveable yesterday evening.

I haven't ever seen the river go down this fast. I guess whatever ice jams were causing the flooding in the first place (not to mention the rain and runoff) broke up.

Wow, what a leftover mess...some of our railroad ties that serve as driveway edging floated away. One of them is down the ditch from us, so we'll have to go rescue that later when things are a little more solid.

People's garbage, soda bottles, fast food wrappers, straw, hay, rotting potatoes from the nearby fields, and even a horse patty are all sitting on the driveway. Not to mention the various assortment of sticks and logs, in some cases. I had to throw some of them off the driveway yesterday as we couldn't drive over them.

The mud and the oil are the worst though. Here, where we live in the Red River Valley, our soil is black like the garden soil you buy at home stores. Jet black with a little clay mixed in to make it really sticky. Great for growing things, disgusting to clean.

Our cement in front of the deck and the grass in the front yard - it's all covered with silt and oil slicks. So hopefully I'll be able to get some of that washed off this evening when I get home from work. It's weird, and makes the yard look black. Kinda like something out of Nightmare Before Christmas.

The dogs of course are constantly wet as I have been washing them out on the deck as best I can with a rag and a bucket. They hate it, but they have to go potty, and in order to go, they have to walk through that oil and ick, so they get their paws and bellies washed every time.

My floor in the kitchen and living room is just wet and gross right now from us being in and out of the house.

Maybe I should shave the dogs? LOL Um, maybe not but it would make this a lot easier.

I went out and looked at the shop this morning. It's disgusting and stinky inside. Dave was going to start pressure washing that out this evening when he gets home from work. I have to find the garden hose and get after the front yard and the deck.

At least nobody's house got wet, though. We've been taking a ton of photos, so when I have the chance I'll upload them so you can see them. I know that I have had a lot of worried notes, emails and guestbook entries, so I'll do my best to give you a firsthand look, photo-wise, of what was going on here. In the meantime, here's a link:

The river gague right next to my house

last - next

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