Monday, June 13, 2011 :: Learning not to panic

Mid-day update today since we were without internet yesterday so I didn't get to update last night, except from my iPod using McDonald's free internet. (And for those of you who have an iPod or iPhone, you know how fun it is to type anything of much length on those things!!) And thank you Mr. Sam for restoring my internet--you are my new best friend...for today.

Currently, the river is at 24.66 feet and still rising. Dustin....well, before I tell you all this, promise me you won't show up on my doorstep in the next 3 hours ready to pack me up, ok??....Dustin just left the yard after receiving a phone call that I could visibly see upset him. When I asked him what was going on, he said something about a levee sloughing off on the Big Tark and he was going to go investigate. And here's why we're NOT going to panic...
a) We don't know if the report is even true.
b) If it is true, we don't know how serious the issue is.
c) If it is true, and it is serious, we don't know which side of the Big Tark the supposed issue is on, or even where the issue is at.

So we're just going to all relax until we have more details. Either way, this is not the scenario that would cause an emergency evacuation of our house. I have a feeling we're going to be going through a lot of these hypotheticals in the next few weeks. I guess things are happening around here, even if it is just panic. So if you're praying for us, I have two new requests,
1) That we  everyone would remain calm and of a sound mind. (2 Tim. 1:7: God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and love, and a sound mind.)
2) That our kids would be strengthened (and not be an emotional mess by the time this is over with.) We are trying to keep things as normal as possible, but we don't normally have totes in their bedrooms with lists of things they need to pack up on a moment's notice in case we have to move out, particularly for the rest of the summer. And we don't normally see a 6 foot dike every time we drive out of the driveway or look out the window.

No photos from yesterday, but here's the current hydrograph for Rulo (click for larger view):

Yeah. And just so you all remember, the pinkish color at the bottom is moderate flood stage. Purple, major flood stage. Blue line (current river conditions) or green line (projected river conditions) in either color, bad.

Family news--we're planning to bake some cookies and take them to the Railroad crossing people today. (I have to stop calling them guys because there are some ladies, too.) I figure we'll just bake a ton of cookies and keep them in the car so we can pass them out wherever we go. Chances are good we're going to be around a lot of people in the next few weeks who could use a cookie or two.

UPDATE: Just heard there is an issue on that levee, but not a major one and they are bringing in equipment to work on it. So keep praying.