Have we had enough rain yet? It was a downpour last night and I knew that my usual routes to work may have some flooding, so I left a bit early.

I was not prepared for the amount of water on the roads this morning. I had to backtrack twice when I got to places with more water than my truck would handle. Our little bridge (culvert) at the end of the drive was flowing over with water this morning. Of course I did notice there were many places that had water on them earlier, but it went down enough to be off the roadway by the time I passed.

I was worried about one place I didn’t pass this morning, but did this afternoon after the water subsided. I pass one place just outside of a small town, where there is a small donkey and a few goats. When I passed the place this afternoon, I noticed that the goat/donkey pasture was under at least 3 to 4 feet of water. I did not notice any animals standing in the water, so I am assuming the owners got them out and they are all safe.

On the way home from play rehearsal today, I also had to do a couple of bypasses of flooded roads. There were a few places where I had to go through some standing water just to make it home. It felt like one of those “You can’t get there from here” sort of stories.

I’m sure some of the roads I travel on will be better tomorrow, but some will be worse as some of the local rivers have yet to crest.

Stay safe if you are driving in flood prone areas. There is water, water everywhere.

Well, the new pump is installed and cleanup continues.  We picked up some wet items from downstairs and put them outside to dry, afterwhich we’ll try washing them.  The second dehumidifier which I said doesn’t work actually seems to after all.  It just draws a lot of power.  I switched it to another outlet and it worked fine, didn’t trip the circuit breaker.  However, I used an extension cord with it, an office-style 3-prong job, and the connector area got pretty warm.  Now I know that the dehumidifier says not to use an extension cord, but the cord they provide is short, and with the basement outlets set high I have to have to have the dehumidifier practically against the wall in order to plug it in, but it seems that’s what I will have to do.

Anyway, on to the headline.  I was at a restaurant tonight and I overheard an encounter between two dads and their boys, both named Griffin.  I have encountered boys with this name, but not two at once.  It was a surprise to the dads too.  One is seven and the other nine, so they are still quite young which is my experience as I haven’t known any older boys or men with that name, though it’s possible some that I met are teens now.  According to Behind the Name, the name Griffin has ranked in the mid 200’s for the last decade, with its peak in 1998 at 215.  The year before, it was at 225 with the popularity going down drastically with the years going back.  Before the 80’s, it doesn’t rank at all.  I bring up 1997 specifically because a certain event happened that may have improved the popularity of the name somewhat.  That event being the release of the first book in a series of seven.  The book I speak of is of course Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s/Philosopher’s Stone.  While not a main character’s name, or any character that I can recall for that matter, the name of his house was Griffyndor, and I believe they did encounter a griffin (the mythical beast, not someone with the name) in the first book, though it could have been one of the next few.  Is it a stretch to tie this book with the name?  Maybe.  I don’t know.  I think I’ve written enough on it though.

Today I had no job, but then one district had two days off due to flooding (the town is by a river) and another I am still waiting for my login info for, which the woman I talked to said would be a couple of weeks due to limited time processing new subs and taking it in order of hire.  I do have a full day tomorrow though so perhaps something to write about.  Until then.

I have relatives all over this country. Some I know quite well, others not so well. But just about a month ago, my daughter was in the middle of some wildfires blazing in her area of Florida. Now my little sister is in the midst of massive flooding in Iowa. I suggested putting the water in buckets to carry it to the drought areas, but I think the cost of that is a bit much.

This did get me thinking about all the things that happen and get out of control.

Fires, on one hand they are beneficial. For warmth, cooking, light, ambiance, and at one time protection, fire is wonderful. Out of control, it can be a very destructive and fast moving force. After seeing the destruction of a wild fire, it is a wonder how anything can survive them.

As bad as that is the destructive force of the wind (hurricanes and tornadoes) can overwhelm our control at an even quicker pace than fire. There is nothing humanly possible to stop the quick and often deadly force of the wind.

And finally rain and floods. If you’ve ever seen the power generated by flood waters first hand, you would know enough to stay very clear of them. As little as 1 foot of quickly moving water can move a full size car. Just recently on the news 2 story houses were shown washing away in the power of a flooded river. Bridges, road, houses, and the land itself are washed away by the power of water.

We need the air, rain and even fire (I don’t care what you use to heat your house I bet something is burning to provide it) to survive and flourish, but we need to heed the hidden strength these things carry. It can sometimes make you feel very small to see the power released.