In the news (by alaric)

BBC local news report on the flooding around here

Flood updates (by alaric)

Well, on Saturday night, Jean started projectile vomiting in a big way. Over the course of a few hours. So on Sunday her grandparents came and picked her up, to take here to Essex, away from muddy water and biting flies. And contaminated tapwater, since it turns out that water treatment plants had flooded; they say we should boil all water now.

And since the reservoirs are emptying, and they can't fill them up again with the treatment plants flooded, they may turn off the mains water. When this was announced, there was rioting in supermarkets over bottled water stocks.

Sigh...

FLOOD!! (by alaric)

This time we're really flooded.

Yes, I know, we've claimed to be flooded before. The kind of flood you get when an appliance's plumbing breaks, and the carpet is all squelchy.

This time, it was ankle-deep...

It rained a lot today, and the stream rose so high that it came over its banks and poured across the drive. The waterfall became a roaring pond, with water cascading down the driveway between the two houses to rejoin the stream at the millpond, as well as water cascading across our parking area and down behind our house. This meant that the tunnel that normally carries the stream from the waterfall to the pond behind the house was full of high-pressure water, which proceeded to squirt between the foundation stones. Water came through the wall at the back of our fireplace, but not very much compared to the torrent that burst from the wall at the back of the woodpile. This minor river ran down the gulley in front of the house, where it filled the tomato grow-bags with water, swelling them up, making them form a dam - so the water level rose until it came over our doorstep, filling downstairs ankle deep and tripping the electricity supply.

All this happened while I was out delivering Sarah and Jean to Cheltenham - a trip that ended up taking a while, due to flooded roads. Luckily Barbara was around, with a friend, who let themselves into our house and shifted a lot of stuff that would otherwise have been ruined. When I came back Barbara and I shifted the grow-bags, removing the dam. This caused the water level to drop quickly, and soon the house was emptying out until it reached the level of the doorstep, at which point it stayed there, kept topped up by the water coming through the wall.

I rescued a few more things that were getting wet, then set off to collect Sarah and Jean again, now concerned. I had taken a long time to get home from Cheltenham due to flooded roads, so I took a route via high ground (up to Birdlip, then over Leckhampton and down into Cheltenham). To my surprise, the centre of Cheltenham was awash, with the police closing roads down - so I picked Sarah up and we headed towards where Jean's nursery was. The usual route was blocked by a small lake where a roundabout normally sits, so we had to take a long drive around trying to find unblocked routes and avoid the long queues of traffic.

This took over an hour, and we were starving by then, so we stopped off at a supermarket on the way back for a quick snack, before proceeding to make our way home.

There we fed Jean and put her to bed, had dinner (thanks to Barbara letting us use her cooker), helped Barbara mop about a bit, then (without electricity, and with the place still too wet to do much with) we're retiring to hunt out insurance documents and have an early night, to prepare for tomorrow.

But we're all alive!

And now we have photos uploaded

Crickly Country Park (by sarah)

Ages ago now - about six weeks or so my perants came up for the weekend and we went for a day outing at Crickly Country Park - there is geology, archeology and lots of wildlife there so it was lots of fun. I was also impressed with the visitors centre! though it needs a little cafe/shop thing really and the loos were a bit - hmmmm.

Jean loves collecting rocks!

Alaric decided he'd roll down the hill I can't remember why - this was on the back were the old Roman Hill Fort used to be.

Dad spent alot of time drawing cats and the like and reading all the notices - he was especially enamerred with the fossils and models at the visitors centre.

Jean became jellous of other children she found as they had hats and she didnt - this was how she ended up wearing Alarics fold-up hat!

I kept trying to photograph this poor creature but everytime it felt safe enough to venture out some one with a dog or small child would come walking through and scare it away again - hence no good pics!

The visitors centre had a giant snakes and ladders with velcro attatched to the wall and big cloth dice - Jean loved it though we did have a minor tiff about returning the dice to the little room were the game was!

Bus Fare Stupidness (by sarah)

I decided to go to Cheltenham on the bus becuase we thought it would be cheaper and more environmentally friendly than the van - it may be more environmentally friendly but it certianly is not budget friendly.

It is in fact twice as expensive for me to get the bus in than to travel in by the van - if Al is dropiing me off and going straight home then it costs the same.

THIS IS STUPID!!!!

So this places public transport into the catagory of the thing you only do if you can drive or get someone to drive you, rather than the more sensible - this is the cheaper slightly scuzier option.

To be fare they do have a weekly £9 ticket which I shall look into as there and back is over a fiver! It is ludicrous - and it appears to be in a viscous cycle - no one uses the buses so the costs have to be met by the few who have to use it but becuase it is so expensive fewer and fewer and fewer people will use it.

Grrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

STUPIDNESS - again.