Response from the Fire Department

In response to my letter to the fire department due to the flooding of our street, I got this from our Fire Chief. All typos are his:

Thank you for taking the time to write to me regarding your experience last evening. I offer to you to following explanation regarding the XXXXX Fire Department responses caused by the rain storm last evening.

Last night the rain conditions started to become severe enough shortly after 6:00 pm that the XXXXX Fire Department began to run flood related calls at 6:16 pm. During any major flood condition the Fire Department is typical answering multiple calls. The number of these calls come into us so quickly that in many cases we are required to hold calls in abeyance because we do not have enough equipment and staffing to handle this volume of calls. Incidentally, it would not be cost effective to provide enough equipment and staffing to handle these storm since these type of storms do not occur on a regular basis.

In any severe storm Fire Station # 3 watches the water conditions very carefully. When the water rises to a certain level, the fire and ambulance crew leave the station and relocate to a dry position still within their district. They do this so that they are available to respond quickly to calls. During many storms they run call after call and are out of the station for a prolonged period of time and therefore would not be in the station during the storm.

Last evening after the call at 6:16 pm the crew from Station # 3 returned to the Fire Station and determined that the water was high enough that they need to relocate. They did that at approximately 6:45 pm. From that time until approximately 1:45 am this crew was out of their station handling storm related emergencies.

Rest assured that if anyone from XXXXX would have called 9-1-1 and requested assistance you would have received it. Regardless of how deep the water rises, we will always find a way to respond to an emergency. If the water rises to an extent that we believe that it is not safe for the resident (meaning that we cannot get to them) then we will order the evacuation of that property and we will assist all residents to safety.

I am sorry that you found no one at the fire station last evening to help you. Those crews were out on other calls. You raise a good point about the sign being placed on the doors. I will take your comment under consideration, however, you need to understand that if the crews are leaving the station on an emergency (this was the case at 6:16 pm last evening) they will not take the time to post a sign.

If I can answer any further questions, please feel free to contact me at my office number listed below.

So, I wrote back and said, "I don't think I communicated very well to you that the phone you have at your door was NOT working." Here was the response to that:

That phone rings into the station and if there was no one in the station it would not have been answered. Your comment about sometimes it rang and sometimes it didn’t bothers me.

Therefore, I have someone on the way to Fire Station # 3 at this moment to check on that telephone. If there is a problem with it I have every hope that it will be repaired in short order.

Thank you for taking the time to clarify this issue with the telephone. This is helpful.

Well, at least the Fire Department cares. The phone call that I left for the City Engineer has gone un-returned.

Flood

When it rains, the our street floods. It is the ONLY way to get in and out of the parking lot at our condo building. We used to be able to get in and out via a local business, but they've recently installed pylons so cars cannot drive through their lot.

I came home tonight during a bad rainstorm, so obviously the street was flooded. I had to park a block north of our building and walk through the rain and cold. At the point right before our access street, the flood waters were probably 1 to 2 feet high. At that corner is the fire department, whose parking lot does not flood. So, I decided to go to their back door and use the doorbell to see if they'd let me walk through their building instead of through the puddle. Who would say no to a mom carrying a 15 month old in the pouring rain, right? No one answered the doorbell. Then, I noticed the phone. I picked it up. Nothing. I hung up and tried again. Sounded like a very faint ring. I hung up. Tried again. Seemed like the problem was a poor connection. Never got anyone to answer. In looking through the windows, it appeared the place was closed. Why would you close a fire station (that has a BIG safe haven sign by the door) without putting a notice on the door to the public?

String Bean and I walked around the back of the fire department, through the bushes and the mud, to avoid the deep water. I'm so sick of this. The city is getting a letter from me. (Mr. Bean was approaching our house from the opposite direction and had to park at the local Walgreens and walk through shallower water home.)

Train Up a Child

Train up a child in the way he should go, and even when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6.

Today I sat in Bible study with a multi-generational group of women. I am the only one in the group who has a young kid. One mom has a junior high and high school kid. One just graduated her kids from college, and the other two are in the grandma stage. The interesting thread that went throughout the "empty nesters" prayer requests was adult children who have walked away from the Lord.

Of course, we parents have to do our part in training up the child in the way he should go, but ultimately, it is their choice whether or not to follow it. I think many parents claim this verse and then assume they've done something wrong when they've trained up their child. They do the "what if" game. What if I'd been a better example? What if I'd prayed for my child more? What if I'd _________.

We parents forget that our children make a choice about their salvation...and their behavior. We also forget that God has timing that is very different than ours. One of the ladies shared that her uncle (in his late 60s) just gave his life to the Lord because his brother, who had been a living example of a life changed by Christ, passed away and he realized that he needed God in his life since dependable brother was gone. Apparently his parents had been praying for him since he was a teen. They'd died 15 or so years before the brother died and prayed for him all those years. Then, the brother had taken over. Yet it was after both of them had gone home that the Lord answered their prayers.

Take heart! God's timing is an enigma to me for sure, but He's never late!

Peanut's First Day of School

Since Peanut celebrated his third birthday last week, he is no longer eligible for Early Intervention. This means he goes to school now to receive his therapies and so forth. We had an IEP meeting (Individual Education Plan) and it was decided that Peanut would go to pre-school 4 mornings a week and receive Speech, Occupational and Physical therapies. The classroom that he is in is especially for kids with speech problems. We visited the classroom and Peanut had a wonderful time. Our biggest concern was that he would have an hour bus ride home from school. So yesterday was the big day, Peanut was nearly beside himself with excitement and couldn't wait to get his back-pack on. Filbert got to drive him on his first day, because I took him for the visit. I'm still not sure that was quite fair. Then I just had to wait for the bus to bring him home. The bus was scheduled to drop him off at 12:07. I had my coat on and was waiting by 11:55. At 12:17, I called the school to find out where my baby was, and as soon as I was put on hold I saw the bus coming up the street. I ran down to driveway to meet it, but it drove right past. I ran after it for about a 1/2 block but then I could see it turning a corner, so I turned around to head it off at the next block. I flagged the bus down and found that the driver had been given bad directions. Peanut was sound asleep so he did not see the crazy lady chasing a bus down the street, but I'm afraid most of my neighbors did and I've been trying so hard to keep the crazy in the house.

String Bean's Oscar Night

The Oscars started at 7:30 CST. String Bean decided at 6 pm that if she was going to stay up until the end, she needed a quick nap before the party started. Of course, she woke up in time to watch the first award's presentation.

The night went well-without a hitch. String Bean worked the crowd until the party ended around 11:30 pm. She had her little yellow chair which she sat on for the majority of the evening. She found new friends to play with. She showed off her skills with her water bottle (open and close, repeat). She found Aposotlos' hoodie and used it as a pillow. She rolled around on the floor and giggled.

Something tells me she thought the party was for her.

Once the last guest walked out the door, String Bean put her thumb in her mouth and looked up at me with her big brown eyes as if she was saying, "Boy, all that entertaining just wore me out!"

I'm looking forward to next year to see how she changes her entertainment techniques.

Forming an Opinion

We host an Academy Awards party every year for my husband's co-workers (and a few of his college friends). His friend, Chris, summed it up with his facebook status when he said:

Chris is looking forward to the Oscar evening festivities. I never know what to think about politics, religion or society until Hollywood tells me what to think.

Although his facebook statuses are nearly always tongue-in-cheek, there is a lot of truth to this statement. Many Americans are simply in awe of celebrities and will think and do whatever they think and do.

As the saying goes, "If you don't believe in something, you'll fall for anything."

'Tis the Season!

A plague has hit both my house and Amy's. I am suffering with a cold of some sort (the day before the big Oscars party my husband hosts for all his coworkers every year-joy). The Nut household have symptoms that include tossing cookies, snot, coughing, and all the delights of a nasty virus you could ever hope and wish for.

'Tis the Season! Embrace it. Love it.

*cough, cough*

Nutrition is Expensive

I was watching some Primetime kind of show on television the other day. They were comparing the fattest city (in West Virginia) and the thinnest city (somewhere in the northeast). One of the ladies in the fat city opened her cabinet. I recognized many of the brands in the cupboard as Aldi brands. The most interesting sound bite came moments later when she opened her freezer and commented on how they ate a lot of frozen vegetables because the fresh stuff was so expensive. In response to a question by the reporter, the lady responded, "It is a lot cheaper and easier to eat unhealthy food. That is how we got into the position we are in." (Well, she said something like that anyway.)

It struck me at that moment why it is so easy for me to purchase "junk" food. I'm a coupon junkie first and foremost. So, when my favorite treats are on sale and I have a coupon, it is so cheap, my frugal side insists on the purchase. I've NEVER seen a fresh produce company put out a coupon. Occasionally, a non-produce company will offer a free something or cents off of something in the produce seciont if you buy their product.

No wonder America is so fat! Just wait...with this economic crisis, we are going to get fatter!

True Confessions, Part IV

All of my life, I have wanted a daughter. When I was pregnant for the second time, after having already had a son (who I adore), I *really* wanted a daughter. I remember one particular conversation I had with the Lord, in which I informed Him in no uncertain terms, that this baby I was carry had better be a girl, or I was going to be really mad. I probably don't need to mention that this was a one-sided conversation or that this is not my proudest moment. Then I went into labour almost 7 weeks early and was in the hospital for days trying to keep this baby inside to cook a little longer. After three days of total bedrest in the hospital, the baby wasn't doing so well and the doctor said "Call your husband, the c-section starts in 40 minutes." Filbert made it just in time and as I lay there waiting for my second child to be born, I didn't care anymore if it was a boy or a girl, I just begged God to let me hear my baby cry when it was born. The tiny cries of my 3 pound, 13 ounce son are still the sweetest sound I have ever heard.

Happy 3rd Birthday, Peanut! You are my heart and my joy.

Webkinz

The Webkinz site is down for maintenance right now. I am an arcade junkie on that site. Who knows what might get accomplished tonight if it doesn't come up soon.

Wrinkles, String Bean's Webkinz pug dog, might be hungry or need love... I am so attached to that virtual dog!