Don’t touch anything

The TV in the living room croaked.  It had sound but no picture. We measured and made a trip to town and bought a new one.  The old one went to the garage, it might be just one small part that can be replaced when it is warmer and then we will have a spare TV.  Repairmen charge one arm and two legs to repair anything nowadays.   The service call for repair would have been almost as much as a new TV.

My other baby brother and I have been trying to go to Bingo one night a week with our Dad.  Dad enjoys Bingo very much and it is good for him to get out.  For years my Dad had a friend named Darrell who was blind and had special Bingo cards…Dad would pick him up every week to go to bingo.   Dad would see that he got back into his home safely after bingo. Now we are trying to do the same for our Dad.

I came home from bingo last week and it is my custom to walk Chance since I have my parka on.   The walk went fine, Chance did his duty and then when I went to open the screen/storm door the door handle broke…it was only –19F that night….it had endured colder weather.   I jiggled and pulled, jiggled and pushed…it was really broken.  Luckily Far Guy heard the jiggling and came to our rescue…but once we shut the storm door again we were now locked inside.  Far Guy got out a screwdriver and took off the latch so at least we could exit the house if need be.  We need a new door handle or a whole new screen/storm door…whatever.

Far Guy said “What ever you do don’t touch me.”   It is our experience that things break in threes and we wonder what/who is next?

Flowers last summer at my cousin Chuckies home.

I Heard It On The Radio

Far Guy and I learned in 1997 that connections are what keep you going during a flood. Our connection to the outside world was email, phone and the radio. We listened to KFGO out of Fargo. We have been listening to KFGO online this time also. They have been taking phone calls, from callers. Many people have questions..KFGO is the place to call if you need an answer.


What I have heard over the past few days:

Briarwood needs a porta-john, Larry needs a jackhammer (someone called with one for him to borrow), a dog was lost, a dog was found at one of the dikes, an elderly lady had baked 200 oatmeal cookies and wanted to get them to the sandbaggers, someone with a bread truck full of loaves of bread wondering where he could take them, people have extra sandbags..some are even filled with sand, some people have dry storage space to share, people outside of the area call in and offer to take in strangers with pets that are displaced, two large dogs were found, what roads are open out of Fargo, people call in with pleas for sandbaggers, they are shutting off the water to Oakport, there is a fire at Oakport..an elderly couple lost their home first to the flood and then to fire last Friday, Oak Grove Campus is getting water, hundreds have showed up to help fix a breach near El Zagel, Briarwood got their porta-john (one was on the way within twenty minutes of the plea), an emergency animal shelter is being set up at Jamestown by Kay from Prairie Paws Rescue, West Fargo has an animal shelter set up at the Fairgrounds, Horses could be taken to NDSU..but they needed hay and people with trailers to help transport them, a guy from Bemidji brought down some pumps and hoses and will give them to the first people that show up at the Burger King in Moorhead, Jessica calls often, seventy horses were eventually moved, she needed halters and more lead ropes, today she need a water tanker truck so the volunteers don't have to carry water to the horses, from what I understand many animals are safe at the fairgrounds..donkeys, horses and even a pot bellied pig, people from as far away as New York call to thank them for their 24/7 coverage of the flood, many people call with the question..who do I call for??..and they get answers with phone numbers. Like they say, if someone has a question or a need, if they don't know the answer one of their listeners will, and their listeners are good people and will share their resources.


My brother and his son are still over there, he his helping to build secondary dikes. From what I understand he was at Centennial Soccer Field in a twenty foot hole, bringing up clay from the bottom to the top. He drove back home to sleep. My other nephew spent some time in an area in South Moorhead building a dike with Firefighters and Guardsmen.


Here are a few photographs that my nephew took on Saturday in Moorhead, Minnesota.




They are not out of the woods yet, they are in better shape than many feared..a winter storm is heading their way. They will be in a high state of alert for a number of days yet..maybe weeks:(