Carla D-Great new adventures and an Amazing Life

[Carla D]

I'm sorry you are dealing with this. We've been wet/muddy for about 17 years now... or almost that long. I'm not sure we've really dried up more than a week or so since Hurricane Harvey. I hope you can figure it out. Pallets with some boards to cover up the spaces between would be a good temporary fix. You're probably correct in thinking that you can't get anything hauled in because of the conditions. Hang in there - this too will pass. (or so they say)

Harvey? Is that the huge gulcher of a hurricane that hit the eastern coast of Texas wayback then? I had no idea a hurricane could leave lasting effects for that long. I’m so sorry.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Late August '17. Not the direct effect of Harvey that has us still wet. I was just using that as a time stamp of sorts. We just can't get a break from the rains.

 

[Carla D]

Late August '17. Not the direct effect of Harvey that has us still wet. I was just using that as a time stamp of sorts. We just can't get a break from the rains.

Oh my! On the plus side for you. If it ever dries up in your area I’m betting you’ll have some amazing soil there to have some top notch crops for at least a few years. For some reason when I think of Texas, I see more sandy soil or sand than actual rich soil. But that can’t be the case. Texas is a pretty big producer for some of out grain in the north, I think. It is too bad our government or cities don’t have the means to collect, purify, contain, and use all of this rainfall. Even if it’s to pipeline or transport it to another place in the world facing drought and famine.

 

[Carla D]

Your picture of Cowboy and kid is the cutest thing I’ve seen in a really long time. Thank you for sharing it.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Yep - Texas is very diverse. We have clay here... it'll suck the boots right offa your feet, lol.

Your picture of Cowboy and kid is the cutest thing I’ve seen in a really long time.

Thanks! That kid has absolutely NO fear of anything - and Cowboy absolutely loves him! They are quite the pair, lol.

 

[greybeard]

I had no idea a hurricane could leave lasting effects for that long. I’m so sorry.

I can attest to the fact that they can and do.

 

[Bruce]

All our snow is melting as well and there is concern of the rivers flooding. Thankfully none of that will impact us and the animals in the barn have dry ground. I'm so sorry your flooding is affecting not only you but the animals. I really hope you don't lose any!

 

[Carla D]

All our snow is melting as well and there is concern of the rivers flooding. Thankfully none of that will impact us and the animals in the barn have dry ground. I'm so sorry your flooding is affecting not only you but the animals. I really hope you don't lose any!

We didn’t lose much. Basically a few bags of whey my husband got free from work. But he can always get more pretty much when ever he wants it. There might be a few nonessentials lost but we haven’t begun worrying about those at this time.

 

[Carla D]

I don’t know if anyone remembers the two Nubian goats I had for a couple of days or not. We drive by the farm/homestead they were from every time we go to or from the farm. They lost their nice and big shed. I’m guessing the shed was 50’x70’ maybe longer than that. The roof caved in. They house ALL of their livestock in there at night. 3 cows, 8-10 goats, 5-6 pigs, rabbits, and chickens in there. Miraculously they only lost one or two chickens. They have most of thegoats in the garage and one doe in their basement that is scheduled to kid any day now. Their pigs were almost butcher size. The locker is coming out next week to process them for them. I’m not sure what the plan is with their rabbits. But someone is coming to take the chickens off their hands. They have 2 large brown cows, Jersey or Swiss possibly and one small Highland that they are working on finding temporary placement for. I guess they lost the shed on Tuesday. We must of had a whole lot on our minds this week. We didn’t even notice until today. I stopped to make sure everyone and everything was safe. She then told me she don’t know how she got so lucky and only lost a chicken or two. But, their insurance is going to replace the shed 100%. I’m learning that there are more people that are in their situation and their insurance WONT cover the repairs. This family relies on their animals to provide much of their food. It sounds like they will only be doing goats from now on. Odd considering they were liquidating their goats a few months ago.

We have spent some time at the farm today. We got pigs moved into a more permanent spot. Then some snow was removed and after some digging we have at least some of the water draining away from the barn for now. We are supposed to have high terminology the 50’s all for an entire week. Not next week, but the following week. 7-8 days in a row. It will be nice to have the snow gone. But, I’m not sure we are, or anyone else for that matter are prepared for all of that water. Last night and today may have only been a light wake up call for the rapid thaw we have headed our way. I so hope we don’t see anymore snow until Halloween. That seems to be a popular date here to be getting our first really good snowfall for the season. I had spoke with two different gravel pits today. One of them, their equipment is in a shed with the doors frozen shut and snow up against them, not for long though. They don’t have the means to even sell us bucket loads of sand for us to haul. The other one, there is no way for them to be hauling anything out of their pit at this time. Too many road closures and restrictions for the big trucks. We could come with a trailer and they would happily load it for us. I don’t think we dare drive it down my SILs driveway. That’s taken a hit as well. It’s still passable at the moment. I’m not sure it will survive this thaw however. It’s a waiting game right now. At least the snow is melted off the roof of the barn now. At least we haven’t lost any structures or animals at this time.

There are a couple of really rundown farms between our residence and the farm. I think the owners of at least one of them, the poorest one, relies on their farm for survival. I’m worried about him and his animals. They are pretty lightweight. Not starving yet, but light. I hope he can survive this spell. We’ve never stopped and visited with him. But he always has a worn out smile and a wave for us when we see him on our drives by.

 

[Carla D]

I think we are one of the LUCKIER ones in our area of the state and region this spring. It has been unbelievably stressful for our family this winter possibly into spring. We haven’t lost anything more than time and energy at this point. We are far from being out of the woods right now. We haven’t lost any life or structures yet. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen. But, if things were to go from really bad to complete devastation, we would be shattered. But, we are in a better position to start all over from the ground up than many people around us are. It would take at least a couple of years to replace what we could lose if we did lose everything. But honestly, we don’t rely on our animals, crops, machinery to support our livelihood. There are people in our area who have lost the roof of their primary structure, lost livestock and their insurance company isn’t going to replace them for one reason or another. I haven’t heard of this happening yet, but I know there are going to be people that lose their homes and farm families losing their entire farm to Mother Nature before things clear up and dry out in this area. If I had to guess I’d say only 5-8% of those people have flood insurance. I know everyone and everywhere is susceptible to natural disasters. Ellsworth is on the highest point of the county. This town was built on a rocky bluff in 1855. We were named after the first union officer was killed in the civil war. It became a significant point during the civil war. Anyways, most people don’t equate flooding and Ellsworth in the same equation. Therefore most people here don’t have flood insurance. There is going to be some significant devastation this spring. Even if we lost absolutely everything out at the farm replacing the stuff would equal close to what a brand new, plain Jane, no bells and whistles Dodge Ram 1500 does. It would sting really badly, but we wouldn’t bleed to death. So,with all of that said, we are one of the LUCKIER folks around here. It time to check on our neighbors and help where we can. The water rose a lot over the last 8-9 hours. Only daylight will tell us what needs to be taken care of next.