Post Flood 2008 Thoughts July 10, 2008
Posted by Will in random thoughts.Tags: Flood 2008, random thoughts
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I know the world has been inundated with Flood 2008 coverage, but I wanted to hop on the bandwagon for a minute and express some of my thoughts on the whole thing as my city frantically tries to pull itself together, knowing it’s not going to get the help it needs fast enough…
We all see natural disasters on TV or online, but this is the first one I have been able to walk up to. I spent a lot of my K-12 years in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and nothing too major happens from a weather point of view. Blizzard here, tornado there, but nothing on the same scale as this flood. The day it was really bad, that Thursday, was a day of awe and shock. I know, cheesy right? But I get what it means now.
At the end of Thursday I was on the SW side of town and needed to get to my apartment, which was on the NE side of town. This is a good 15-minute drive normally, but it took an hour this time. My friends and I took Interstate 380, which goes right next to downtown Cedar Rapids. Heading towards the city was a very eerie feeling. The entire downtown area and surrounding communities were without power, the sky was full of low, dark thunderstorm clouds, there wasn’t any rain but lightning was going off all over the dark area of the city, and the water was up to the Dairy Queen logo on the sign for the interstate drivers.
It’s a weird feeling to look at what is happening to communities, historic centers, theatres, and downtown buildings you drive by almost daily, and feel the desire to just stare in awe and complete fascination as the water engulfs it all. Then you remember this is a horrible, horrible thing and the guilt kicks in, and the hopelessness for the city rumbles at the bottom of your stomach.
Buildings are collapsing and the city is talking about leveling the entire 100-year flood plan, which would be hundreds (if not thousands) of structures. My heart goes out to those that are directly effected by the waters of the flood and hope that our city – and all the other effected regions – get the attention that is necessary to get this city back on its feet and people back in homes.
My microphone didn’t work when I went downtown to film and interview, but I will be getting that prepped with some music and put it up as soon as possible. Check out my Flickr photostream for photos taken from my phone.
Thank you to everyone that has done something to assist with the recovery. Every little bit helps.
Post-flood, I honestly have moments of guilt, and increase moments of clarity of what exactly has been lost.
There are tons of volunteers from across the country cleaning up our city, and here I am just working everyday, and carrying on. I mean, how selfish is that? What happened to stopping, gathering together and helping your neighbor? Has this happened? Definitely. Have I helped? Hardly at all.
I still look out my fifth story window, and can see in my mind’s eye the overlapped image of Coe Rd completely submerged. It was a paranoid anxiety that took my over yesterday when my building lost power yesterday. The same morning light, the same black, empty halls… but this time no water coming up to the back of the doorstep.
When driving downtown at night, it’s something I would imagine from a deserted town, or a film set for a post-apocalyptic film. The brightest part of downtown is completely pitch black, darker than the loneliest highway roads. With your headlights the reflection catches your eyes; smeared window fronts, washed-out brick, and lifeless neon signs. Throughout the city are mounds of priceless memories, unpurchased merchandise, and countless pieces of people’s homes.
On Coe Rd is a second hand store. After the flood, people volunteered to pick up hundreds of pieces of clothing. Clothes are stacked, higher than the small brick shop, sits on the curb, molding in a large pile waiting for the city to relocate it to a landfill.
I work at a government funded academic camp for high school students. The camp is at Coe College, which sits just at the edge of the 500 yr flood plain. We still are trying to recover from just having one building flooded (which, is the building that held 1/2 of the campus’ circuits ). I’ve been living on the fifth floor of a dorm building for five weeks now without air conditioning or hot water, living with the high school students, and am next to the housed volunteers who live in the same conditions.
Friday, the day after the “Epic Surge”, it was more of a shocking and exciting, “I have to see it for myself” attitude that I held, and raced to go downtown to see the flood. Just this past Independence Day I had the day to myself, and thought about what I’d do.
I love walking downtown to the confectionery on 5th &3rd, picking up some fudge, grabbing a smoothie at the Blue Strawberry and hanging out at the downtown park. I started heading south, and stopped. There is nothing there anymore. Nothing that allured the pedestrians exists. I turned around and walked 20 blocks north to my friend’s apartment. I can hardly believe all the entertainment is now at Edgewood or Collins.
I wanted to spend every Thursday night at the Piano Bar. I was excited to show freshmen the downtown life. I wanted to get away from campus and eat a delicious greek restaurant. I have so many great memories of delicious food and friendship at Brick’s. I wanted to take my friends to the Czech Village to enjoy the fine life of Czech desserts.
I miss the smell of Crunchberries wafting from the Quaker Oats factory, instead of the putrid smell of the foul river and molding city blocks.
When it rains I look at puddles on the sidewalk and think of the flooding. When grey clouds loom over 380 east outside my window I think of how the city I started to call “home” was submerged.
It’s something to cry about, I think. I don’t know why to cry, but there is something so intense about and personal about these things… I feel like the flood shocked me, and the receding waters sucked away my memories.
The vivid color of my memories were utterly soluble….
Ugh. Forgive my grammar… it’s deplorable. This is what happens when you type faster than you clearly think.
Very nice!!