(no subject)

[ksmith]

We actually had thunder and lightning last night. One flash was so bright that I thought a transformer had blown. But, no kaboom, and my power stayed on, so I assume it was lightning.

It was -5F/-20C on Christmas morning. Two days later, and it's 50F/10C. It's been raining since last night. Basement-wise, water's leaked in through a couple of window wells, and the sump pump--my brand-new this past Spring I wuv you sump pump mwah--has been kicking on and on and on. I dream of foreign sales, the proceeds of which would be handed over to a drain tile guy and a basement sealer guy to render my basement desert-dry. I still doubt I would ever have it converted to living space, but it would be done and I could hand over warranties to whoever buys this place a few years from now, and that's a good thing. A selling point. Joys of home ownership #3957.

Rain expected off and on through the day. Then temps drop again. King is currently curled up here in the living room, snoring softly. Gabamatrix, otoh, is outside in search of who knows what--I called her inside for a minute, and she sat in the dining room and stared at me like What? So, I let her back out, where she now lurks. Patrols. Whatever.

Grocery shopping today. Haircut.

Comments

[michaeldthomas.livejournal.com]

I'm avoiding my basement for the next couple of days. I just don't need to know.

I swear that winter weather is crazier now than it used to be.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I wasn't going to go downstairs, but I'm a glutton for self-punishment.

For years, you could count on no snow prior to Thanksgiving, and so little during December that we routinely had no snow on the ground by the time Christmas came along. Not any more.

[e-moon60.livejournal.com]

Christmas--warm and muggy, in the 70s, gloomy clouds.

Day after--warm and muggy, up to 80F, intermittent sunshine, howling S wind blustering along, annoying. Record high in Austin, a degree or two lower here.

Today--front blew in this morning, dropped a tiny spatter of rain (drops 1-2 inches apart, very brief) followed by brilliant sunshine and howling blustery NW wind. This is the front that dropped a ton of snow in the NW and more in the Rockies, but not even real rain on us.

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

And my backyard is a vast pond.

Be nice if we could wave a wand and even it all out.

[elmunadi.livejournal.com]

I envy you not.

There are many reason why SoCal's lack of basements and use of "House-on-a-platter" slab construction irks me... but basement seepage is one reason why they don't. Unless you find out that your new mountain cabin's slab is on top of an artesian wellspring that reopened after the last quake. (One of my VPs is enjoying the fun of having a drainage sump system built #under# the existing slab...

Perhaps you'd consider a weather trading exchange?

[kristine-smith.livejournal.com]

I grew up in Florida, another house-on-a-platter state. I like basements for their storage capabilities; I doubt I will ever have mine finished--even though it has a fireplace--because I can't wrap my mind around the living-in-a-hole thing. I like windows and as much sunshine as possible. So at least when mine seeps, the water may flow unimpeded to the drain.

Perhaps you'd consider a weather trading exchange?

Yesterday, temps in the 50s and rain rain rain. Today the rain has ended, but temps are now below freezing and my saturated backyard is now a skating rink. I hate to see the dogs run across it because they could slip and fall. Gaby is so light that she bounces, but King could fracture something.

[elmunadi.livejournal.com]

in the 50's here, but the rain stayed rain and drained...

I was thinking more along the lines of "4 days of rain, bidding steady at 3 1/2... 1 week of drought peaked at 10, up 2" but that's another story.

vis a vis icing - that'd not be good, but at least King and Gaby both have traction pads and active nails. You or I would have further to fall and really break something.

[anisosynchronic.livejournal.com]

Ah, the joys of home ownership.... It was not what I would have preferred as an, er, peak experience to have been up on the roof with a bucket of roof tar and a trowel, working on sealing off an area that had developed a leak.

As for downstairs... my house is a standard latter 1970s model split entry (the stock model house for the end of the 1990s early 2000s was had two stories with dormers in all directions on a walk-up attic third story, and a basement, too...) but the back of the lower floor was at gound level... I had a door put in in the back to be able to get in and out, having to go all the way around to get out the garage with the laundry was more than a bit much!