Another flood event

July 10 is not a good date for Barre.  Our area experienced flooding Wednesday night after having had a terrible flood last year.  Folks were still cleaning up from last year's flood when it started pouring, with thunder, from about 5 pm and into the morning.  Most of the standing water in our yard was absorbed quickly, but others weren't as lucky.   We live high and dry a mile from downtown.

Much of downtown Barre was closed yesterday for clean up, and it was amazing how fast it occurred.  Last summer's routines of clean up operations were fresh in people's minds, so volunteers turned out with sump pumps, cleaning equipment, food trucks, and more.  I drove down to the library to sort books for the Friends' upcoming sale and noticed quite a bit of dust in the air.  The sun was out helping to dry things.  Unfortunately, some of the 100 or so houses condemned from last year's flooding got hit again and will be bought out.

Around the state, back roads and highways were washed out, and I was sorry to see a great deal of water in what we call the Northeast Kingdom.  Since last year's flood, there's been talk about flood proofing, but it seems we really need to speed that up and not just talk about it.

Meanwhile, back in the quilting studio where the air conditioner is blasting away (thank goodness), I finished quilting the Christmas tree skirt and like it very much.  Here's a picture of it before binding - I put it on the bed so the center and one side of the bed's quilt shows through.  

The thing about tree skirts is that they require a lot of bias binding - at least 234 inches.  I decided to look at pre-made bias binding, so will need to go to Joann Fabrics later today.  If I don't like what they have, I'll look for a yard and a half of something coordinating.  While I have a lot of Christmas fabric, none of it is large enough to get longer bias cuts.  I'll sew it all by machine and then set it aside until the Friends of the Library's holiday raffle.

Next on my mental list will be making a few table runners to sell at our local florist/gift shop which was again flooded downtown.  The owner also owns the Kitty Cat Cafe next door and spent the night there with the cats.  All felines are fine, but the cafe part and her florist shop did take on water.  She'll be looking for a few new things to sell, and I know she is treating various crafters' items with extreme care.  I'll go through my box of "orphans" for these items.  I am anxious to get back to Dear Jane.  Maybe next week?