August 1, 2014

White Dog shifted to make room for Puff and Taiko to join the rest of the White Dogs crowded into the office, pressing together. She was just as frightened as the others but my girl is a natural leader; she moved to the back of the room so Taiko who was panting heavily could rest his head on my knee.

Outside, the storm to end all storms raged loudly and violently against our house. The lightning seared as it flooded our sanctuary with a reminder that we could not ignore what was happening around us. Sachi hid under the desk gasping noisily as he laid on my feet.

The thunder shook the house; not just the windows...the entire house shuddered under slam of BOOMS from the storm. YoYoMa huddled in the safety crate crushed as far back in the hidden corner as he could force himself. Bella was pressed in next to him. She shared his fear but tried to use her body to comfort the shivering Big Boy. White Dog paced alongside Puff, each asking for reassurance and the soothing touch of my hand. They sat together against my leg eventually. With every new assault, the WDA drew in closer.

Rain poured down in torrents that I have not experienced since our trip to Costa Rica during their monsoon season. It was hours of angry pounding water, not the brief 15 minutes of spitting that we here in Albuquerque typically get. The power of the storm was evident and it was centered right above us.

To make matters even scarier, it was a late night for Steve, who was more than 45 minutes late getting home. The force of the storm had wreaked havoc across the city and he could not get cell phone reception to call us to tell us not to worry. Underpasses were flooded. Central Avenue (our closest main artery) was shutdown because of the amount of water flowing down it. Traffic lights were out. There were accidents everywhere (we knew, we could hear the sirens which added to the WDA panic).

both photos published Saturday am in the Albuquerque Journal.

The rains were record breaking. Nearly three inches fell in two hours. It destroyed railroad track beds and washed out power to thousands; issues still being remediated Saturday afternoon.

We were so glad to see Steve when he FINALLY pulled into the drive that the WDA temporarily set aside their fears in order to rush out on the sunporch to make sure he was OK. It was still raining steadily but the noise and fury were settling down enough that the White Ones agreed to go out with Steve under the big sheltering trees at the front of our house for much needed relief.

A quick treat, a bowl of soup for starving Steve, and then NOBODY argued with gathering together in the bedroom, lights out, blinds drawn, safe together, to sleep.