Post Irene Report and Recommendations

1) Storm Report: We survived Irene without too much damage. The little stream that runs between our house and barn which about dried up this summer became a 30 foot wide torrent and flooded the basement of the barn to a depth of 6 feet and pushed the back wall off its foundations a few inches so it could make its way through. It also left about 300 cubic feet of mud behind. The towns in the valley below us suffered some real damage. Many roads were just eaten away in places by the rushing water. We lost power for about 30 hours because the water washed away some poles.

Still it was much worse elsewhere. We had only moderately strong winds. My old street in Glen Rock lost several big trees.

I spent much of Monday cleaning out the mess with the substantial help from my older son, Chris. I'll have to repair the barn sill and some sever erosion spots. Oh well, I was looking for something to do [ not really]. Today I spent much of the day trying to repair a starter motor for a Gravely tractor we used yesterday. I did not quite succeed [ that means I failed to get it to run well].

Let me know of any adventures you've had.

2) Recommendations: I sent a brief note out to everyone I have on my list for college recommendations. If you should be on the list and did not get a message by Thursday, send me an email to that effect.

3) Hope you guys are having a great summer and are looking forward to learning and getting together with your friends. I do miss the anticipation and excitement of a new year and the chance to work with the likes of you. I do not miss the chance to get up at 5:30 every day.