Waterworld

~ beetleypete

Not the so-so Kevin Costner film, you will be glad to hear.

Late August and September 2017 might well be remembered as a time of water. Many of the countries and regions on our planet are being consumed by water. Look at the news, and you will see floods in Texas and Louisiana. India, Nepal, and Bangladesh have been inundated with excessive rain, and the ensuing floods too. One storm after another continues to ravage the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico, bringing misery to exotic islands, and reaching as far as Florida.

States of Emergency, aid convoys, mercy flights, and evacuations on a huge scale. All because of water, and wind. No matter the achievements of mankind, we remain at the mercy of nature, year after year. The irony of course is that this water is arriving in places that already have enough. Those drought-stricken countries in the arid regions of the world stay dry, while other places fight to combat the rising floods.

Beetley has not been spared a taste of this liquid bounty. It has been raining heavily here since yesterday evening, and hardly light all day either. House lights on at 11 am, a familiar sensation. Looking out the window now, all I can see are raindrops hitting the glass. I am not trying to imply that this is anything like we have seen in the news. Despite our moans, we are lucky in these islands, as disasters are rare. The price we pay is to not have those wonderful summers, the blue seas and skies enjoyed by many. On balance, we are undoubtedly better off, I think.

Some believe that these weather systems are the result of our industrial folly. Carbon footprints, Global Warming, ecological upsets on a grand scale. They might be right, who knows? Others think we are being punished by some God or other, for living without enough Faith. That seems unlikely at best, but if that’s what they want to believe, who am I to argue? Whatever the reasons, and how varied the theories, we can all be certain of one fact.

We are going to have to learn to live with a lot more water.

29 thoughts on “Waterworld”

  1. What’s striking in the American Southwest is the fact that the Colorado River winds through an arid desert landscape, and also, by way of dams, fills lakes like Mead, Powell, and Havasu. The dark blue waters of the river and its chain of lakes offer a sharp contrast with the mostly pale desert colors that frame them. As for rainfall, here in Las Vegas, we average a wee bit over four inches a year. So when we get a downpour, maybe once or twice a year, it’s something truly special.

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  3. Boy, Costner’s Waterworld was long. I thought it was mostly like a take off of the original Planet of the Apes myself. We haven’t started raining yet, except our usual summer thundercloud here and there every afternoon, so you’re in worse shape that we are right now!!

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  5. Pete, water is the new oil. Who has it, who needs it, where there is too much or not enough – you are right: it’ doesn’t matter the cause (although if we can agree on how to limit the damage we are all better off, right?) The key is to acknowledge the reality and be prepared….as you can see, Miami and South Florida are about to be hit with our second massive hurricane in as many weeks.

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  8. We are going to have to live with more water, it seems.

    We are also, I believe, going to have to learn to not build homes in areas subject to flooding. These homes are ultimately insured by the state, so there is a reduced disincentive to build on flood plains. They reduce water soakage and thus become part of the problem.

    I heard that there is one home in one of the southern states in the USA which has had over $800,000 spent on remedial work following more than a dozen floods over the years and the home is only worth $150,000. Some would say that there is folly in there somewhere.

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    1. Very true, Kim. Whatever the reason, the water is here, and we have to learn to deal with it.
      (Just had a massive downpour here again. Thunder, lightning, and torrential rain. So much for any chance of an ‘Indian Summer’.)
      Best wishes, Pete.

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