As those of you who live in the DC area know, we've seen a lot of rain over the last several days. It started late last week with some threatening thunder and lightening and sudden bursts of rain that came and went before you had a chance to run for cover. Saturday came, and while some parts of Maryland got incredible downfalls of 20 inches and more, DC escaped with nothing more than ominous clouds and a light rain. Then Sunday evening brought the full wrath of something like 7-8 inches to the city. I think the technical term for something like this might be a 'crapload.'

The rain caused metro to go all out of whack, and certain Takoma Park residents experienced basement flooding (hi E&M).

And then there were those of us in our building, who woke up to find our lawn sinking. The problem stems from an old water line, no longer in use, which runs underneath our lawn. Residents of the building have suspected a problem for several years. Small holes would sometimes appear, holes that were seemingly benign, but if you dropped a broomstick in it, the thing would swallow the entire length with a gulp and a burp. Huh. That's odd. I know: Let's cover it up with a rock. But this level of sinkage is unprecedented. You can't cover this shit up. It's definitely time to call in the city to have a look. One thing that's worrisome is nobody knows the extent of the corrosion. It might stretch underneath Mass Ave, for all anybody knows.

So it's about to get nice and dirty all up in this bitch. I'm bracing for backhoes and a gaping cavity full of city smells just outside our front door. I say, let the cleansing begin. Yee-haw!


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