State of Emergency!

Apparently, a state of emergency has been declared for all of Cook County. That includes us, though we haven't had it as bad as some. In fact, stuck at home this morning after all the rain, we decided to brave the elements and hit the zoo (which has a great indoor playroom for kids). On the way there, after passing several roads closed due to flooding, as well as a few roads that may as well be closed (entire parks were under water; the Des Plains river was overflowing), I decided to give up. I had a bad feeling about the whole thing.

We ended up going to the Garfield Park Conservatory, which was fun, but the roof was so leaky you more or less needed an umbrella inside. And now, the news just reported that the Zoo eventually had to be closed, the flooding was so bad. Animals were apparently swimming around in their pens and cages, and some could even potentially swim right out to eatgreet you. They were moved to safe and we, for our safety, were kept out.

I should mention that Chicago and Cook County is not a particularly flood-prone area. We're not some swamp. We're not below sea level. We're just getting hit hard by persistent rain, a wet reminder of the havoc bad weather can cause. Expect to see more and more of it as more and more the fruits of global warming come to bear.