River Walk Bridge

When Michael was in town, we went down to the River Walk pedestrian bridge.  It was a beautiful day with a beautiful view.

We also spent time exploring the neighboring Asian Garden.

Photo #263/365: The Downtown Bridges

Like many cities all over the world, Des Moines was built on the banks of a river.  In fact, two rivers converge in Des Moines.  So it is also a city divided by rivers, and the bridges that connect the two sides are very important.  This is a view of some of the downtown bridges.

Photo #228/365: Polk County Court House

Today is the last day of my summer vacation.  I've really had a nice summer and while yesterday was rainy, we've really had some nice weather lately.  Today was in the high 80s, with beautiful sunshine.  Before I go back to school on Monday, Jacci and I decided to have lunch together.  Her office is in the court district.

This is a photo of the Polk County Court House, green leafy trees near by, and a clear blue sky above.

Photo #223: Four Mile Creek Takes Over

My plan was to stop at McDonald's to pick up some breakfast, and then shoot up East 33rd to school, to work in my classroom. That was a bit a problem however. After three nights of thunderstorms and heavy rain, I knew there was flooding, but I was not prepared for what I saw. Not only was East 33rd flooded, but so was part of Hubbell.



In the thirty years I have lived here, I have never seen Four Mile Creek this high, including during the big floods in 1993. Water was half way up the sides of the trailers in the mobile home park on the north side of Euclid. Taylor House, which is a hospice, was flooded as were the new buildings near by.



My mom said she received a phone call at two o'clock in the morning from the police, telling her to evacuate, if she was close to Four Mile Creek. They called everyone within a mile radius. Thankfully, my mom's house is safe.



Every place I drove today, there are houses with hoses draining water from their basements. Water is bubbling up through manhole covers and sewers. To top it off, the current temperature is 91 degrees with a heat index of 104.



Sadly, this flood has turned deadly. A sixteen year old girl died when three cars were swept off the road, just east of Altoona. She was a student at Southeast Polk High School, where my nephew is also a student. My thoughts and prayers are with her family and friends.

I hope this is the end of it, but more rain is forecast for Friday. I feel fortunate that my basement is dry and I have a new air conditioner. I am thankful that my family is safe. I can't imagine the frustration some of these people are feeling as they deal with the third round of flooding so far this year.

Photo #183: The Center Street Bridge

One of the great things about doing this photo challenge is that I am taking time to notice the things around me. I'm also taking time to go places and walk around in pursuit of the great photo. Today my journey took me downtown.

The Center Street Bridge just opened on Monday evening. It connects the east side of downtown Des Moines with the west Side and is part of the Principal River Walk. It was built exclusively for pedestrians and bicycles, and is unusual in that it is divided into two parts. I love the beautiful curve of the expanse. After all the rain we have had, water had to be released from Sailorville Dam this week, so the water is high and moving swiftly. It was a great view, and very exciting to stand above the rushing river. There have been so many positive changes to our downtown area.

Photo #100: One Hundred Days

At school we make a big deal out of the one hundredth day of the school year. Well this is the one hundredth day of my blog and the 365 Photo Challenge, and that means it is also the one hundredth day of 2010. I cannot believe that I have done this every day for 100 days. I'm pretty impressed with myself, and I can see that I am growing in my photography skills. It also helps that I have a better camera than I started the year with. As much as the photos, I am enjoying taking the time to reflect and write about each day. It has definitely made an impact on my life. I am more observant of my surroundings, and I have become more active, making it a point to go out and look for things to experience and photograph.

We are about to begin our castle project at school, so I went downtown to the central library to pick up some books I needed. The day started out as beautiful and sunny, but it clouded over in the afternoon. After I found what I needed at the library, I spent some time walking around in the Pappajohn Sculpture Garden. The last time I was there was on my birthday in January. It is much more inviting now. When I arrived a wedding party was just leaving. The grass is green, people were walking around, one group was picnicking, kids were playing among the sculptures. There are lots of places to sit and relax and enjoy the art. This part of Des Moines has changed so much in the past year or two. I'm sure I will be down here often. The sculpture garden is just one block from the library, coffee shops, and places to eat.

Afterwards I spent about an hour at the Starbucks down the street. Days like today make me very thankful for my life. Sometimes I just need to remind myself to slow down and smell the coffee.