October Life Update
Alright everyone. It has been a whirlwind couple of months since my last life update. I also just wanted to be able to write about everything I’m feeling at the moment. From the devastating flood that occurred in South Carolina a few weeks ago to my new Twitter account, I just want to talk about all of it.
First off, I recently created a Twitter dedicated strictly to this blog! Before, I had it linked to my personal Twitter account, but I wanted a place where I could strictly talk about my blog. Go follow me on Twitter @livingthegray! I also have a Facebook page and a Pinterest!
ADJUSTING TO COLLEGE
College has been great since my mid-August life update! I’ve made wonderful friends and my classes are going extremely well. I just finished up all of my midterms, and they all went extremely well. I had advisement this week for my classes next semester. Although next semester is going to be a heavy load, I feel like it should be a lot of fun.
THE SOUTH CAROLINA FLOOD
I’m sure you heard about the awful flooding that occurred across South Carolina about two weeks ago. I currently attend the University of South Carolina in Columbia. Columbia was hit hardest with 20+ inches of rain in one day. Luckily, campus wasn’t flooded and my dorm was safe and sound. Even though I wasn’t directly dealing with flooding, campus still felt the effects of everything. It started raining Saturday night and by Sunday morning, the city was shut down. As Sunday progressed, the city issued a boil water advisory, a mandatory 6 pm curfew, and then the water to almost the entire city was shut off.
Dams were breaking and the water treatment plant was severely damaged. We went without running water for almost 24 hours, and living in a dorm, that was extremely difficult. I can deal with not showering or being able to brush my teeth, but the worst part was not being able to flush the toilets. In that moment, I think I realized how much I take running water for granted. Students, including myself, didn’t think the rain would be that bad. We didn’t prepare ourselves. When they shut off the water, there was a mad rush for bottled water. It was impossible to find.
As the hours progressed, the situation kept getting worse. Bridges were collapsing, more and more dams were breaking, roads were disappearing, and the flood waters kept rising. After that, everything is just a blur. We were rationed daily water and had to trek a good 20 minutes across campus to get food.
Come Tuesday, they called off school for the remainder of the week. My mom immediately jumped in the car and drove four hours to come get me. Going home was great. I finally got to take a shower after three days of not being able to and I got to brush my teeth without using bottled water.
The boil water advisory just ended a few days ago, and it was amazing to be able to wash my dishes and be able to take a shower without worrying about getting the water in my eyes or mouth. I just want to thank everyone who donated anything for flood relief.
Well, that’s what has been going on in my life over the past couple of months. What have you been up to?
-Abigail T.
