sew - it's been one year.....

yesterday in melbourne there was a storm - and one that according to bom looked pretty nasty and instantly reminded me of last year when a superstorm hit brissy.

it's been nearly a year since it happened and my learning from that is - don't try to beat a storm home, because when the 1 in a 100 year whopper hits, you are fucked.   that was a life changing storm and what could possibly be crazier?

well, i had already had a life changing moment a few weeks earlier when i ended my marriage and we were required to cohabitate till the house sold. like that wasn't stressful enough as well. 

i really thought as i drove into it, that it had just turned into a rain event and it quickly became apparent that this wasn't.  i couldn't see anything ahead and had to pull over and as the trees and power lines were swaying around me, i knew i had to find a better place to stop.  i drove on a bit without much visibility and stopped when the hail started to come down. there was nowhere to hide.

i just remember seeing a poor guy on his pushie dive off it and try to find cover.  geez, i hope he isn't still concussed.

i was in my convertible in the open and at the mercy of the weather gods. it was so frightening - not knowing if the glass would smash, or the roof would cave in, or if a branch or worse would hit the car.  it died down and phew i thought. but that moment was just so the next more ferocious wave could hit.  i can't even describe how terrified i was, as were many other people in the same scary position on their afternoon commute. the noise was just as frightening as the event. i actually feared for my life.

outside me, i could see water rising up around the car that was parked further up and i thought, shit, that's not good, so i had to drive forward and parked in a driveway while the battering continued. once it started to clear, i headed off trying to avoid the debris that was everywhere and i found myself in a strange street where i stopped as i just needed to take a moment.  there were people beginning to emerge from their homes to assess the damage and i remember a woman coming to see if i was okay and ask me to come into her home.  i said i would go home - it was only another km - and that took me about 2 hours to do.  it was chaos.  

i drove on in the side street and stopped at the petrol station because i needed to use the bathroom and people were just in disbelief wondering what they had witnessed.  as i stood aside the gridlock and carnage i had what was could only have been shock setting in and thought i was going to pass out - that wouldn't be good, cause there was no way an ambulance could even get there. i've never had a feeling like it but i remained calm and focussed and just waited it out.  

 

i eventually drove the 500 metres home and was aware of what i was coming home to as i'd been forewarned.  the yard was demolished and i got out the car and my son helped me inside as i was so distressed and well, i had been forewarned, but i wasn't prepared for what i was about to witness.

over 50 windows were smashed and hail smashed its way across the rooms bringing with it glass, water, leaves, dirt - everything was wrecked and what wasn't, was full of water, glass and debris.

 

 

the car was written off but the glass didn't get a chip and the roof was intact. the hail damage was phenomonal and the force of the battering actually moved its structural foundation.  $18,000 to repair but thank you volvo for keeping me safe.

there was a lot of damage and one of the other big disasters was to my sewing room - most of it trashed. the glass, water and debris just overpowered everything from patterns, fabric, the threads, right down to the overlocker and sewing machine and with that i haven't sewn anything for nearly a year.

i did get some replacement machines, but because of the situation at home, i just never set them up and also had to begin the process of replacing all the sewing things that were also destroyed. but things changed really quickly in my life and i found myself here in melbourne on new life journey and one where i am happy to report has come with a space to begin to enjoy this creative pursuit of mine.

it was a butterflies moment, to finally unpack these boxes and give them a much loved home and with the retrieval of what i salvaged from the storm, i am about to get back to business.  
the storm was a truly devastating event and one that took many months to recover from, but it was also one that assisted to fund my unexpected move to melbourne and i cant be unhappy about that.

there was a silver lining from those dark clouds that's for sure and i look forward to sharing some new creations.