Burning Bridges

Interesting day if you're from Atlanta.  This was the day that this happened:

If you're from Atlanta, or the surrounding area, this imagery might be seared into your memory for all time.  As if traffic wasn't bad enough, this bridge here is I-85 at the point where the tributary interstate 400 has just connected.  Unless you're the General Lee, or Knight Rider with that turbo boost feature, you're not going on I-85 anytime soon.  It's been severed, as if General Sherman has returned, cutting a line of destruction that makes it impossible to go from South to North.  Or visa versa.

Not since our snow event in 2013 have there been so many stranded drivers for such a long time.  What a stunning mess this one event has created.  Although taking I-285 either way around Atlanta is an option when traveling, the fact is that I-85 is already overcrowded, and all of those cars have to go somewhere else.  Needless to say, it's going to be a devastating few months for Atlanta citizenry as they await the completion of this bridge.

As for the fire, who knows what started it or how or why.  We watched the thing collapse live, as we just so happened to be there looking at the live feed.  We're very grateful no fire fighters were injured in the process, and that's the one positive takeaway from all this:  nobody was injured.  Not one person.  The cars were all stopped and things were shut down as they attempted to put the fire out, but it was too great, and too much to overcome.  The falling bridge actually helped smother the fire somewhat, so there's that.  But it will be little comfort to those driving in Atlanta tomorrow.

We haven't driven in Atlanta in a while.  We used to all the time, but the traffic has just gotten out of hand.  I think the next scheduled drive through might be during Summer Xtreme, actually, when we were planning on going to the zoo.  We'll see, because even those plans might be dashed - we got to the zoo last time by going over that very bridge.

Storms are coming through tonight.  These are part of a dangerous system from the west, although the  energy is not there as it was in the midwest, where there was considerable damage.  Daddy is watching the radar, and aside from wind and rain, we seem to be okay.  It's loud outside, with rumbles and flashes of lightning in the air.  Mommy isn't feeling well either, so that doesn't help one bit.

Today was a good day for her otherwise.  She was getting a lot done around the house, while Daddy had his class to teach, and then the usual work at the office.  We took Madison to ballet, and Daddy was proofing some books as Madison danced her ballet routine.  After spring break, she'll have to really focus on that routine, because it won't be long until she'll be performing at the spring recital.  Crazy how fast this all goes by.

She's made a lot of friends along the way though.  Daddy dropped Madison off at school this morning, and watched as she started talking with the girl who was dropped off in front of us.  They knew each other.  They were talking all the way up to the entrance of the school.  And as Madison was leaving ballet, she had friends wishing her well on her spring break.  It's good to have friends, and they all seem rather nice.  She'll want to keep those, of course.  It's never a good idea to burn bridges.