Visiting rain-soaked California

It’s interesting how one little thing can change your travel plans...like a thousand inches of rain in California.

That pretty much sums up a whole week last month when I visited my son Bill in Sacramento. We had plans...big plans...to hit the road like a couple of free-wheeling boys, traveling up the coast of Northern California for several days.

Well, that didn’t happen.

Instead, we ended up babysitting Bill’s house in Sacramento as the rain kept coming down and the flood waters started rising.

We did some exploring around Sacramento for a couple of days, but never far from home. We even did some home repair projects to keep ourselves occupied another day. And then it happened on a Saturday morning.

All was good, so I went back to bed and quickly fell back to sleep as I was looking at my phone.

At 10 a.m. I was yanked back awake by the sounds of Bill screaming that the house was flooding. In my pajamas and rain coat, I scrambled to help.

A near-hurricane-force rainfall had pummeled Sacramento while I had fallen back to sleep, the back patio had flooded, and rainwater was gushing into Bill’s family room.

While Bill bailed out water from his sump pump locations, I tried to push back the tide of water through his back door. Our efforts worked for a few minutes, but eventually we were overwelmed with flood waters.

In less than 30 minutes, his family room and laundry room were completely flooded, at which point we shifted our efforts to protecting the rest of his house. Even though water was rising up to his front door, we managed to keep it from getting into the rest of his house.

Bill shifted his efforts to helping neighbors free up debris from the storm water drains in the street, and I started cleaning up the mess throughout the house. As soon as we felt we had things under control, we headed to the city’s sandbag site.

There, we worked elbow to elbow with other Sacramento residents, helping each other fill sandbags and loading them into our vehicles. Bill and I got enough sandbags to berm his front door and patio, and also brought back sandbags for an elderly neighbor across the street.

I cannot remember the last time I felt that drained, both physically and emotionally. But I can say this: It was heartwarming to see that even though Bill no longer lives in Kansas, the sense of community we experience here can be found so many other places – including Sacramento, Calif.

After all of that, Bill and I did patch together a pretty nice day trip before I had to head home. The day after the flooding, we decided we needed some kind of break.

Once we knew that our coastal trip had to be cancelled, Bill had done a little research on day trips out of Sacramento. One idea we both liked was the beautiful drive to Tomales Bay and the Hog Island Oyster Company located there.

The drive was beautiful, but it was hard for me to relax. With all the rain, I was worried sick about washed out back roads and mudslides. I wasn’t a pleasant passenger, but Bill got us there safely... and back to civilization again.

All of that was worth it to experience our visit to the Hog Island Oyster Company. This place rents a little over 160 acres of Tomales Bay, where the owners grow, harvest, cook and serve the most amazing oysters I’ve ever tasted.

Bill and I got there just in time...it was late afternoon, and because the crowds had been thin as of late, the proprieters were wanting to close up shop for the day. But we were in luck...the fire was still hot, and we were able to place two orders of grilled oysters.

They served the oysters with a large loaf of homemade whole-grain bread and butter, and we just dove in. We got our fill, wiped the butter off our faces, and headed over to the “store” so Bill could take some oysters home to have later. innuendo. Catering by Pig In! Pig Out! Tickets $35 for dinner and show, $25 show only, plus convenience fees, www.mosleystreet.com.

No, it wasn’t a week-long trip up the coast with my son, but we can do that another time. What was important –from start to finish – was that we got to spend some time together, just the two of us. In the end, it didn’t matter whether we were chowing down on fresh oysters or bailing water out of his house. But the oysters were really, really good.

The next day, Bill and I were back at it in his family room. The flood waters had receded even more, and we were able to start hauling debris out to his dumpsters. Our goal was to get the room to the point where Bill could start tearing up his ruined flooring, and that’s exactly what we were able to accomplish before I drove to the airport the next morning.

Oysters had been eaten. A house had been saved from what could have been a disaster. And a father and son had worked through it all, elbow to elbow.

Feb. 2-5 – “Disney’s The Little Mermaid,” Newman University. Presented by the NU music and theater departments. “Disney’s The Little Mermaid” offers rich and colorful costumes, projections, dance numbers and fan-favorite songs. It is directed and choreographed by director of music Deanne Zogleman, with music directed by Paul Graves. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $15 for the general public, $10 for seniors, military, faculty and staff, and $5 for non-Newman students. Buy online at www.newmanuniversitytheatre.org or at the door.

Feb. 3-5 – “Catch Me If You Can,” winter musical at Friends University. Seeking fame and fortune, precocious teenager, Frank Abagnale, Jr., runs away from home to begin an unforgettable adventure. With nothing more than his boyish charm, a big imagination, and millions of dollars in forged checks, Frank successfully poses as a pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer, all while living the high life and winning the girl of his dreams, until the law catches up with him. Performances at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 3-4, and 2 p.m. Feb. 5, in Sebits Auditorium in the Riney Fine Arts building, 2100 W. University Ave. Tickets are $16 for adults and $12 for students and seniors. They may be purchased online at friends.edu/fineartstickets or by calling the Fine Arts Box Office at 316295-5677.

Feb. 9 – Sing It! Vocal music festival concert, Sebits Auditorium, Friends University, 7:30 p.m. Featuring guest conductor Dr. Marquess L.A. Garrett. Tickets $6, seniors and students $3, www.friends.edu/fineartstickets.

Feb. 10 – Wichita State University Opera Theatre presents Opera Scenes, Wiedemann Hall, 7:30 p.m. Tickets $12, $10 adult/seniors/military/faculty/ staff, $5 child/students, https://wichita. universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 10 – Keiller & Company, 8 p.m., Orpheum Theatre. An evening of stand-up, storytelling, audience song and poetry starring Garrison Keillor, and featuring pianist Dan Chouinard, vocalist Prudence Johnson and guitarist Dean Magraw. Tickets $39-$79, www. selectaseat.com/keillor.

Feb. 11 – Wichita State University Faculty Artist Series presents Warren Kim on piano, 7:30 p.m., Wiedemann Hall. Tickets $12, $10 seniors/military/ faculty/staff, $6 child/student, https:// wichita.universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 11 – “Blue Electra,” Wichita Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. in Concert Hall. Featuring “Serenade” by William Grant Still, “Blue Electra” by Michael Daugherty featuring Anne Akiko Meyers on violin, and Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 3 “The Rhenish.” Meyers takes you in flight with “Blue Electra,” the brand new violin concerto from the Grammy Award-winning Daugherty. Kansas icon Amelia Earhart and her Lockheed 10-E Electra inspire the music.

Feb. 11 – Art Together: Celebrate Black Art, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., Mark Arts. Free and open to the public. Advance registration requested, www.markartsks.com.

Feb. 14 – Friends University band concert, 7:30 p.m. Sebits Auditorium. Tickets $6, $3 seniors and students, www.friends.edu/fineartstickets.

Feb. 14 – Wichita State University Concert-Aria Honors Concert, 7:30 p.m., Miller Concert Hall. Tickets $12 adult, $10 senior/military/faculty/ staff, $6 child/staff, https://wichita. universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 15 – Art & Krimes documentary film and panel discussion, 6 p.m., Wichita Art Museum. While locked up for six years in federal prison, artist Jesse Krimes secretly created monumental works of art, including an astonishing 30-foot mural made with prison bed sheets, hair gel, and newspaper. He smuggled out each panel piece-by-piece with the help of fellow artists, only seeing the mural in totality upon coming home. As Jesse’s work captures the art world’s attention, he struggles to adjust to life outside, living with the threat that any misstep will trigger a life sentence. Tickets $15, www.wichitaartmuseum.org.

Feb. 16-March 4 – “Two Gentlemen of Verona,” Roxy’s Downtown. Shows at 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Saturday. Rock musical, based on the Shakespeare comedy of the same name. Tickets $36.35 including fees, www. roxysdowntown.com.

Feb. 17 – Friends University Jazz Festival – Latin Jazz Meets Vocal Jazz, 7:30 p.m., Sebit Auditorium. Tickets $9, $6 students and seniors, www.friends.edu/ fineartstickets.

Feb. 17 – Kansas Bluegrass Association 33rd annual Winter Bluegrass Festival, 2 p.m. Wichita Marriott Hotel. Advance tickets $65, www.kansasbluegrass.org. $75 at the door.

Feb. 18 – Jazz Festival – The Project H. with Concert Jazz Band present original music, 7:30 p.m., Sebits Auditorium. Tickets $16, $12 students and seniors, www.friends.edu/fineartstickets.

Feb. 18 – “Aretha: A Tribute,” Wichita Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. in Concert Hall. With guest conductor Eckart Preu. This tribute to Aretha Franklin, the queen of soul, features Broadway veteran Capathia Jenkins and Darryl Williams performing hits “Respect,” “Think,” “A Natural Woman,” “Chain of

Fools,” “Amazing Grace” and more. Also feature Wichita gospel choir A.R.I.S.E.

Feb. 19 – Wichita State University faculty artist chamber recital featuring Vincent Mitterand, Miller Concert Hall. Tickets $12 adult, $10 seniors/military/ faculty/staff, $6 child/student, https:// wichita.universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 20 – Morten Lauridsen’s “Lux Aeterna,” Friends University Choral Union and Wichita Chamber Chorale, accompanied by Friends University Community Orchestra. Show at Sebits Auditorium, Friends University, 7:30 p.m. Tickets $16, $12 seniors and students, www.friends.edu/fineartstickets.

Feb. 20 – Wichita State University

Concert Chorale, WuChoir and ShockerChoir, 7:30 p.m., Wiedemann Hall. Tickets $12 adult, $10 seniors/military/ faculty/staff, $6 child/student, https:// wichita.universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 21 – Wichita State University

Wind Ensemble, 7:30 p.m., Miller Concert Hall. Tickets $12 adult, $10 seniors/ military/faculty/staff, $6 child/student, https://wichita.universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 22 – Wichita State University

Symphonic Band, 7:30 p.m., Miller Concert Hall. Tickets $12 adult, $10 seniors/ military/faculty/staff, $6 child/student, https://wichita.universitytickets.com/.

Feb. 23-26 – “Pippin,” Wichita State University School of Performing Arts

Musical Theatre. Shows at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 23-25, 2 p.m. Feb. 26, Wilner Auditorium. Tickets $20 adult, $18 senior/ military/faculty/staff, $10 child/student, https://wichita.universitytickets.com/.

March 4 – Dance showcase, Friends University, 7:30 p.m., Sebits Auditorium. Tickets $6, $3 seniors and students, www.friends.edu/fineartstickets.