7 cups and counting

I saw it in the sky, it was going to rain. The sky gives a ten minute warning before it rains. This is a regular occurrence at least two times per week. I was sitting in my room correcting papers enjoying the cool breezes that the almost wet air was bringing. Stephanie was in the living room also correcting papers. I heard it begin coming down. The way the rain pounds against the medal roof above our heads, who could miss it. The wind was still blowing and it began to rain side wards at the perfect angle that the maximum amount of water that could enter our open window. I shouted at Steph and we franticly began shutting the windows. Water began to pool under the windows in my room and the living room; both facing west. We finally got the drapes out of the way and all the windows closed. We Americans forgot all about the cinder blocks above the windows that are for ventilation. They are screened in but there is no way to cover them. The rain was pounding so hard that rain was hitting the east wall of my bedroom. Stephanie and I were scrambling around searching for towels or anything really to cover the electronics. Once that was accomplished we took a breath and looked around. We could see water gushing under the closed window, running down the wall and on to the floor. I quickly moved the carpet out of the way. The building is cement, no wood so there is not a concern of drywall or sub floor getting wet. So our focus was on the things in the room getting wet. I went to our porch and grabbed a bucket and the floor rag and began moping up the water and wringing it into the bucket. On our way from my bedroom to the living room we noticed that the kitchen window was also open. It is on a hinge and it swings over the table that was full of dirty dishes. I franticly moved the dishes while being pelted by the rain. Once the window was closed I went back to the rag and bucket. Then the rain slowed to a stop. I was still on the floor with the rag. Stephanie was still covering things and moving other things out of the way. The rain storm lasted only 10 min but it seemed much longer. By the time I had finished moping up the water I was curious how much water really came into the apartment. I got out the one cup measure and began to pour the dirty water from the bucket into the cup. Seven cups my friends! There were seven cups of water in the living room and bedroom. I didn’t want to crawl under the table in the kitchen to mop up the water so I let that air dry. So not including the kitchen, which I’m sure was at least 3 cups; there was seven cups of water in our apartment. The next time the sky tells us it is going to rain I will listen.