Red sky in the morning...

[senoritafish]

My sinuses sting and my eyes burn slightly. Once again, southern California burns to the ground, at least in the eyes of the rest of the nation. The fire in Malibu started almost instantly, it seemed, the minute the Santa Anas started to howl - we smelled smoke about 2:00 pm yesterday. The winds are very strong, with gusts up to 85 mph reported in the foothills and canyons. Less here, but they're still strong. About 5:00 pm, the kids and I went to Joann's craft store on Adams in HB; when we left the store at closing, 6:00 pm, we saw a huge plume of smoke rising directly to the east.

Naturally, this means that we have to close all the windows; my spouse is a severe asthmatic and smoke is definitely a trigger for him. Fire season here often means a trip to the emergency room for us. I went to bed later than usual because I wanted to at least get a start on cutting out Angus's costume pattern pieces; once I got there, it was difficult to sleep. Not only did the wind in the Moreton Bay fig out front sound like a waterfall (even with the windows closed), I kept wondering if I was going to have to leap out bed to take John to the hospital. I'm sure I slept some, but it didn't feel like it. Gareth slept in the living room because the wind outside his window was making him anxious.

When I got up this morning, before the sun came up, I stepped outside for a moment. Half the leaves from the tree appeared to be in the gutter across the street (and this is an evergreen); the ones still attached showed their lower surfaces to the blast. The plume had become a river flowing to the south of us - directly above, the sky seemed to be clear. Angus took a shower because he was itchy, and since he's prone to eczema outbreaks in very dry weather, we slathered him down with Oatmeal lotion before he got on the bus, hopefully negating any rashes appearing at school - he's distractable enough as it is, nevermind being itchy on top of it! Got Gareth and Avalon ready for school while listening to news radio, and told them, sorry kids, some schools are closed, but not yours. I took them to school so John didn't have to go outside in the smoke. Gareth got there in time to slide in the door before the bell, but Avalon had to go to office for a late slip. She was the second or third one there, but within a few minutes there was a line out the door. I made an observation that every time there's a major weather change, there seems to be a jump in the number of tardies. The other mom nodded and said that they were late because their dog was freaking out because of the smoke.

When I got to work, there was clear blue sky above - the office seemed to be in the middle of a "V" between the Orange County and Malibu fires. By lunchtime, that changed - the entire sky was gray and sickly, though the wind was still nearly gale force. I had been glad to be in air conditioning, as we don't have it at home (and felt a bit guilty getting to sit in it while John was at home in the stuffiness). Several co-workers who live close to the hills said they went to bed with suitcases packed in the hallway, in case they had to evacuate. I talked to a coworker in the San Diego office who said he had come in to find the office nearly empty, and it was so difficult getting there, with the 5 looking like it was still night, that he was going home until the situation was over, to avoid any more road closures. By midafternoon, the AC did not seem to be keeping the smoke out - I couldn't smell anything, but my eyes were burning and sinuses hurting. When it was time to leave, stepping outside was like walking into a campfire. If smoke follows beauty, everyone's pretty today.

On the way home, along the beach, I had to stop along the bluffs to take some pictures of the surf. Wow. It looks spectacular the with windblown tops blowing spray in the opposite direction. Rafts of surfers bobbed in the swells like sea otters, more than I've seen for awhile. And smoke makes for gorgeous sunsets, if you can stand the coughing. I snapped for about five minutes, until I couldn't handle it anymore. Besides, I hadn't stuck anything in the new parking meters (which now accept VISA/MASTERCARD, if you can believe that).

Home to the stuffy house - the kids are bouncing off the walls because they didn't get recess outdoors today, but watched a movie at lunch instead. John is convinced he's going to die - I wish he wouldn't talk like that. I don't want to heat up the house anymore than it is, so the kids and I went to store to pick up salad with cold chicken for dinner. We walked around a few extra aisles just being reluctant to go home - my congested nose was clear for a bit. But we had to get home and get everyone fed.

Back home - and I'm tappity-tapping so I can for once post something on the same damn day it actually happened.

By the way archaeomom8, I quite agree with your rant. It's not new. At the same time, I feel for everyone closer to the flames than I am. Stay safe. Hoping no emergency room tonight too. He's at least asleep for now.