Dogs can be walked. Convertible tops can be put down. Bicycles can be ridden. They seem like such simple things—until they were taken away. It’s such a strange feeling not to be able to spent time out of doors. At one point, I was literally holding my breath while running from the car to the gym…the grocery store…the dry cleaners. Now, to look up and see blue…to be able to take a deep breath…feels like a gift.

Although most of the fires are contained, there are still a few fires in the area: the Yolla Bolly wilderness fire (50 miles north, as I described in detail in my prior blogs) and a flare-up (or perhaps backfire or controlled burn) a few miles north of Potter Valley.

The photo below is a few days old, and wind patterns have changed; however, it shows how far smoke from the Yolla Bolly fires is traveling.

CalFire: Please publish your maps...

The Ukiah Daily Journal ran a story today about how CalFire Maps the Fires. CalFire notes how many people want to see the maps. Since these maps are created by the California fire agency, it would be useful to the public if the maps could be published online for the rest of us to access.  Since the maps are already in an electronic form, this extra step should be minor (and only the top level summary maps would be necessary to publish.)

In 1988, the Northwest corner of the United States and the Southwest corner of Canada experienced the worst drought since the mid-1800s. By the time we came to the summer fire season, all hell broke loose in the forests of British Columbia, Montana and Wyoming. I was living in B.C. at the time and I remember distinctly four separate fires joining together to form a so-called "supercell" fire, similar in devastation to low pressure cells joining to form tornadoes. But what I was observing was pittance compared to what was going on in Yellowstone.

The park rangers had supposedly learned their lessons in Yellowstone. For decades, they brought in crews to fight every small fire before it became too large. But naturalists convinced them that this had the opposite effect. It tinkered with the eco-system that required occasional burns from lightning which got rid of dead wood and diseased trees. Since they had not allowed burns to happen, several large fires spread way too quickly in the 70s and killed campers and park workers. By 1975, they reversed their policies and allowed fires to burn unless they threatened lives.

What they didn't take into account is the principle of Complexity. This is the theory that systems involving man or nature are too complex to really predict anything with certainty. Michael Crichton is a huge proponent of this, especially in his book "Jurassic Park". If you've seen the movie, you might remember the mathematician played by Jeff Goldblum who would mumble "complexity in nature will always find a way". You can read more about Complexity here. The rangers of Yellowstone were dealing with a devastatingly complex system in their fire policy. They were probably correct in allowing small fires to burn. But they didn't take so many other factors into account that summer of 1988. As a result, several small fires joined together to form one very huge fire. In fact, that fire is now seen as the most devastating forest fire in American history.

Let me cut to the chase. It is now the 20th Anniversary of that fire. One ecologist commenting in Atlantic Monthly in August of 1988 said that it might take 1,000 years for the Park to recover from this conflagration. Too bad. He was only off by 980 years. Researchers went back into park this summer to see how the eco-system was handling this wipeout. All species of animals are flourishing. All trees are spreading at rates never seen before. There is a diversity of plant species that never existed in the park in recorded history. The Yellowstone Cutthroat has made a comeback, actually holding their own against the Rainbow Trout; the Rainbow once almost wiped out the Cutthroat in the Park. The only part of the Park's structure that hasn't been rebuilt to its former glory is the manmade part.

In the book of Joel in the Old Testament, God makes a universal promise to his people:

Joel 2:12-14

Rend Your Heart

12 ‘Even now,‘ declares the Lord,

‘return to me with all your heart,

with fasting and weeping and mourning.‘

13 Rend your heart

and not your garments.

Return to the Lord your God,

for he is gracious and compassionate,

slow to anger and abounding in love,

and he relents from sending calamity.

14 Who knows? He may turn and have pity

and leave behind a blessing—

grain offerings and drink offerings

for the Lord your God.

Joel 2:25-26

25 ‘I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten—

the great locust and the young locust,

the other locusts and the locust swarm—

my great army that I sent among you.

26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full,

and you will praise the name of the Lord your God,

who has worked wonders for you;

never again will my people be shamed.

I love that phrase "I will repay the years the locusts have eaten". It is like God is keeping a ledger of the things that have been lost for the express purpose of giving back what was lost during a disaster. In the case of Joel, the disaster had spiritual roots to it. Complexity teaches us to keep in mind that there are very few direct lines of cause and effect in disaster. Even in spiritual terms, it could be that the actions or inactions of people several generations passed have caused problems for today's people. Certainly Adam's sin brought a devastation on this earth. And we reap that reward. Sometimes the disaster we want to blame on one thing has nothing to do with that. Let us be extremely careful not to claim (as many are in the habit of doing) that we know the reason for specific disasters. Only God sees the complexity of disaster.

What I take heart in is knowing that no matter what comes, we can survive and eventually flourish. If our approach is the rend our hearts and not our garments and turn to God for his help, things can change. I remember something my mentor said: "We overestimate what can change in a month and we vastly underestimate what can change in a year". Perhaps you have lost a job, are facing financial crisis, have seen your health deteriorate or had a relationship meltdown. Maybe it's a flood, a fire, a heartache or loss that grips your soul. It feels at this moment like it cannot change and you will never feel any better. But life is too complex. You cannot see how many ways things are already changing.

Remember: Things are never as bad as you fear or as good as you hope. You cannot see all that is going on even in the most simple moment. But God does and we can hear His voice.

It was about a year after the declaration of war that we started to learn about the realities of the situation. The blitz by Hitler's Luftwaffe  started on our towns and cities. London was one of the main targets but other cities were badly damaged also, Swansea being one of them.

Newport also suffered to a lesser extent and, as I had an aunt living there, I saw some of the effects of wartime when we visited her. I clearly remember the  circle of huge, grey barrage balloons surrounding Newport town centre. We lived in a house, Garfield, in School Lane, and many is the night we stood at the window of our parents' bedroom which looked south over the playing field of George Street School and watched the searchlights over Newport sweeping the night sky. We could hear the thuds but didn't know whether it was gunfire or bombs dropping. Occasionally we saw what looked to be fires. They showed up starkly in the black night as, of course, the blackout was in force then and, unlike today's sodium light halo over most towns, all that was usually visible was intense blackness all around.

I can only remember two incidents of bombing near Pontypool. One day the grapevine vibrated with a rumour that, the previous evening a bomb had dropped on the Wheatsheaf Inn near the market. However, later rumours suggested that, as the damage to the pub was slight, it had probably been a shell cap which fell near it.

We had many warnings when the air raid sirens went off, so much so that, when nothing happened near us, we started to take little notice and carried on as usual. However, there was one evening when we had a real fright. I think it must have been about August or September time. My father, being a keen gardener and having quite a large garden devoted to vegetables, we had plenty of runner beans at that time of the year. I was in the kitchen with my mother watching her prepare the beans for supper when, suddenly, there was a terrific explosion. Everything in the house vibrated and the crockery in the cupboards rattled. I felt sure a bomb must have dropped in Wainfelin Avenue. As it turned out a land-mine had been dropped on the mountain much higher up the valley in the Varteg area.

When the blitz started in 1940 I was in the scholarship class in Town School. (It was about a year after the declaration of war that we started to learn about the realities of the situation. The blitz by Hitler's Luftwaffe  started on our towns and cities. London was one of the main targets but other cities were badly damaged also, Swansea being one of them.

Newport also suffered to a lesser extent and, as I had an aunt living there, I saw some of the effects of wartime when we visited her. I clearly remember the  circle of huge, grey barrage balloons surrounding Newport town centre. We lived in a house, Garfield, in School Lane, and many is the night we stood at the window of our parents' bedroom which looked south over the playing field of George Street School and watched the searchlights over Newport sweeping the night sky. We could hear the thuds but didn't know whether it was gunfire or bombs dropping. Occasionally we saw what looked to be fires. They showed up starkly in the black night as, of course, the blackout was in force then and, unlike today's sodium light halo over most towns, all that was usually visible was intense blackness all around.

I can only remember two incidents of bombing near Pontypool. One day the grapevine vibrated with a rumour that, the previous evening a bomb had dropped on the Wheatsheaf Inn near the market. However, later rumours suggested that, as the damage to the pub was slight, it had probably been a shell cap which fell near it.

We had many warnings when the air raid sirens went off, so much so that, when nothing happened near us, we started to take little notice and carried on as usual. However, there was one evening when we had a real fright. I think it must have been about August or September time. My father, being a keen gardener and having quite a large garden devoted to vegetables, we had plenty of runner beans at that time of the year. I was in the kitchen with my mother watching her prepare the beans for supper when, suddenly, there was a terrific explosion. Everything in the house vibrated and the crockery in the cupboards rattled. I felt sure a bomb must have dropped in Wainfelin Avenue. As it turned out a land-mine had been dropped on the mountain much higher up the valley in the Varteg area.

When the blitz started in 1940 I was in the scholarship class in Town School. (http://oldpontypool.wordpress.com/2008/07/03/the-scholarship-class-at-town-school) When the sirens sounded we were all sent home. Most children lived fairly locally and so were able to go to their own homes where, in those days, mother was always home. But some of us lived further away from the school as I did, so arrangements were made for us to go to the home of someone else who lived near the school. I was partnered with Billy Wootton who lived near the top of the Bell Pitch at Coedcae in a little cottage with a small raised yard at the front of it. Billy had an airgun and we often spent the time when the weather was dry out in his yard shooting at a target. Mrs Wootton was a very generous person and would often provide me with refreshments. If the air raid was short-lived we had to return to school as soon as the all-clear sounded, but if it did not sound before ten minutes before our usual home-time, we didn't have to do so. At home-time I was free to go home in any case. I quite enjoyed the air raids. 

Later, when I attended West Mon, we were so used to nothing happening during daytime air raid warnings that the practice was abandoned and we stayed in school.) When the sirens sounded we were all sent home. Most children lived fairly locally and so were able to go to their own homes where, in those days, mother was always home. But some of us lived further away from the school as I did, so arrangements were made for us to go to the home of someone else who lived near the school. I was partnered with Billy Wootton who lived near the top of the Bell Pitch at Coedcae in a little cottage with a small raised yard at the front of it. Billy had an airgun and we often spent the time when the weather was dry out in his yard shooting at a target. Mrs Wootton was a very generous person and would often provide me with refreshments. If the air raid was short-lived we had to return to school as soon as the all-clear sounded, but if it did not sound before ten minutes before our usual home-time, we didn't have to do so. At home-time I was free to go home in any case. I quite enjoyed the air raids.  

Later, when I attended West Mon, we were so used to nothing happening during daytime air raid warnings that the practice was abandoned and we stayed in school.

This week my youngest son is going to California to tour Napa Valley. There are fires around Sacramento, too, so I don't know how much of Napa will be closed off. They won these tickets, and the plans are all made, so they can't change it now.

Here's the scoop...

7/11/08 | 876 views |

Fires burning near Foresthill become one

By Jenna Nielsen, Journal Staff Writer

Ben Furtado/Auburn Journal

Heavy fuels burn at the Westville Fire near Foresthill Tuesday, which has now burned together with the Government Springs Fire.

Two fires burning near Foresthill have jumped the American River to become one.

The blaze has grown to char more than 18,000 in the American River canyons roughly 13 miles east of Foresthill.

The Government Springs Fire burning on the Interstate 80 side, and the Westville fire, which has been burning on the Foresthill side, jumped the river late this week to combine and gain roughly 2,000 acres on the east end.

“With heat on both sides, it makes it easier to burn,” said Marian Swinney, spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service.

Officials are continuing to refer to the blaze as the American River Complex, and no longer as two individual fires.

An unexpected shift in winds late Tuesday night pushed the fires over a slope into the North Fork American River drainage, heightening its danger.

If not suppressed, the blaze could soon threaten homes and structures in the Blue Canyon commu-nity.

Swinney said Friday that the fire remains controlled from the northwest side of the canyon.

“It is catching spots, but crews are getting them out,” she said. “Today they are working on getting the line built up on the other side (of the fire) to tie a dozer line to Humbug Ridge.”

The two blazes started three weeks ago when lightning strikes sparked hundreds of fires in North-ern California.

Aerial support remained aggressive on the fire throughout the week with retardant and water drops.

More than 900 firefighters are on scene and resources include 18 crews, eight helicopters, 44 en-gines, 10 dozers and 14 water tenders. Crews from Cal Fire, the U.S. Forest Service and personnel from across the nation are helping battle the blaze.

Foresthill Road is now closed at Sugar Pine Reservoir, east of Foresthill, with bucket-equipped helicopters dipping for water there and boaters not allowed on the lake.

Texas Hill Road north of the American River and south of Emigrant Gap also remained closed Wednesday afternoon as a result of the fires.

The fire was estimated 20 percent contained Friday afternoon.

The Journal’s Jenna Nielsen can be reached at jennan@goldcountrymedia.com.

Almost Ready for Roasting, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Last night we built a fire in the fire pit, gathered around it, roasted marshmallows, and made s'mores. It was the perfect night for it. We stayed out until about 1 a.m. Who knew it was that late. It was great though... the marshmallows were tasty and the star gazing terrific. We were even able to spy a couple of shooting stars. I love our house.

Anaheim, Iowa team up to help flood victims
Niedermayer returns, final swansong?
Iowa, Anaheim announce affiliation agreement

I went to Reno on one day to see some of the Art Walk projects. Of course, I had to stop at the Reno downtown library where a wonderful exhibit of quilts was displayed in the open atrium area, top to bottom about 3 stories high. The theme was "Christmas in July" although there were non-Christmas-y quilts as well. Good job to the Reno Library (Washoe County).

And, I forgot my camera.

I took these today, July 11th, with my Canon Rebel Xti. Cropped them a bit, but no other editing has been done to them.

Everyone else seems bothered by the air quality. I just think it makes things look pretty.

I also think that if you took a napsack of smores, grahams and some chocolate and a stick... you'd be able to make yourself a snack right quick as soon as you came across the nearest fire.

Calmer weather slows fires in Calif., Wash. (story)

Stories where men is not the protagonist rarely seem funny to comment on. Nature is always serious about the news.

Stocks dive, rally, fall (story)

Basically they did a bit of everything. I guess stocks are a bit like the weather, predictable to a certain degree.

Senate to tackle foreclosure rescue package (story)

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac must be happy.

War crime charges likely against Sudan leader (story)

“Lesser charges of helping orchestrate genocide and participating in crimes against humanity”… hmm so there are different degrees of participating in genocide. Ok I can see that, there are different degrees of murder as well. Makes me wonder though if there is a different degree of punishment, I would hope the slightest involvement in genocide would warrant some top of the line sentences already.

Bush presses Congress on offshore oil drilling (story)

This sickens me. It’s not long-term solution, not even a short-term one. It’s nothing more than a big COP OUT. I hope no one ever gets fooled by that. Government needs to provide solution not smokescreens.

Eager buyers line up for iPhone 3G (story)

I don’t have an Iphone, but to be honest it’s one of the few 21^st century products that actually feels like it’s futuristic. I’m waiting for some Icars now, those’d be nice.

Bhutto slaying (story)

Isn’t this a bit late to start asking for a UN investigation. This happened over half a year ago!

Storm warning (story)

This Bertha is one slow hurricane… she’s been moving towards the Caribbean for over a week now. What a slacker.

Miley in wax (story)

I guess they needed someone to replace the Hitler statue… I’m guessing this one will be slightly more popular.

Trace Cyrus (story)

Two Cyrus headlines on one day is two too much.

Harley history (story)

Might be an interesting museum, not a good headline though. Actually, I correct that “EASY RIDER: New museum features a replica of the "Captain America" bike in the 1969 film.”… Museums aren’t suppose to have replica’s!

Former Pentagon worker sentenced in spy case (story)

That lable of spy gets tagged on people pretty fast. Story is somewhat interesting, if only cause spies are cool.

Dog meat's off the menu for Olympics (story)

I find that if you travel you ought to take the country as it is, and not have them adapt to your personal opinions and tastes. If you don’t wanna try dog meat, then don’t order it.

Big jump in number of new U.S. citizens from Mexico (story)

Well Bush’s lame ducks status is at least refelected in these numbers.

Olympic swimmer Shanteau diagnosed with cancer (story)

Get well fast mate.

North Korean soldier shoots South Korean tourist dead (story)

My goodness, they pretty tense over there. 53-year old women taking a stroll on the beach just learned she wasn’t in lalala happy land.

Lifeline Live (story)

“Are celeb baby photos worth the money?”… sigh

In the Sky (story)

“It costs about $77,000 to top off a Boeing 767” interesting “Did you know”-fact.

High octane (story)

“Bud has 5% alcohol content, Tokyo beer has 12%.”, and who says Asians can’t handle alcohol!

The remaining remotely "interesting" headlines

Like Obama, McCain devotes a day to women voters *** 2nd autopsy confirms pregnant soldier killed in N.C. *** 10 great places to flag down a fabulous feast *** 'Alone in the Dark' goes 'bump' in the night *** 'Aerosmith' and 'On Tour' join 'Guitar Hero' saga *** Life's golden for 'Hellboy' star Selma Blair *** Three stars (out of four) for the big red guy *** Get in on the 'Hellboy II' action *** Goss loses himself in bad-guy makeup *** How do teens recommend keeping young drivers safe?

Last night, shortly after sunset, we ventured outside to try out our new garden bench. It was very quiet and still, with no sign of the deer that usually come out to graze in the back of our property. We looked at the immense trees silhouetted against the strange sky. Everything had an end-of-the-world feeling, and I actually felt a ripple of fear.

People are behaving strangely. Conversations begin and end with comments on the smoke. It's as if a subtle shift has drifted in with the fumes and haze, and it makes me downright uncomfortable.

P.S. This is not my photo, but rather something I pulled off the Internet. I found it after I'd written my post, and it illustrates the mood perfectly.

You stop hunting
as you watch me undress
beneath the Oak boughs

So suddenly your eyes
turn to hungry wildfires;
sucking oxygen from the air

Beneath your feet spark
restless, reckless bonfires
overwhelming the scenery
leaving behind a thoughtless black
burning all the way to
me

I worry
about the wildlife
I’ve spent so many of my years
capturing & studying
the rare birds
asking them in my heart
only to go back &
smoke them all out

Sooner than a single pall of
smoke
could lay hand on a feathered wing
every bird is swiftly borne up in a colorful
zephyr
each becoming piece of
a graceful flock
their fleeing shadow
darks across our faces

There is a sudden silence in knowing
no one could ever truly capture
such a free
&
forsaking thing

Even with your fires
burning faster to me
I knew
there was little hope for you