What Strange Weather

 I feel like it is a safe guess

to say that my family has been

to Yellowstone at least 15 times

from the time I was born and up

until my father’s death. 

 

I remember fires having

closed Yellowstone Park –

but never flooding. 

This weather has been so strange.

I know that I mentioned

how tired I get

each time the wind blows. 

I don’t know why it has sent me

into a coma so often – like

I’m taking sleeping pills that

knock me out into another week. 

The fact that it really does happen

is strange.

 

I also get hot

whenever it rains. 

When I am sound asleep and

the rain is pounding

on the roof, it is not the

sound that wakes me up. 

 

It is the rising temperature

in my body. 

Why does it do that? 

Why would I get hot when

the rain itself is so cold? 

That is also strange.

 

I never referred to the summer

as “fire season” until

I moved to Oregon. 

The first exposure I had to it was

the year 2015 when

we first moved to Oregon. 

 
I don’t remember the fire marker

being set to low in

July through September.

I don’t recall our first exposure to

 smoke and haze until

August of 2015 when we

chose to explore Grants Pass. 

It has been smoky most Augusts that

we have assisted at the pear farm

in Medford.  Strange.

 

And now it’s wet. 

Wetter than I remember Oregon

being this late in June –

if at all. 

I don’t wish to see fire season delayed. 

I would like to not see it at all. 

Or smell it. 

Or breath it. 

 

https://www.oregonlive.com/wildfires/2017/
09/the_worst_wildfires_in_oregon.html

I want to stay safe. 

I want the weather to stay cool. 

I like the 50 – 60 temperatures. 

I don’t like the constant vacillation of

“today will be in the low 40s but may

end in the high 80s.”

  That isn’t nice!

Recapping the Last Four Weeks

          On March 18 I started a class in public communications.  My first assignment was to take (or make up) a situation from work and address it.  When I initially looked at it I had decided to speak on connecting parental support to the child’s behavior – but I had misread the point of the assignment.  Fortunately I decided to wait until Wednesday (the day of the lecture) before I started.

          A teacher’s aide, for the most part, rotates among different classes.  The particular schedule I had followed on that day was 30 minutes each with kindergarten to 3^rd grade, most of the time with kindergarten.  Also, that particular position required me to monitor the 4^th grade during recess and their lunch.  I was with the kindergarten class when the fire alarm went off on Monday for a fire drill. 

          By Wednesday I had changed my topic from behavior to the fire drill as the alarm went off a few hours before I returned home to watch the recorded lecture for the week.  The fire drill had been on Monday and there was a real emergency evacuation on Wednesday.  I was with the fourth graders whom I had never lined up with before.

          I found it interesting to compare the fire drill on Monday to the results that took place on Wednesday. Only my first assignment was supposed to be addressing a co-worker or someone I manage one-on-one.  My topic of conversation was not one that I would choose for just one individual but was able to make it work by pulling out a specific.  There have been so many times when I have not had a walkie-talkie with me (mostly because I haven’t made it a habit) but did have on Wednesday but not on Monday.  The assignment I turned in was on the importance of having the radio device with me at all times and not just at lunch.  I imagined the conversation from my manager’s point of view.  That is what I handed in.

          The following week’s assignment was to write a speech that I would give in public.  I was required to give the audience three things to talk about.  I incorporated that we practice fire drills to ensure safety, we are more focused when we are prepared, and when we are focused and calm it is easier to make adjustments – such as evacuating to an area that we had never practiced before.

          I have always been under the impression that the more excuses a person uses to convince another of something, the less believable it is. My throat had been dry since the class had started, and seemed to dry at more as the class progressed.  The week I was to record my speech was not a good week for me.  I hadn’t practiced my speech orally because of my dry throat and the rain fell heavily and was louder than I was I tried recording.  I compared my situation to Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day as mentioned here. 

          I ended up with a 107 out of 120.  Not bad.  I wouldn’t have scored myself that high.  I couldn’t even watch it as my voice didn’t even move in sync to my lips.  That really bothers me.  Now I am waiting for the grades for this last week.  Tomorrow I start a new class.

Falling Into Place

            It's uncanny how much of my life or programs will fall into my path during courses I am taking, and I can use those experiences or episodes to tie into school discussions or assignments.  Take this week for example.  I have just started a class in communications and public speaking.  It started on Monday.  It was the same day that at least one of the elementary schools in our area had a fire drill.  I know this because I was there.

            Yesterday the fire alarm went off again. Word came over the walkie-talkies that "Everyone needs to be out of the building. This is NOT a drill."  Some of the students heard that, but not everyone did.  The drill took place during class.  The more serious threat was during lunches.  The children were safe.  I suspected that the fire was not a major fire but more of a trash-fire although I had no way of knowing for certain.  I personally had not heard the word "fire" but had heard one of the custodians requesting a need for the fire department.  It could have been a bad chemical in the air.  I didn't know.  I tried to focus on the comforting the children with positive thoughts.

            Rumors get out of hand on face-book and fires spread more quickly on social media than the flames near the faulty outlet or the smoke traveling down the hall.  Parents panic and make the situation worse when they hurry to the school to and demand to check out their students right now.  They are only making it worse for the emergency vehicles that need to get through the safety of the children that need to be accounted for.  None of the parents had been contacted about the fire drill that we had on Monday but all of them seemed to know about the fire trucks coming to the school in response to an actual emergency.

            The kids were safe.  The educators were safe.  There was an orderly manner of conduct - though perhaps not as smooth as it had been on Monday.  Still, everyone had been accounted for and were allowed to return to the school in under thirty minutes.  Parents need to learn to trust the system.  Hey, I'm a parent.  I have a student who's been on lockdown more than once.  She has been a part of fire drills, earthquake drills, and more recently intruder lock-down drills.  And I have trusted the system.  I know that my efforts to contact the school will only interfere with or delay the safety of my child.  I need to have faith in those who are with her and in a higher being.  Things will work out the way they're supposed to.  I feel blessed that I am not afraid.  I am grateful to all the educators who stand with our children and protect them.  I have always been grateful to the firefighters - especially in this area where I currently reside.  Most of them are volunteers.  

            They went into the school. They took care of the situation at hand.  Everybody is fine.  Well . . . I know there are parents who are not fine.  Perhaps they will never be fine.  Fire drills are a way of preparing for a cause or event.  Perhaps the parents should practice understanding the system and make it a priority to have a bit of faith and not panic! I have more appreciation for walkie-talkies and other devices of communication.  This week and last month have helped me to prepare.

There was one Horrifying Moment

            Even before Jenna’s two friends and most of their family had perished in a fire (see here and here) I have been paranoid of open flames and space heaters and such. During the power outage we had candles. 

            At first, Roland had placed a candle in one of the sinks so that we could have light in the bathroom.  Gradually it moved above the sink so that we could use the sink without putting out the flame.  He made sure there were no towels near or anything that could catch on fire.  So a few days later when I told Jenna to do the same thing, Roland went with her to make certain that the area of the bathroom she picked would be safe.  She started her candle in the sink also.  But her sink is evidently shallower than ours and the faucet was made out of plastic which I hadn’t even known was a thing.

            The smoke alarm in Jenna’s room had been whining since the power had gone out – like it needed fresh batteries.  I don’t know why hers went off and ours didn’t.  They had been installed at the very same time (see here) 

            The smoke alarm in the hall is electric – which I thought was weird – or rather it’s power source feeds off the electricity but is still able to work in power outages.  We learned that when the faucet caught on fire and the smoke alarm in the hall and the one in mine and Roland’s bedroom went off.  We chose not to call the fire department as we know they have been busy throughout the week.  Roland figured it was a problem we could deal with ourselves. 

            After the fire was out, he made certain that all the inside doors were closed and opened a window in the bathroom, the front outside door, and some other windows and handed each of us a towel to wave down the hall and toward the open door.  It seemed a bit amusing at first – I mean the very idea of a faucet catching on fire because of a candle.  Jenna kept apologizing, but I told her it wasn’t her fault.  This house is made out of cheap material. It’s a wonder that our roof didn’t cave in.

            I made comments about any passers-by who could be watching (not that there were, but just at the thought of it) that would question as to why we had the door open in the first place, and why we were all waving towels as though it were an exercise ritual or something.  The thought made us smile at first, but we quickly became exhausted.

            The alarm in mine and Roland’s room had stopped, but the one in the hall continued to whine – though the pitch seemed to be getting duller.  Roland said we had to continue to wave so that there wouldn’t be carbon monoxide in the air.  Only he could smell the remains of horrible odor – or at least I imagine it was horrible.  I couldn’t smell it when it happened let alone an hour later or even the next day.  How blessed I feel that Roland was able to get to the fire before it went out of control.

Harvey is Not the Nation's Only Disaster

          Every time I sign onto facebook, I have been invited to donate to the relief fund for Harvey - as I'm sure all facebook users have.  I have never dealt with the aftermath of a hurricane or earthquake or tornado and hope I will never have to.  I don't know what it's like - but it sounds horrible.  It looks horrible.  I know that there are many who are suffering.  I'm certain that the current situation in Houston Texas is worse than my own in Myrtle Creek. 

          I do know what it's like to be surrounded by cold winds and how heavy snow can get.  I have had a small taste of a heat-wave.  I can deal with mold better than some.  I can actually better deal with strong and unpleasant odors as I have lost my sense of smell - although I can smell the smoke as it lingers through any air holes it may find - the opening and closing of the door.  It is awful. I do know what it's like to struggle to breathe in smoke-filled or polluted air.  I feel for the asthmatic.

          I called Biff's mother-in-law who has already lost three  children to health issues.  Two boys have survived - one in Texas, one in Washington.  The one in Texas had been evacuated before Harvey came.  They returned to debris outside of their home.  Miraculously the inside remained unharmed.  She thinks the other is alright as well and has plans for talking with him later this afternoon.  I don't know if the air quality his family is breathing compares to ours. 

          There have been countless news stories about specific fires and many with several fires.  You can read just a few here, here, here and here.  Or you can Google your own search.  Fires have been burning most of the summer (if not all of it)

          I have been hearing the helicopters, but not seeing them.  I wonder how they are able to see.  Or perhaps I'm not really hearing them.  It just became a common sight and so I just think I hear them.

           I came to Oregon for the clean moist air.  It has disappeared along with the mountains and sky.  But I'm sure I would have headaches and coughing in Salt Lake as well.  The boys have a cousin who is unable to breathe due to asthma and fire/smoke combination in another county.  I have a brother-in-law who has probably been affected by the smoke from the same fire as he also works in an area the smoke has lingered.  It was worse at Church than it is in the house. Good testimony meeting though.

         These are various pictures I have taken of the same mountain that can't be seen at this time:

          I had an instructor post: Assignments due; if you have been affected by Harvey, arrangements can be made!  Please let us know.  That is very thoughtful to consider those who may have been evacuated, for those cleaning up, for those who possibly aren't able to sign on and see the message because of the situation. 

Harvey isn't the only natural disaster that has taken place. 

         

Do You Think We’ll Have To Evacuate?

          We saw deer all the time after we first moved to Oregon.  They had wandered into the city to escape the fires that were burning their homes in the forest.  I don’t recall having seen as many deer in the last two years combined.  The fires seem greater this year than in 2015.

          Shortly after our move to Oregon, I made up three evacuation bags. We kept them in the closet door right next to the front door. I felt quite fortunate that we’ve never had to use them.

          When we moved again, Roland added to the evacuation bags making them three times as heavy. Because of their weight and a extremely small closet, they no longer seem as convenience to get to.  We found five can openers among our garage sale treasures.  I figured we had enough that we could put one in each bag (as all three bags contain canned goods) but haven’t had the desire for moving the heavy bags.  Currently they are sitting on top of the vacuum cleaner which has also been stuffed into the closet.

          Tri City lies between Riddle and Myrtle Creek.  Riddle was at a number two evacuation when I first created this post - now they're at a number three - at least nine houses in Riddle - but apparently not the entire city of Riddle as they are currently using the elementary school as refuge.  I wonder how long that will last.

          Yesterday was the our day at the pool until next year.  We went to Winston today and then to Roseburg. The sky was gone - or that is how it appeared anyway.  Like God had erased the sky and we were looking at a blank whitish-grey canvas. I remember thick fogs in winter that settled over houses in Salt Lake City.  It was always cold.  It looks like it should be cold outside, but it's not.  It's hot and it is smoky.  On the return back to Myrtle Creek, it appeared that more of the scenery was slowly being erased away.  I took these pictures:

          It is highly possible that Tri City could evacuate if the rest of the entire city of Riddle is asked to leave.  The temperature forecast says it may get to 108 today.  108?!?! September should never be this hot. Planet Earth should never be this hot!  Why can’t we sent some heat down to Houston to dry up the floods and have them send us their rain to put out the fires?  Why can’t we have a happy balance?  I came to Oregon in order to breathe better.  Not happening right now.  We need moisture to clean out our gunky air.

The Fires are Closer than I had Thought

    Miss Jenna is off for the next four days after having gone to school for three.  Why not just start school on the 5th? 
   
    I left the window open last night.  Big mistake.  It is not yet three in the morning and my eyes and nose are going ballistic.  I should have known better. 

    I found this map earlier last month. 

     It maps out 17 different fires that have been burning throughout Washington and Oregon.  Since then I have counted over 25 in Oregon alone.

     The map shows a cycling path - an event that takes place each year and includes cyclists from all over the world - who come from different states and even other nations to participate. We live approximately where the purple dot is.

    I have read that the Horse Creek fire is just twelve miles outside of Riddle.  That is not that far. 

    What ever possessed me to sleep with the windows open?  I must be a glutton for punishment.

Stop Complaining

The beds are dry

Not all the river beds

not all the way

some have puddles

It's hard to believe that

they were near overflowing

just four months ago.

The haze comes and goes

Lately . . . it lingers

hard to breathe

It's hot.  I think the

smoke is holding in the heat

I'm currently washing clothes

It is hot enough to hang them on the line

But won't the smoke defeat my purpose of

having washed them in the first place.

At least I have a choice to

shut my door and keep the elements

outside.  How horrible for those who

have to deal with Hurricane Harvey

and the mess left behind

They can't close the door and leave

it outside - the water and damage

are still in their houses.

Many possessions and loved ones gone.

Should we have to evacuate, it

will be due to smoke inhalation.  I

don't think the fires will come.

Why can't the elements even out so

there are no floods, no fires,

no damaging winds

Solar Eclipse and Weather

           With all the hype involved, I thought we would be seeing the cornoa.  Jenna and I were both disappointed that we didn't.  We were more impressed by the blood-red sun painted that way due to all the smoke.  Mornings are usually clear.  Not this morning.  Smoke makes fires appear closer than they are.  There are so many of them.  I like the feel of the pool in the morning - especially when we have had it to ourselves - though I do miss some of the other members of the class.  School starts next week and so it's understandable why we haven't seen those who are school teachers.

            I have Jenna's agenda for yesterday stored on a file - but not ready to post.  I have to create a discussion post for my economic class (which I am NOT enjoying) and 100 word report on the summer reading program.  My blog posts will have to remain on the back burner for the time being.

Meanwhile I have these photos of yesterday: