I Didn’t Wish to Jinx it

                I have been quite lame about posting to my blog this summer.  The weather wipes me out.  Either I am so hot that I can’t think or I’m being sent to a coma by the a/c or fans . . . . or winds.  I have been feeling blessed with the lack of smoke that we have seen this month – although the last two days have brought a haze that I can barely see.  Richard and Jaime can smell it but I cannot.  I’ve had the windows open and just thought it was overcast.

               I’ve been checking the fire map and have not noticed any fires along I5.  Richard says this is blowing from the east of us and is the worst fire in all of Oregon history.  All the fires have been given names – usually after the area it is burning.  This one is called the Durkee Fire – just west of Boise, Idaho (here).  Oh, my heck! 

               We did have a fire in the neighborhood quite recently.  I missed my window of opportunity for taking pictures.  I did that on purpose hoping that it could be maintained and I we wouldn’t have to evacuate.  I heard the fire trucks and new it was close – but not so close that those who live in the adjoining neighborhood wouldn’t be able to get through on our street and would have to park their cars at the base of the hill.  I had never seen so many cars parked or people outside in the neighborhood since we moved in 2016.  But then again we didn’t have most of those neighbors before 2020.  Weird.

               I did not see the fire.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen the flames from any fire – only smoke.  White smoke at that – the water sprays were the same white color and the fire was out. I don’t know what happened but am very grateful that it was out shortly after the trucks arrived.  Perhaps I’ll create a follow up post if I should hear about what may have happened.

I Vote For a New Temperature

 

              August is near its end. 

September creeping in.  

        We’ve had fires this late before.  

Smoke billows from the south over the hills.  

            It’s hazy. 

                            It’s hot.  

Please let it rain.

Blue Skies Somewhat Smiling

         

           The skies have appeared blue the last couple of days.  White clouds for the most part – though there was a large cloud of smoke billowing over the hills.  Evidently it moved on its way though I don’t know where.  One of the water fitness attendees comes from Winston.  She said she almost did not attend this morning because of the smoke (I don’t know which fire) but it was clear in Myrtle Creek.

          Carolyn had us work out in the deep end as the wind continued to blow.  It made the class more spread out though there were only ten of us – five or six less than usual.  If all the regulars were to turn out at the same time, there would probably be over 25 of us.

          I’ve been taking naps in the afternoon and am still tired.  Jaime and I tried to walk Bonnie just recently.  It was 83 degrees.  It was a short walk.

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!

Set Backs

Jenna starts school tomorrow and had hoped to have less hair to deal with.  I had set up an appointment for each of us to get our hair thinned out – though I wondered if it we better just to recreate the pandemic hair from last year.

Because we were already out and Jenna hadn’t gotten the schedule that would supposedly be sent out by August 27 (that was the original plan anyway. Tomorrow is the first day of school and no schedule has been identified. I told Jenna we could swing by the high school to see if we could figure out the source of the problem.

 Walking to the school from the street made for an interesting challenge all by itself.  This is a view of the high school parking lot:

I seriously have my doubts about this being finished tonight
and ready for the students who drive to school tomorrow.

 COVID is the source of vacant schedules. Only the freshmen who started today have the schedules.  Still working on grades 10 – 12) After I returned home, I posted the picture to facebook and proposed this question: “I wonder if administration and construction will hold a competition: Which will be done first? The parking lot or the student schedules?”

The smoke continues to envelop our community.  The stars have not been visible the last couple of nights.  The hills appear to have been swallowed.  This road which runs alongside the high school seems to be a drop off into the unknown.

What Color?

 Do you see the hot pink that this permit used to be?

It faded in the heat or was choked by the smoke

The Elements and Aftermath of 2020 (thus far)

 

The air is thick and white where I live.  

*abc - Portland

Other parts of Oregon are yellow and orange – like San Francisco.  

share from facebook

I doubt there is any blue sky that can be seen on the entire west coast.  

*abc news

*abc - California

Forget COVID.  Forget politics and presidential candidates.  People have lost their homes in more way than one. They’ve either been burnt to the ground or criminals have come to ransack and destroy their houses in other ways.  Aside from material possessions which can be replaced are sentiments that are lost.

# AP Photo/Paula Bronstein

I was watching abc news that provided the following:

 I remember the air quality in 2017 not being so great – and according to this chart 2018 was even worse and 2020 is the worst year yet.  I had heard about how bad it was but did not share in bad air quality until after Labor Day.  I feel blessed that this is the worse it has gotten for me personally as much of the rest of the state suffers with an air quality more hazardous than ours.  And it is hazardous than ours.  

This hazardous air quality did not exist for us until after Labor Day and then descended quickly.

They had set up for an evacuation for those that live in Glide – only that became hazardous as well.  Now they are at the Douglas Fair Grounds.  There has been such a great out pour of generosity to those who have been evacuated and don’t know if they will even be able to return to once was their.  community. Neighborhood are gone – just as neighborhoods have been destroyed by Hurricane Laura.  

*abc Philidelphia

the atlantic

# photos cropped from KVAL 

photographer Austin Johnson

Bizarre whether in Wyoming too – though I don’t know if anyone has had to evacuate due to an early snow.

*recording abc facebook page

 What a nightmare 2020 has been

Photos retrieved from facebook,  *screenshots from abc facebook page  

# AP Photo/Paula Bronstein here and KVAL's Austin Johnson here

Labor Day Stars and Air Quality

         Just six and a half months before the pandemic Roland, Jenna and I had gone to Bandon.  And yet it feels like decades ago since we made that trip on Labor Day weekend last year. I did not think about that Labor Day until yesterday when I was looking for a picture of the fog. 

        We chose not to go anywhere this year due to COVID.  When Labor Day had turned into night I was lying in bed and looking up at the stars.  What a beautiful sight to see stars all summer.  I didn’t realize that Labor Day would be my last opportunity even though I spent several minutes admiring the twinkles (which appeared to be twinkling as the fan had been lightly moving the blinds).

The next day the RS pres. had picked up to attend a mini-RS meeting.  We’ve had four now beginning in Canyonville, Riddle, Working sisters, and Tri-City.  Will have one more in Myrtle Creek.  I enjoyed the scenery as we were outdoors.  The light breeze was inviting.  The skies were clear on the drive home.  But sometime between 1:00 and 1:30 the smoke crept over the mountains until they seemed to disappear.

Sometimes fog and smoke will appear the same as both distort our vision.  But fog is clean and rises. I don’t have any problems breathing in the moist clean air.  Smoke descends – it envelopes and lingers.  Smoke is not pleasant.  It chokes. It destroys.  It does assist with cool colors sometimes.  But it’s certainly not worth what the fires take away.

From earlier posts I am sharing these pictures of the fog and the smoke:

Sept 5, 2019 fog Bandon Beach

Sept 5, 2019 Bandon

Tri City Smoke Sep 2017

Bandon fog

smoke Myrtle Creek

the worst the smoke has ever appeared 2017

2017 before masks were a required fashion statement

current Star Mountain fire cropped from KZEI photo

    

 Our hometown has not been surrounded by smoke and fire as it was in 2017.  I don't recall the governor issuing evacuation orders in 2017 as the hot topic that's been presented this year.  We have been told that the entire state are at Level 1: be prepared to leave Level 2: pack up to head out and Level 3: LEAVE RIGHT NOW.  

We are at a level 1 saddly there have been and continue to be several at Level 3.

Swallowed Up

 

                                                this photo shows the opposite.  Sky is white and sun is blood red

Evacuations are taking place all around the state

Douglas County has had some fires

Douglas County is large and so we aren’t always

directly infected at Myrtle Creek and have not seen

smoke all summer and so I can’t complain about it

only today did the smoke swallow the mountains

It almost feels overcast outside and yet

there's a yellow/orange/white reflection from the sky.

The smoke has left the sun with an awesome glow that has an

eerie feel to it when it peers through my windows like

in science fiction movies when the aliens are

about to invade.  But it is 2020 after all. 

The last six months have seemed like a

work of science fiction.  I think it looks like this on

the entire west coast right now.

This all took place within a matter of minutes.  I can now barely see the house across the street.  I guess we'll be using masks not only for COVID but to hopefully breath under all this enveloping smoke. (cough, cough)

The Closest Fire - Too Close to the Road

                Yesterday was overcast when I went to the pool.  I prefer going there when the skies are grey with moisture and not sun that blinds.  We are all hoping that the overcast skies and humidity will help with the fire.

                The fire started near the 97 mile marker less than 10 miles south of where I live.  The news reports that it had been started by an illegal camp fire.  It is the closest fire we have ever had and yet the air quality has been better than any other summer . . . for us anyway.  The smoke is thick and black and horrible to the south.  The smoke has infected Glendale, Grants Pass and of course Medford (has there been a summer yet that smoke hasn’t invaded Medford?)  Reports say the smoke has made its way as far as Ashland.  Oh, my word . . . I didn’t realize it had been windy enough to be carried that far.

Daily Express

              Off Ramp Exit 95 has been closed.  I wonder if Interstate 5 will close all together .  The yellow line represents I-5.  There is no yellow road in the part circled in green.  What is the alternative?

OPB here

Daily express see here

                We live less than two miles from Myrtle Creek airport.  I remember some people complaining about paying taxes for an airport that they never use.  Though we may not use it directly, the majority of traffic from the airport to the sky is for our benefit.  Currently there are 15 helicopters traveling back and forth to MC airport to assist with the spreading fire.  Over 15 firemen have been injured.  I’m suspecting that many of them are volunteer fire fighters.

I did take the two above; I have cropped the photos 

I took this picture in January last year

             

Newswatch 12 here

                 I’d love to be able to take my own pictures but am certain my presence would be in the way and my desire to get pictures is not nearly as important as the work that needs to be done.  I hear them more often than I see them.  Though I have taken one from my backyard, it comes out more like "Where's Waldo".  Thus I’ve provided links from which I have borrowed these pictures

Miles Furuichi here

                It’s really strange how drastically the elements have changed from what they were just five months ago.

Robin Loznak - News Review here

The overcast sky changed to a brilliant blue just after noon.  This morning the sun has risen early but the skies are murky.  The air quality has gone from good to moderate.  I feel bad for those who have it worse than we do.