TGIFriday - COVID207 and FIRE51

It got cold last night so I turned on the heater for the first time - really low.  It was cozy for a while but I turned it off quickly when I got up.  It doesn't take much to warm up my room.

Work today was productive.  I took a break in the middle to go to the library and to pick up a curtain rod for my bedroom window.  The curtains arrive later.  

Bex is having car trouble.  We'll take a look at it tomorrow and hope it isn't too bad.  Neither one of us can afford this right now and she was just going to start Dashing again.  Can't do that without a car.

We had a peaceful evening and I'm hoping for a productive and relaxing weekend.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Thursday - COVID206 and FIRE50

I woke up a little late again today.  It was overcast and cool and everything felt like it moved slowly this morning, especially my internet connection and brain.

Nothing on three out of the four cameras this morning.  When I pressed down on the memory card to remove the fourth, my finger slipped and the spring-loaded card careened into the general vicinity of the kitchen sink.  I searched everywhere and couldn't find it.  Finally when I mentioned it to Bex tonight, she was able to locate it - hidden behind the tall column of the faucet.  I dried it off and will check it tomorrow.

Work is keeping me busy and I'm wishing for a day off, needing more than the two weekend days that seem to get covered in other things I need to do.  I may need to arrange to shut off the remote connection to work one day next week.

Overall it was a quiet yet busy work day.  There was another fire at Lytton Springs that they contained to a 1/4 acre.  That area has been too busy lately.

But we are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Wednesday - COVID205 and FIRE49

The crick in my neck is going away but it's still pretty stiff.  No nightmares last night, just tossy-turny and I woke up a little late.  Not too bad for work, though I am still behind.

No new flare-ups and no sirens today.  

But what I DID see this morning got my heart racing a little.  Walking to get the goats out of the barn, I noticed new tracks in soft dirt between the chicken coop and barn.  Remember Bex and I heard something outside last night that we couldn't see?

I sent the photos to our local expert on mountain lions to get his opinion but yes, I do believe that's what those tracks are from and what likely was making the subtle noises we heard last night.  Of course there was no trail cam pointed in that direction last night.  So tonight, I unpacked all of them from the car and the place is bristling with cameras.  Of course, there will probably be nothing on any of them again.  But maybe there will.

And as much as I love using them, I keep thinking through how I will add those to the things I need to collect and repack if we need to go again.  

We heard a single coyote howling tonight with no response.  It made Bex cry.  We wondered if it was the one that showed up here this week and if he's lost contact with his pack because of the fire.  It could be he's tonight's soloist and they were listening but still.  I hope he finds his pack if that's what he is looking for.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Tuesday - COVID204 and FIRE48

I've had a crick in my neck the past three mornings.  I had nightmares again last night.  This time it was a giant rattlesnake in the driveway between me and the house, and I had Bella on leash.  When I say giant, I mean python sized.

No creatures on the trail cam today but Bex and I thought we heard something outside tonight.  We couldn't see it but maybe it will be captured on video if it went to the front of the house.  I don't want to unpack much so only have the one camera set up for now.

It was a busy work day so not too much to report.

The fires are easing up, though I did wake up this morning to hearing fire engine sirens from two directions.  One was a house fire outside Healdsburg and the other an accident in the opposite direction.  

All in all, we are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Monday - COVID203 and FIRE47

I tossed and turned again last night and did not sleep past the sun hitting my window because the roll-up shade decided it had had enough and separated itself from the roll.  I am now awaiting new curtains because the shade is a PITB and I won't replace it.

It was another work day, though I did look through the video captured by the trail cam this morning and discovered a coyote strolling along the driveway.  That was a first and rather exciting.

The work day kept me busy.  Then I went down to pick up some groceries from Jess in the evening.  She and Cory have been working on the trailer now that it's at their place and it is coming right along!

Bex cooked dinner and I enjoyed spending some time with her before I started yawning, signaling bedtime.

The fires have been quieter today, or at least I'm not getting as many notifications.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Sunday - COVID202 and FIRE46

It was a quieter day today.  I woke up pretty much on time but had a crick in my neck all day that had actually started yesterday morning.  

I made curry paste and a dinner of curry with rice.  I used Asian peppers for the first time in the curry paste and was a little heavy-handed in using it in the recipe, so it was a double whammy that had my nose running and was probably really good for me.

I somehow tweaked my back, so the cooking was done in shifts with stretching and rest today.  Not as much accomplished as I had hoped.

Fire activity nearby has been minimal today.  The weather got pretty warm but it's cooling into the 50s at night so that helps.

I'm tired but we are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Saturday - COVID201 and FIRE45

I woke up to Jess calling to let me know she would be at my place soon to work on the trailer.  Oops.  When she found out I'd just woken up, she said she'd delay a bit so I had time for some coffee and chores before she, Cory, and Leina arrived.  

We made good progress on the trailer as the day got warmer and then hotter.  Cory went home to get a tool and Jess and I headed out to get sandwiches.  By the time we got back with food, we agreed it was getting too hot to finish today but then when we were done, wanted to keep going.

However, we realized the grinder and chain saw that we needed to use would throw sparks.  Even though I had water in buckets nearby and hoses, it was too much of a risk that it could start a fire.  We hooked up the trailer to my car and got ready to take it to Jessi's house to finish up there.

When I came outside ready to go, the wind had picked up and a huge gust ran through blowing leaves and my hair all over.  A feeling of panic hit me and I froze.  After some discussion, and some tears on my part, we agreed that Cory would hook the trailer up and take it down and I would stay at the house because of the increased fire danger.  I felt awful about not working on it more but knew that I wouldn't be able to calm my mind thinking about the animals at home that I might not be able to get to.

I put a few things back in the car and watched the fire notifications come in and be addressed.  

At about 9:15 p.m., not long after two fires had started north of me, I heard a helicopter fly by.  And then again.  So I looked at the radar and noticed it was circling my house.  I went outside to see if they were using the searchlight or trying to get a message to us.  It was hard to see the 'copter in the dark and there was no searchlight.  After a phone call and texting with my neighbor while the 'copter circled for about 15 minutes and at least a dozen circles, we figured out it was Henry 1, the Sheriff's helicopter.  I called the nonemergency number to inquire about why they were there - because I'd see the circles it had made just previous to this above the new fires and the Glass Fire.  I was told they were just checking for flares and hot spots. 

There's nothing like a helicopter doing donuts to keep you up at night.

Bex and I tried to ease our worry by watching a show and then went to bed late again.

It's a little nerve-wracking here at times but we are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Friday - COVID200 and FIRE44

We made it through 200 days of shelter at home.  I went to the feed store that first night before so I had enough food for all of us for two weeks.  Who knew?

It was a work day.  That is all that happened during the day.  I had a hard time focusing 'cause I'm still not sleeping well or for very long.

The smoke was thick again today and the air still until late afternoon when a light breeze started from the area of Walbridge.  Nice/not nice.

Then Walbridge flared up this evening.  Fire officials are watching the flares in the burn zone, not anticipating trouble.  I'm hoping for no wind.

I told Tammy this feels like torture.  It's like living next to a bomb.  It may or may not go off.  And you really can't leave because unless the countdown starts, there's nowhere to house the goats and chickens.  And the countdown might start or it might not.  And you have no idea how long the countdown will be.  Will it be run-for-your-life short or will you have plenty of time?  Have I said how much I hate this?

I've prepared before going to bed and gathered the very few items that I bring in from the car.  Two bags and animals and we are ready.

I'm hoping for a productive and yet relaxing weekend.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Thursday - COVID199 and FIRE43

I woke a little later today.  I've stopped caring about the alarm clock unless I have an appointment.  I had nightmares about fire on Westside again.

It was an intense and long work day, with smoke finding its way inside the house by afternoon, despite closing windows and doors.  This place leaks air, whether it's cold, hot, or smoke, like a sieve.

By the time the sun went down, the sky was clear and the smoke had dissipated.  Thankfully, the air was still.  A breeze would have felt good in the heat, but would have generated more anxiety than it would have been worth.

I'm thankful for a weekend coming up.  I hope to finish the trailer and take care of some things around the house without being at the computer so much.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.

Wednesday - COVID198 and FIRE42

I woke up late again.  Got busy with work, took a break to go to pick up feed and a sandwich from A'roma that Bex and I haven't had in over a year.  Back to work when I returned.

The WalbridgeFireThatWillNeverEnd was quiet today.  Glass Incident is calmer in Sonoma County, though we are concerned for the next few days as the weather heats up and the winds shift.

I'm pretty tired from it all but hanging in there.

We are safe and well.  I hope you are too.