And the fires burn on

When I wrote that last post all was calm in my little spot in Santa Rosa. I stayed up until around 1:00 a.m. to see if the winds were going to ever materialize. At 1:30 they did. They were fierce and unrelenting. From that moment, I was awake with my heart pounding until close to 5:00 a.m., when I gave in to the terror and drove south to Petaluma to Ben and Stacey's, (along with another million people evacuating on Hwy. 101) where Jenn and Dar were staying. Sleepless, I was a bit of a wreck, fell onto their couch in my clothes and slept until 8. Three hours of sleep was enough for the moment.

The fire continued to advance, more evacuation notices were mandated. The winds were historically high all day on Sunday but around noon I drove back to my place, planning on not leaving again. Had a nap, a shower, read a book, heated up some leftovers, blah, blah, blah. But when I received a text from my friend Izzy in Coffey Park that the fire was a lot closer than expected, I drove south again and willingly slept on the Petaluma couch one more time, not as much out of fear of the fire but out of fear of those three women in Petaluma who were all but calling out the National Guard to physically move me out of Santa Rosa.

Thank you to Jenn, Dar and Stacey. And Ben.

It is Monday night. It feels like ten days have gone by since Saturday night. My shoulders hurt and I have a persistent dull headache. The fire is as much of a danger right now than it was two nights ago. But Steve, who has been without power for several days (but in no fire danger) is here tonight, sleeping on the floor. There is a sense of safety having someone else here, someone who can moderate my anxiety if need be. (Well, if you know Steve, you know that's not always the case, but we will move on.)
I made an awesome dinner, we watched some TV and it's now time to turn off this final light and go to bed. If we have to evacuate, the hi/lo sirens will come by and let us know. (And Nixel will do its pinging thing.)

Bottom line, there are fires roaring all over California. Please be safe, be cautious and observant and please be kind. If I believed in a god, I would ask that god to please watch over our firefighters. Instead, I ask that of the universe.

Peace. 

xo