It's October in California...

...Do you know where your raging brush fire is?



Yesterday morning I alternated between cleaning house, reading blogs, and watching predictable breaking news about a fire located on the other side of the mountain range that nestles up against my neighborhood. It was 2003 all over again.

In October of 2003, a fire in the same location, took an exit stage east when the wind suddenly switched direction; resulting in voluntary quickly turned mandatory evacuations. At the time I was sitting on the freeway on my way to get my hair done. Priorities. [My children and dog were deposited safely at a relative's house, so stop looking at me like that] I'd barely made it past the exit to my own house before the wind brought fire and thick black smoke sweeping across the freeway. I was all, fuck this, and meandered my way through traffic, making a u-turn off the on-ramp mind you, with several other like-minded individuals in tow. They were like, this chick is not even kidding about saving her own ass - she is wise - posse out.

October of 2007 was more of the same. Except then I was situated in a doctor's office waiting room while my mother received x-rays for her broken hip and was alerted via the television that a fire now named after my neighborhood was melting patio furniture and licking the rear facing windows of several houses. That time I had to run home to retrieve Boy-Child#1 who was doing his homework. I had only been away from home for about forty-five minutes. The number of cars that were simultaneously exiting and entering the suburb was alarming.

So yesterday, here in 2008, I was a bit disturbed when I left my house to pick Girl-Child up from her kindergarten class and was met with (picture top left) at the end of my street [which was also the moment that I high-tailed it back to my house to grab my camera who's a good blogger?... coochie cooo]. When I turned the corner and rounded the bend, this image (picture top right) laughed in my face. The view from Girl-Child's elementary school (bottom left) was totally deja vu. And (bottom right) is from the grocery store parking lot because? Milk and dishwasher detergent. Again, priorities people.

P.s. New post up at Blissfully Domestic! One word: Clooney.