It was really hard to be optimistic on Wednesday when I made that blog entry. The fire was huge, the area had doubled overnight, strong winds were expected to pick up again. And after posting that entry, the area where my girlfriend lives was advised to evacuate. But hey decided to stay until until it was mandatory, which fortunately never came, and as of now even the recommended evac has been lifted. Since then, things have been optimistic. As of now most of the larger fires seem to be at lea
A lot of years ago I thought it might be worth my while to buy a premier membership just to see how I liked it. I wanted to give myself an opportunity to actually test out all the perks, but I didn't want a Lifetime because I wasn't sure if I would like it that much. So I bought a one-year. And, what do you know, the things premier members could do were really cool. And after it ended I spent a lot of time thinking how I should just break in and buy a lifetime, because why not? The perks are coo
So the Unofficial Family Reunion week came and went, all to soon in my opinion. Both sisters are back at school, and while I'll be seeing them both infrequently, I should be able to talk to my first sister more often, which is nice. Sister Appreciation Day Gift 1: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies were a mild success. I may not be the best chef in the house, but I can follow a simple cookie recipe. And they came out pretty good: they were moist, and soft (the way cookies should be- none of
The fire that was threatening my local area is mostly contained. Actually it has been for two weeks or so. Evacuation orders are probably almost entirely lifted by now except for some small area. So that's mostly good. It did not come without losses for many people, though.
But it's California, and we're a box of matches when it comes down to it. Hotspot detection satellites are lighting up the state like a Christmas tree. That's why even though we (folks in my area) aren't being immediatel
A little over a month ago I started a new job. After over a year of searching, it was exciting to finally throw away the part times I've been working and start full time doing work that, maybe technically isn't what I studied in school, but still uses what I learned in school. My first instinct is that how great it is to finally, after years and years, have a job that I don't hate... and sometimes even really like. Sure the commute sucks, and they aren't paying me enough that I can afford to mov
In between work, travel (for work), reading mountains of books and watching whatever movie I happen to be able to get my eyes on (the last was Hannah Montana- don't judge), I decided that I wanted a selection of video games for entertainment, because I'm not always in the mood for reading or watching movies, especially when I can't sleep at night and I end up staying up till 1 am or later. My computer does come with a solitaire collection and Candy Crush for free, but there are only so many card
Now, obviously autumn isn't one of those things where you snap your fingers and it just is. Like every other seasonal change it's a process that lasts over a short time. And then there's the fact that Mother Nature herself doesn't really like to make these changes happen consistently during one certain period of time each year. But, nevertheless, someone in charge of calendars decided that today would mark the first day of autumn, probably because it's an equinox or something like that. Autumn
... you were not missed. Can it just be September again, already? I have a lot of thoughts on 2014 and 2015 which I will not write now because it's midnight and it's two hours past my preferred bed time. Maybe later this week I'll write some more in depth thoughts, but, in brief, I'll just say that hopefully next this year is just a little bit better than this the last one.
I was really happy when we got some summer rain earlier this week. I can't remember the last time that ever happened in my life, and it came with thunder and lightning which is also a rarity. It was cool at first, until I got to work on Monday and heard that it started a fire. It was small at first, but two days later, like all of them, it erupted into a monster. 32,000 acres burning, and although it started really far away its now threatening the home of some family friends, and where my sister
It's time for V1P2 to use his annual blog privileges for the week! I spent the past week in Yosemite acting as a volunteer leader for a program that takes underprivileged youth into national parks to teach them about the environment, conservation, ecology, and the like. I have to say, the experience was pretty overwhelming for a variety of reasons. First off, while I have taught middle aged students before, they have always been Boy Scouts. And even if the age group of these kids were the sa
Work on Wednesday was agonizing. It was really hard to get anything done while keeping the burn map open and watching it spread closer and closer to my girlfriend's place of residence. They were never under mandatory evacuation, but everyone around them was so they left anyway. It did end up jumping the highway, leaving a whole new range of people in danger and forced to evacuate. We were not one of those groups, but its still terrifying to watch a fire line inch closer and closer to your home.
