Thankful

Another day down…

My stress level is lower; I’m no longer watching the clock or calendar. I really have no idea when Stuntman will be home, so I’m going to stop waiting and wondering.
The kids have been, how do I say it… on my last nerve lately.
The fighting and arguing between them is ridiculous! I need to try something so they can get along better, I’m just not sure what.

It was really windy today, that hot, dry wind that totally negated any precipitation that we received in the last few days. Everything is dry again.
We were out running a quick errand. I had only been gone maybe 15 minutes and two fire trucks blew past us… Then two more... Then more sirens and vehicles from other directions. At least 10 fire trucks plus numerous other fire vehicles. I noticed that they were from several neighboring communities.
I looked around and saw a nearby cloud of smoke rising into the sky. It looked close… too close to be near my house. Whew.
As I drove closer to home, I realized that my original perception was wrong, that smoke is coming from somewhere near my house. Eek!
I cancelled my final errand and called my next-door neighbor to ask her about the fire. She said “what fire… wait a minute…” she glanced out her back door and said “oh, there is smoke just coming up over the hill behind us”
We arrived home. Helicopters were overhead, a faint smell of smoke was in the air, but luckily, the wind had died down.
I did my mental checklist. I made sure that all three dog leashes were handy. I reviewed the most efficient path through my house to pick up anything valuable (sentimentally, not monetarily). Photos, mementos, backup hard drive, check. I know that if there is ever a fire nearby, I’m taking the kids, the dogs and whatever else I can easily grab and I’ll let the house go. No way am I going to stand there with a garden hose.
Thankfully, the overwhelming response of the firefighters knocked out the fire relatively quickly. If they hadn’t sent that many trucks… if the wind hadn’t died down at just the right time… the fire could have easily gotten out of control considering the terrain.
Tonight, I am thankful for the LA firefighters... they're more than just eye candy ;)