Thursday, September 10, 2020

Welcome September Or Maybe Not


Lookie there last post end of August and we are now staring the last three months and twenty days of 2020 smack in the keister. And allow me to be the first to say so long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen ,good night.  Ok I may be jumping the gun but no more than whoever it was on new years day this said "Wow , 2020 already? What could possibly go wrong?" I am sure they didn't realize probably due to heavy imbibing  too much adult beverage that in that brief moment they changed the history of the world and off we went.

Top of my post this wonderful excessively smoke filled ash laden day is a updated fire report. And again I will repeat "better to have the smoke than the fire."  However after over 30 days of this going on my throat is begging for some clean air. The Creek fire as it has come to be known by Cal Fire is another amazing monster. It had a meager beginning in the forest by Big Creek on Friday September 4th  within 48 hours it had become a raging , roaring inferno of 135,300 acres and today currently is 5 days active now in two counties  Fresno (starter county) and Madera.  The fire has now consumed 175,893 acres with 0% containment. Losing 60 residences and damaging 6.  Mixed commercial/residential 0 damaged with 277 destroyed. Nonresidential commercial 2 damaged 4 destroyed. Minor structures 1 damaged and 20 destroyed. 

                                        View this morning about 7 AM from my front porch.

Now why am I sharing all this less than pleasant news? I am not jumping on the drama rama team . Two fold because this is my life and life is what we post about. If  the fire goes into Madera county physically , right now they have called mandatory evacuations as a precaution, then  we are the next county in its line . Also because I feel that as a whole the media has done such a poor job of becoming the new Facebook that often the information we get sounds more like the National Inquirer than fact. Lastly because this year the number of wildfires is so unprecedented that out of 28 national forest in this state 18 of them are involved and the forest service recently closed the remaining 10 parks to protect them. The state I have lived in my entire life is going up in flames. And by the way remember the picturesque town of Paradise? Without going into rehashing the details of the 2018 fire is again in the line of fire from the Bear Fire.   


 Clucking good signage. My sister gifted me with this new sign and after I cleaned the coop last week for the winter season it has a home. Not a gate but it works. 

Let us take a look at what the Lil' Dude Marmalade is up to. 

Sleeping

Sleeping


Sleeping 

Pretty much yup. I must say he is the most incredibly creative sleeping cat I have ever seen. He does get out of his X pen several times a day. He sits on the porch with me, on the sofa with me and also does garden and chicken checks with me. But because he is not neutered yet until that day (Oct. 14th) I cannot give him free range . Open doors pose problems with a loose cat around . Especially as fast as this one is. 

Last but not least Fall planting began. I planted kale, spinach , assortment of salad lettuce, beans, peas and lastly radishes. The photo is of the bean planting and each row of anything planted got a nice layer of finely crushed egg shell to grow on.  I keep my shells and ever so often when I have enough I run them through my Cuisinart to use in the garden in some manner.  I still have one tomato plant Indigo Rose , herbs, a lingering honeydew maturing and a pepper plant that took forever to go from seed to mature. Now it has multiple small white flowers on it and we shall see. I don't give up easily so no harm no foul . 

 






10 comments:

Nancy In Boise said...

I've lived thru terrible smoke before, but never with a fire that close. I'm hoping some fall storms with gentle rains will come to help out. Love your coop sign, how cute! Good for you neutering your cat. Saves a lot of grief later! Hang in there...

coffeeontheporchwithme said...

I truly hope that fire gets under control before it gets too close to you! Also, I wish I could sleep like that cat. He's got it down to an art form. -Jenn

Goatldi said...

Thanks Nancy. I appreciate your comments. Worked too many years in rescue not to spay/neuter. And yes I don’t want to find baskets of kittens tied to my fence gate.


Goatldi said...

Jenn that makes two of us. I have been experiencing my broken sleep stress pattern with the fire. At least knowing what is the cause is helpful.

However I must admit envy to the ginger boy for his sacked out skills!

Leigh said...

Oh my, Goatldi, the smoke is worrisome. Yes, better than than fire, but best would be neither! Praying for your safety.

I absolutely adore the photos of Little Dude M. He's one happy, relaxed, and feeling-at-home cat!

Nice to see your fall garden going in. Mine's in about the same state. Huzzah for cooler weather! Now we just need some rain.

Mama Pea said...

Ugh, such stressful situations to live under. First we have COVID and now so many of you in California are battling the fires. What's next? (Ooops, did I say that out loud?) Saying a prayer you to stay out of harm's way and safe. Please keep us informed (with the honest-to-goodness real news) as we will all be thinking about you.

Regarding Ginger Cat, it looks to me as though he has become very comfortable in his new home. Oh, and love the sign from your sister!

Nancy In Boise said...

Oh that's awesome that you've done Rescues before! We had a member of our extended family who kept finding cats on their property and it was obvious somebody was dumping them there, just sad

Goatldi said...

Thanks Leigh. Oregon and Washington could use a bit of prayer also.

This morning was cool at 60 degrees the smoke isn’t as dense and the wind is calm. Perhaps the air drops can get going today. Would be a big plus to the containment efforts.

So glad you are getting your planting done . And yes please to rain!

Goatldi said...

I will pass on your compliment to my sister as to her choice of signage. She will be coming up in a week for a day if sister wood stacking.

I will pretend that you didn’t ask the “what’s next” question. But in the big scheme of things I have asked that same thing. I came up with earthquake, hurricanes and flooding with a touch of unprecedented snow. Ducking and running.

Goatldi said...

Thank you Nancy.

When I worked as a veterinary technician at a local SPCA it was average to in take up to a hundred cats and kittens during “kitten season”. Sometimes on multiple days in a week . That is a 3 month period from about February or March to April /May.

And people wonder why we are so adamant about spay and neuter.