Fire

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Wednesday night around 6:30pm, a fire started on the East Spanish Peak. Life went from this:

huajatolla-3.jpgto this:EastpeakfireAnd by the evening it looked like this:Fire from Lathrop State park

The fire started on the Boy Scout Ranch were there were about 178 boy scouts from Kansas and Texas staying. They were evacuated with short notice and were taken to John Mall High School where the Red Cross had set up a shelter.

We saw the fire when we sat down for supper on Wednesday night. Friday morning, I went to the high school and checked how things were going. I ran the rest of my errands after making sure that the scouts had what the district could provide for them.

Dan set up the weather station on the roof so that the local incident control group could use it’s stats. We’ve watched the fire ebb and race with the wind. Yesterday, we thought it was going to die down, only to have the wind pick up and energize the fire. The smoke was really bad, as the East Peak Fire smoke joined with that of the West Fork Complex fire smoke. Not only was the sun orange, but so was the moon last night. Last time I saw the sun look like that was in the 1970’s when we climbed Mt. Whitney and California was burning.

Whitney sunrise

It is now Sunday and the fire has burned 12,442 acres and is about 10% contained. Fire investigators have found the source of the fire, a tree struck by lightning. People have been evacuated from just east of La Veta all the way to I-25 and from south of Walsenburg and HWY 160 to the county line. Walsenburg, La Veta, Aguilar and Trinidad are all on what is called Pre-Evacuation notice. In other words, pack your belongings that you wouldn’t want to lose and be ready to leave.

So, my life is in boxes yet again.

We have National Guard, the Army, A bunch of wildfire fighting teams and lots and lots of locals working the fire. We hear planes flying overhead to drop slurry and helicopters dropping water. We have watched the small planes check out the fire and guide the bigger planes in to do drops. Check out the Huerfano World Journal’s Facebook page for further information and lots of photographs.

And for a bit of dark humor… Everyone around here knows that the Spanish Peaks are also called the Wahatoyas… Breasts of the Mother Earth. Well, in a moment to try and relieve tension, I had one thought. Mother Nature picked one hell of a time to Burn her Bra.

Weekend Entertainment.

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Oh my! At least it was entertaining for my Dad and anyone watching.

A better title might have been “working on the chain gang”. We started on my Dad’s yard at 9:30am on Saturday. Dan cut up wood with the chain saw and I carried it to the truck. About a quarter of a cord. Then, while he mowed the front, I picked up about 30 gallons of twigs and sticks. While he mowed the back, I weeded in the front and trimmed up a rosebush that hadn’t been pruned in probably 15 years. The lawn mower had a sense of humor and ran out of gas when Dan had a 10 yard strip left to mow. We finished at 12:55.

When we got back to the house, we had to unload the truck. We had the wood to stack, Spearmint for the front and an Italian plum tree sucker we hope will transplant.  I pulled weeds and did gardening out front with Morgan while Dan washed dishes.  Then it was time to collapse. We finally recovered around 7pm.

Then I made pizza. Yes, homemade pizza. Morgan nearly burned her mouth again, trying to eat it when it was too hot. 🙂

Sunday… we did not sleep in. Instead, we got up and I made bacon and fried potatoes. After breakfast, I had a board meeting with Mach 30. Once that was done, Dan and I started to repair the roof of the Wendy House. He tarred and I sifted dirt for the cover layer. I also did a bit of weeding in the alley while he was on the roof. We will be touching up things for the next few days as everything soaks in. There were a ton of nail hole leaks. Oh, and the drips. It was 90 yesterday. Brandy of course walked right under some of them. She’ll just have to wait until the tar wears off. She’s speckled.

We pulled off some of the old tar paper siding on the west side of he Wendy house to see what was under there. Wood! We will need to replace some of it and then put siding on. I told Dan it WILL be before winter! I can see daylight through the cracks. However, the paper being gone will help in doing the plumbing.

Next up, Dan inspected the lower chimney on the main house. OMG! Nearly 3 feet of damage. Loose bricks, crumbling mortar, etc. He took it down to a safe level and capped it. I am very glad that we do not use that chimney. Funny part is that use to be the furnace chimney and supposedly safe. And… Grandpa Sudar wouldn’t use the fireplace chimney as he thought it was damaged. Nope. Other way around. We are lucky the house didn’t burn down.

While Dan threw bricks off the roof, I cleaned up part of the back patio and did more garden work in the front. I planted the yarrow in the yard and watered the transplanted mint and plum tree. The mint looks like it will survive. I’m not so sure about the tree.

Exhausted doesn’t even cover how we felt. We cleaned up, ate dinner and were in bed early. It was a lot of work, and while it may not seem that much was done, we were very busy.

And Now…. the heat.

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Am I going to complain? NO. We’ve had some lovely rain, and right now it is trying to rain, even though it isn’t hitting the ground. We are working on getting use to Celsius temperature readings, so my atomic clock says that it is now 33C outside. (about 92F) A little warm, but much nicer than -12C. (10F)

On Mother’s Day we did a bunch of gardening. Keep in mind that our yard is Still a construction site. I just get more bits and pieces piling up. On Sunday, we made a tire garden out front on the steps to block access. Before you think I’m crazy, you need to understand that those stairs slant Downhill! They are a danger. So, we are blocking them and adding new steps to the side where everyone walks already. The first two pieces of wood are in place and the steps will be finished in the next week. We plan to add terracing and more herbs out front as well.

In the back, we fixed a piece of fencing with a piece of the old gate. It isn’t a perfect fit, but looks like it has been there a while. We opened up the rest of the gate area which will help the lilac bush.

Then we started building the potting bench. It’s an old cupboard that we’ve attached a door to that will eventually be painted and have a roof. Right now, it works well. On top of that, we repurposed a chunk of old gutter. We’ve attached it to the fence, filled it with dirt and planted lettuce seeds and onion seeds in it.

In the back, where we moved the old tin fence 90 degrees, we have built a raised bed. I added some paving  bricks and will be building a second raised bed to the south of that. Once we got that done, we fell into our chairs and collapsed. It was a great, long busy day.

Here are the pictures… Citronella on the front porch. The bulls head planter, green tire with mint, stairs, raised beds, and potting bench.

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Colorado, the Menopausal State

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Last Tuesday, we went from warm to freezing snow storm. Probably 2 inches of the stuff. Then it got warm. 70’s. We had a couple of cool nights, but nothing dire. I even packed away most of the winter clothes. And before you laugh and tell me it’s all my fault for packing away the clothes, keep in mind it has been Hot! Warm! Sunny! In fact, today it has been as high as 74F. (9% humidity and 20-25mph gusts)

However, wait… hold on… Tonight the temps are due to drop to the mid 30’s and we are suppose to have snow again by 5am.  (humidity 45%) If we are lucky, we might have as much as 4 to 8 inches of snow accompanied by 50 mph winds. Yes, a blizzard. Akkkk!

So, I am hauling wood into the house. The stove is ready to lite and we will be going over to my parents to chop wood. Such fun. I am wondering if this year will be like the one we had in 1993, where May 1st was greeted with 5 inches of snow. Brr….

Tomorrow’s school board meeting will be fun. Ugh.

Maybe by June the weather will be nice.

Rain!!!!!!

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Okay, it isn’t often I post three times in ONE day… We are in the midst of one hell of a rain/hail/thunderstorm. Wow! Brandy of course is barking and trying to attack the lightning at the same time she hides from the thunder. Silly MUDDY dog!

Of course, I will have fun cleaning up the Wendy House. We still have a few leaks. Dan is reorganizing the office and back porch, so I am staying out of the way. 🙂

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Heavenly Cloud Cover!

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After nearly two weeks of 100 degree days, it is Finally cool. Yesterday, was the first day in Pueblo that only made it to 97. We are south of Pueblo, but we are usually close to the same temperatures. It’s been so hot that I’ve had issues with my laptop overheating!

The day we cut the weeds in the front yard it was 98. It rained, and we just stayed working as the moisture felt so good. Granted, we were dry by the time we finished. I now have a lovely brown front yard with designer rock piles. 🙂 I stacked the various rocks in little towers where possible because I didn’t know what to do with all of them and having them line the sidewalks was a pain. We plan to tackle the back yard today or tomorrow. Maybe. 🙂

It rained yesterday. A nice heavy but constant shower that soaked the dusty ground. And of course, the rains have been across the state which helps the fire danger, but also makes those area prone to flash floods. sigh… However, I plan to enjoy my cool morning! It’s 60 degrees! 86% humidity and only a 5mph breeze! Wheeeee!

A hot Monday in June…

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It isn’t a record breaker, but just steadily hot. It’s also the Summer Solstice. 🙂 From now until Yule, the days will get shorter. sigh… I worked in the garden killing weeds today and did laundry. The top layer of stuff was trying to dry before we even got home from the laundromat. Yes, I am back to that. Our washer we had lost it’s transmission. argh. At least I am saving money by not using the dryers.

This is also our third week of company this month. Ian’s dad, brother and grandma in the first week, then Stefan and Anabell, and now Misty. 🙂 It has been almost eight-nine months since we saw her last. She’ll be here for a bit of this week, and then we will be company-less just in time for school to start and work to start. Wheeeee!!!

We have the Old Blind Dogs from Scotland here on Thursday. Dan will be working the lights, and I will be working at the La Plaza cooking. I am so looking forward to a paycheck!!!! I get to be baker and chef along with three others.

Oh, and we got to see the Medano Fire up above the Sand Dunes on Friday. Here’s hoping for rain!!!

Sunny and 75 Degrees! It must be October!

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Yes, while my parents got a load of wood in today, it decided to be a balmy 75 degrees today. Yesterday it was in the 80’s. Oh well. So much for snow in September. Of course, it will probably snow 3 ft tonight. (you think I jest?) Autumn is such a weird season here in Colorado. Either warm and pleasant, or bitter cold. Sometimes both on the same day!

Morgan is off to Mesa Verde for a field trip on Wednesday and Thursday. She is excited. She has been enjoying not having volleyball practice. With my car down, I’ve rather enjoyed the brief break in driving. Daniel has been doing it, because he has a car. Wheee!!!! It means I get to stay home and do things like school work, blogging and story writing.

We still have Spike here. Dan swears that Brandy tried to kill him last night. The dogs got so tangled up that Spike was choking. Today we moved the cables so that no one is close enough to tangle the other.

I might have a job soon. A friend of ours who owns an antique shop wants to open a tea room. Yeah, English tea, tea breads, etc. She didn’t have a clue how to do it, or who to run it until Dan mentioned that I’d be perfect for the job. So, I went down, talked with her for an hour and then looked where we could put the shop. She is going to hunt down some of the details and I will do some other work. Whee!!!

Yesterday was the Staff appreciation dinner put on by the FOL. We had KFC. 🙂 It was a pleasant 2 hours. Then it was home for work on my college class. Professional Communications. A’s so far, and I’d like to keep it that way.

At least today I get a chance to write!!!

Helping Senior Citizens with heating bills

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My parents have a small wood stove in their new house. Every so often, my Dad heads down to the library and picks up newspaper for fire starter.  Well, when he went down today,  all of the Rocky Mt. News and Denver Post papers were gone.

Instead, John gave him a bunch of the newspaper print magazines from the recycling pile.  Now, this is where things get interesting… Why? Because, these magazines were the Out Front magazine put out by the Gay and Lesbian community in Denver for the state of Colorado.

(snicker…. twitter… giggle… )

My Dad took the pile without looking, thanked John and took them home.

I can see it now… My very conservative Dad sitting there getting ready to start a fire and taking his first real look at the papers that John gave him. Then the blushing starts…

I figure that amount of facial blood flow ought to be worth at least 10 degrees temperature rise per fire.  Dad will probably safe a lot of firewood.

teeheehee…..

What a way to help people with their heating bills!

Memorial Day

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This holiday usually denotes the beginning of the Summer Holiday Silly Season. It is finally warm, and most kids are out of school or will be shortly. People are hauling out camping gear, vacation clothing and for some the last of their Income Tax refund for a holiday.

For me today it is simply a quiet day around the house. I’m still feeling a bit off color. I got woke up this morning by lawn mowers, and the phone. I tried to ignore it for at least 30 minutes before I finally got up. I’m going to just take it easy today. I can’t afford to go on a trip or anything. So, I’ll go on a trip in my head. :> I’m going to curl up with a book and enjoy the warmth of the day.