The burning time
This was Highway 50 at 1 p.m. this afternoon, as I drove down the mountain towards Sacramento. Yes, I shot the photo out the windshield with my cellphone as I was driving. No, that's not safe. But I did capture, I think, what I'd hoped to capture, which is the sky and the haze.
It's the end of June, and temps are in the mid-80s to the 90s. Normally a late June day like this is not "foggy." And that isn't fog. It's wildfire smoke. There are no wildfires burning in El Dorado County right at the moment, but there are more than 700 fires burning all over the state as a result of a thunderstorm that came through last weekend. There was hardly any rain in the storm, but lots of thunder and lightning. And now, fires.
I've lived in California for most of my life. I have never, ever seen it like this before. The weather forecast is for a low pressure area to settle in off the California coast tomorrow or Saturday (and I believe it because my left elbow and knuckles are aching). That will, hopefully, get some wind blowing and move this terrible, terrible smoke out of the Central Valley, which is filled to the brim. We may have better air to breathe by Sunday.
But they're also predicting more thunderstorms this weekend, again with little rain in them but lots of lightning.
It's going to be a very, very long summer.
4 comments:
Reminds me of the ol' kids rhyme, "Rain, rain! Go away! Come again some other day!"
This could quite nicely be that other day, eh. Good luck!
Driving home form work yesterday I had a strange and somewaht morbid moment. I thought to myself as I looked out at the buildings and far-off mountains and trees, "Is this how the world will look 50 years from now, just because of all the plloution? Will this someday be the norm, where people hurry to get inside to keep from breathing deadly air?" Kinda creeped me out.I think I want to paint that, too.
I've heard it's pretty bad out your way. And I'm sorry it's all making your bones ache.
I read Susie Bright yesterday. Here's the link. She's beside herself.
Thinking of all you Left-coasters and hoping the best for all of you.
That's quite a snapshot you grabbed there. Wow.
This has seemed like a pretty volatile early summer--tornadoes and floods here in the midwest, fires in CA.
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