The half-moon appearing these nights is obscured by the haze. People all over town appear wearing masks including the folks who come to our door for one reason or another.
When my kids were growing up in the Northwest they used to listen anxiously on winter mornings for any word that "today" would be a "snow day" and that there would be no school. In our neighborhoods these days I suppose the kids await word for "smoke-filled days" that will cause the schools to be closed -- and most local schools have been closed because of the smoke.
Not only regular school has been curtailed, but sporting events and other outdoor activities have been canceled due to the fires. We have pretty much stayed inside -- but that is what our norm these days is anyway.
We keep the furnace fans running and that seems to help a bit and we only venture outside when necessary. We definitely do smell the acrid remains of smoke and it may be having an effect on how we feel.
The TV news is almost all about the fires and it is certainly a "downer". We here in Sonoma County just last year had over 6,000 homes burn -- now there are nearly 10,000 homes that have burnt to the ground in and around Butte County -- more in Southern California.
In Sonoma County, there has only been a handful of homes rebuilt and most folks that have lost their homes are still battling the insurance people and other regulatory agencies that seemingly are making it impossible to rebuild.
The word about Butte County folks who have lost their homes is that first there is almost no way that the thousands of folks left homeless will be able to even find temporary housing until they can rebuild. It is truly a dilemma that one has to hope to never have to experience.
Our indoor activities during the day continue to be centered around puzzle management and we have used that to "block" out some of the reminders of smoke-related activities.
We have been taking about two weeks to work the average 1000 piece puzzle -- we usually spend an hour or so at the "grind" and then return maybe for a second session later. We almost always work on a puzzle during the evening news or a recorded sports event like Monday/Thursday Night Football.
We have discovered though that just because a picture is beautiful -- it does not always make a good puzzle. For example, the puzzle to the left in the collage above is a prime example of a beautiful scene but horrible puzzle material . . .
What is currently on our nightstand? Actually, it is on "Audible" and we read it on our iPad each night before drifting off to sleep.
Of course, the book is written about the author of "Gone With The Wind", Margaret Mitchell. She led a very interesting life and only wrote this one very impressive novel. Having grown up in the South she had heard tales about the Civil War era her whole life. We are only about half-way through the book and find ourselves learning a bit of her everyday life. Unfortunately, Margaret died fairly young -- at 49 years of age -- a victim of a speeding driver who struck her in 1949. "Gone With the Wind" was published in 1936 and went on to sell millions of copies and win numerous awards.
Of course, the movie starred Clark Gable and was one of my Mother's favorites as well as the favorite of many many others. After reading this book we might just watch the movie -- one more time.
Just like with puzzles, we have our next book "on its way" and we'll talk about that one soon.
A return of a favorite show is coming -- Who Do You Think You Are -- returns on December 3, a Monday.
This show has been on now for several years and is fun to watch. Unfortunately, this season I think there are only four episodes. The episodes are about a known TV or movie personality and the search into their family trees. The show originated in the United Kingdom and still is popular there as well (with their version). The show will air on TLC on Mondays at 10 pm -- we will set up a timer to record each episode and then watch them when it is convenient for us.
We are feeling the "holiday" season especially with the arrival of an impressive "edible" gift for the occasion:
Gail is checking out our holiday gift box -- thank you, Aura.
We look forward to enjoying all the goodies shown, from fresh fruit to salami, cookies, candies and other treats.
A nice way to begin the stretch of days coming up.
And lastly, next week is our favorite holiday of the year -- Thanksgiving Day. It again seems impossible that it is so soon and that some parts of the country will have a "white" Thanksgiving.
We wish all a very pleasant day on Thursday next week -- we are even forecast to have rain -- which is a real Thanksgiving this year.
That is a bit of our week, hope to see you all "in a few"! 👫
No comments:
Post a Comment