Smelling Smoke Again.....

It's just after midnight, and the smell of smoke is really strong. I'm really getting tired of this.

About an hour ago I went into the kitchen and smelled a faint whiff of smoke. At first I thought it was just a remnants of the fire from a few days ago....but then I stepped outside and it was really intense. Something, somewhere is on fire...again.

Now, before I go nuclear, pack the cats and flee permanently to Orgegon, I am just pondering the realistic possibilities. There was a fire down near Sea World earlier today, so it could be smoke from that. It could be more smoke from the Juliett fire (the one that came so close), or it could be the Marines setting back fires in anticipation of next weeks' planned Santa Ana winds.

For those in other parts of the country, Santa Ana winds occur in the fall, and are basically this phenomena where it gets really hot and then warm winds come down from the mountains out to the ocean....which is unusual because air normally flows from the ocean onto land. The winds can be anywhere from 30-70 mph.

The winds themselves aren't so bad. I used to really like them. It's the morons who set blazes in the middle of them that I find deeply troubling. A small little flame with these winds and the right fuel (brush that has been dried over the summer) and it it can move at 20-30 miles per hour. Embers are blown by the wind and can start multiple blazes miles from the initial fire.

Early indications are that this last fire was the result of arson. To do this (possibly twice) on a Marine Base takes a special kind of crazy. The one comfort is that I'm willing to bet that they will be hyper-vigilant through this season to make sure they don't have to deal with it again any time soon.

No reports on any of the news channels about new fires, and I don't see any activity outside. It's a surprisingly clear night....but the coughing and hacking here in my living room aren't fun.

December can't come fast enough. :)