Last night I noticed that there was a red sun setting in the sky.  I told myself the little adage "Red sky at night, sailor's delight.  Red sky in the morning, sailor's warning," thought about when my grandma taught me that phrase, and went on my cheery little way.

This morning, I noticed that there were considerably fewer cars on the road to work.  I wondered if we were having a three-day-weekend that I forgot about, then got distracted before I could realized that it was Tuesday, and no three-day-weekend exceptions to traffic rules would apply.

At lunch, I went to my favorite gourmet grocery store.  Normally I have to wait in line for at least five minutes.  Today, three tills had no lines at all.  I briefly sympathized with Tom Cruise in Vanilla Sky, then went back to work.

Just now, I stepped out side for a breathe of fresh air.  Well, I thought I was stepping out for fresh air, but I ended up stepping out of my own little bubble of self-absobtion.

I think it was the strong smell of burning wood that woke me up the most.  I don't have the greatest sense of smell, so I know that it must be strong when I can smell it.  Then I noticed that I couldn't see the tops of the Sonoma Hills.  Normally, they are crystal clear.

But it was only when I heard the faint wail of a fire truck for a few straight minutes that I began to wonder if I should go back inside and check the news for evacuation alerts.

I checked, and we are fine so far.  But even as I write this, I think of the poor dwarves who were raided out of the Mines of Moria by those dumb-ass orcs.  And Gandalf reading the last scribblings the dwarves wrote as the last bit of their kingdom was invaded.

"They have taken the bridge and the second hall. We have barred the gates but cannot hold them for long. The ground shakes, drums... drums in the deep. We cannot get out. A shadow lurks in the dark. We can not get out... they are coming."

Are my scribblings here like theirs?

Ok, so I am being a bit dramatic about our situation right now.  But the situation itself is quite dramatic.  The number of wildfires in Northern California has risen from 520 on Sunday evening to 842 today (Tuesday afternoon).  These fires are just a stones throw away from us.

I just hope that everyone (including us!) remains safe while the fires are brought under control.