In the past few days a has happened with the fires. They have doubled in number and in size. The governor of California appeared on the Democratic National Convention to discuss the issue. The third largest fire in California history is now burning just south of us. The SCU Complex Fire is now
Up by Vacaville, the LNU Complex fire is the second largest fire in Califonia's history. LINKThe massive and still largely uncontrolled LNU Lightning Complex, has killed at least five people and destroyed close to 500 structures.
Of the five people that have sadly died from the fires, one was a helicopter pilot from Rancho Cucamonga, our home sweet former home and another a PG&E worker.
At 6:30 pm tonight,much of eastern Alameda County was put on fire evacuation watch and warnings. The cities of Pleasanton and Livermore were left out of the evacuations for now. I am hoping it is because we are not in danger. And not simply because it would be so difficult to evacuate hundred of thousands of people.
I keep thinking of the Tubbs Fire from October of 2017. It burned 2900 homes in the city of Santa Rosa, killing 22 people. Just being inside a city, doesn't guarantee any protection against a wildfire. We are sitting right on the edge of town, With Pleasanton Ridge just on the other side of the 680.
Just a couple of days ago, they shut down the I80 because the fire up by Vacaville was so fierce, it was leaping over the freeway. The fire watches and warnings are for at least the nest three days. Strong winds and dry storms are expected through Tuesday.
Red Flag warnings are in effect through Tuesday night. The fire is nipping at our doorsteps.
The remaining concerts for the summer have been canceled. Workers have spent the past couple of days removing the stage venue so a helicopter pad can be put in its place.
Though the fairgrounds has been the stage area for the wildfires for several days now, last night is the first time I have seen fire trucks going out of the area. Usually they all out fighting the fires. Just after sunset, I am sure they were changing shifts.
Another mid nineties day is today and for the following several days. Dry storms are again in the forecast, meaning the possibility of more lightning. The cause of all the original fires.
It is only August. The rainy season is not due for months.
A combination of 20 fires, including Deer Zone, Calaveras Zone and Canyon Zone. The fires continue to burn in steep inaccessible terrain. Fires are in Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties. Some evacuations orders have been issued.
This is the vies of the smoke up on Pleasanton Ridge standing out in the grassy dog walking zone just outside the Campground. That area that is being used as a COVID testing ground right now. The other side of the dog walking park is set up as a concert venue at the moment.
Fires burn out of control in East Bay, some residents warned to evacuate
Marsh, Deer Zone fires put residents on edge in Sunol, Contra Costa County
60 August 18th 11:00 pm
182 11:00 am August 19th
Right now, at 9:09 pm it is still 90 degrees and the quality sucks. You can actually see smoke wafting through this trailer. The temperatures have been over !00 degrees for the past five days, the highest being 109 on Saturday.
On Sunday morning, starting at about 4:00 am, we woke up to a loud and rumbly thunderstorm. There are NEVER thunderstorms in California. This one came with buckets of rain. Three days of sunshine, and there are still puddles in the deep dips in our cement covered campground.
Thunder rumble on until around 9:30-10:00 am. The loudest crack jumped us all out of bed at 6:30. It knocked out the water pump for the entire camp ground, but the power stayed on. Luci cat was very unhappy about then entire situation.
Both Luci and Severus had begun racing around inside the trailer about an hour before the storm began. I think the must have felt the air pressure change with approaching weather system. They were both very nervous before the storm even hit.
Anyway, with months and months of overly dry conditions, a few hours of rain did nothing to stop the lightning from starting fires all over the Bay area. There are over 20 fires in the SCU Lightning Complex Fire, alone. The closest to us is the Marsh Fire. The one in the picture up on Pleasanton Ridge is one of three fires that are considered part of the Marsh Fire.
Ten houses up on the Ridge have been evacuated.
The large parking lot at the entrance to the fairground is being used for ground support for many fire fighting trucks, units and large equipment, like bulldozers and such. When this photo was taken, the fire trucks themselves were not there, but earlier, there were a couple.
So far, 25,500 acres are burning in the Bay area, with zero containment. The heat wave is suppose to break soon. Then we will only have highs in the 90s.
So much better.
This is the view of the smoke up on Pleasanton Ridge standing out in the grassy dog walking zone just outside the Campground. That area that is being used as a COVID testing ground right now. The other side of the dog walking park is set up as a concert venue at the moment.
A combination of 20 fires, including Deer Zone, Calaveras Zone and Canyon Zone. The fires continue to burn in steep inaccessible terrain. Fires are in Alameda, Santa Clara, Contra Costa, San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties. Some evacuations orders have been issued.
Right now, at 9:09 pm it is still 90 degrees and the quality sucks. You can actually see smoke wafting through this trailer. The temperatures have been over !00 degrees for the past five days, the highest being 109 on Saturday.
On Sunday morning, starting at about 4:00 am, we woke up to a loud and rumbly thunderstorm. There are NEVER thunderstorms in California. This one came with buckets of rain. Three days of sunshine, and there are still puddles in the deep dips in our cement covered campground.
Fires burn out of control in East Bay, some residents warned to evacuate
Marsh, Deer Zone fires put residents on edge in Sunol, Contra Costa County
60 Air Quality 11:00 pm August 18th
182 Air Quality 11:30 am August 19th
Thunder rumbled on until around 9:30-10:00 am. The loudest crack jumped us all out of bed at 6:30. It knocked out the water pump for the entire camp ground, but the power stayed on. Luci cat was very unhappy about then entire situation.
Both Luci and Severus had begun racing around inside the trailer about an hour before the storm began. I think they must have felt the air pressure change with approaching weather system. They were both very nervous before the storm even hit.
Anyway, with months and months of overly dry conditions, a few hours of rain did nothing to stop the lightning from starting fires all over the Bay Area. There are over 20 fires in the SCU Lightning Complex Fire, alone. The closest to us is the Marsh Fire. The one in the picture up on Pleasanton Ridge is one of three fires that are considered part of the Marsh Fire.
Ten houses up on the Ridge have been evacuated.
The large parking lot at the entrance to the fairgrounds is being used for ground support for many fire fighting trucks, command units and large equipment, like bulldozers and such. When this photo was taken, the fire trucks themselves were not there, but earlier, there were a couple.
So far, 25,500 acres are burning in the Bay Area, with zero containment. The heat wave is suppose to break soon. Then, we will only have highs in the 90s.
I started this post a few days ago, and I keep coming back and then leaving it again. It is 105 blistering degrees outside. I live in a tin can with a single air conditioner that shuts off a dozen plus times a day in this heat. Yesterday hit 109. I believe it is easy to understand the concentration is a bit difficult right now.
We looked at trailers with two air conditioners. but they all were 50 amp electric and by getting one that is 30 amp, we save $300 a month in lot rent. Since this is our twelfth month, we have saved $3600 off of rent alone. Great savings, except when it is 105 boiling bubbling take your breath away degrees outside!
In these same twelve months, we have been fighting with spotty at best internet. My twitter feed has gone deathly quiet because I can no longer do much other than retweet other people's posts. When I do have internet, it only lasts for 21 days and then we have to move again. And BAM! The signal is gone!
But, no, this post is not about heat or internet! It is about another REMODEL!
After months of should we or shouldn't we, we decided to completely remove our dining table setup from the booth area. We eased into it very slowly. First, we took the table down and set the table top on a couple of plastic orange crates beneath the back slide window.
The windows on the side of the slide were one of the biggest selling points of this trailer for me. I love light! The opposite wall of this same room also slides out, making this main living space extra wide. With both slides out, we have room for stand alone book shelves. These shelves give this space a real 'home' rather than camper feel to the area.
Back to the remodel. Husband then put our one piece of real furniture, a chair that a I simply love, in front of his new faux desk.
I refused, and still refuse, to take out the benches of the booth because we use it for too much storage. Tools, sewing machines, holiday decor, even flour, sugar and chocolate chips are stored beneath those benches.
For several months, the husband has had to bungle his feet up and down and round the big metal doollie bobs on the floor that held the table posts. We left them there just in case we decided to put the table back up. Wishy washy is the correct way to describe my decision making abilities.
The early office attempt we created was NOT working. The biggest problem was that every time we move, the entire wiggly waggly setup had to be completely taken apart to move the slide in. Not to mention keep the computer from smashing to bits.
The chair had to come out. The table put back in sleep,bed position. Boxes and clutter and every except the kitchen sink had to be moved. Even that is really true, because the sinks have to be set up for the glass bowls and candles and plants to be set safely inside of them for the move. Not a great setup.
So finally, after ten months, we decided enough was enough. After finishing the fold up table, we turned three tables we had to move every time into one that folds up to the wall. Yes, the craft supplies still have to be moved, but they always had to move. With the tables out of the way, they go right onto the sofa and back into the table after the move.
To solve the random clutter that basically just sat on the benches constantly, we went out to Target and bought the giant wicker baskets pictured above. One big trunk sized one and two that are half as wide as the big one. Each has a lid, so we got about 50% more storage. Yeah!!!
I tried to find the baskets we purchased on the Target website, but they are no longer listed. Time for fall items. Sorry.
All the blankets and pillows that have been sitting on the benches are now tucked neatly away. We also we able to put everything we were storing inside of the orange crates inside the baskets, as well. This is a big deal, because that left an open orange crate for socks.|Another problem solved!
We finally unscrewed the metal rings from the floor, giving husband room for his feet, finally. I know, he is so spoiled. 😉
He got a nice piece of wood to make a desktop, which he stained and vanished in the sane colors that we used for the folding table across the room. He also stained and varnished the wood on top of the bench seats that are no longer covered with cushions.
Wanting the ability to use the table area as a bed if we get company, we took the rings off the bottom of the table, too. This allows the table top to slip easily behind the sofa. The bench cushions are now underneath the thin mattress in Natalie's room, giving her a softer bed. This also keeps all the pieces for the kitchenette bed available to use, should the need arise.
Yes, this was one of the simplest remodels we have done to this trailer, but in time saved in moving, it is a lifesaver. Everything, except the computer, stays right where it is. The computer is simply moved off of the desk surface, down onto the chair. Between this simple upgrade and the much more complicated folding table we built, we are saving between two and three hours taking down and setting back up on moving day.
With his office up and running, in the very top photo, you can see the husband working to convert my printer over to sublimation printing. Notice, his teeny tiny RV office doesn't just have room for his computer and one printer. There are two printers set up in his office space.
Two years ago, the husband have me a Cricut (setup in my fancy folding table) for Christmas. Just before Christmas, actually. I was able to make names for our stockings and a couple dozen mini stockings for Natalie to give to her friends, and that was about it.
Last year, after a year of learning how to use the Cricut machine, I made things. Many things for family and friends for the Holidays.
This year I decided to try something a bit different. Sublimation printing and cut and print with the Cricut. The above 'Avi is ONE' shirt is the very first attempt we tried with this new type of ink and printing after converting the printer. We still have quite a bit of learning to do, but I think it turned out cute.
How my 2020 is going...was confirmed to have COVID19 for over six weeks in the spring. Had to give up Diet Coke forever. FOREVER. I mean seriously...sigh.
Had surgery followed by another quarantine. Will most likely need kidney transplant in future. Still wear a mask in public (with asthma b@#$#es!) Visited the beach many many times, because water and waves and sea gulls and peace.
Marched in a BLM protest, because being a white ally is the right thing to do. Living as a fulltime RVer in a worldwide pandemic while people complain about masks and haircuts and voting by mail.
In this same time I have been told I am not Christian ENOUGH by the same people who have no issue with kids in cages and think 160,000 people dead from a virus is a hoax.
But, it is ME that is making their Facebook feeds unhappy. Yup!
Maybe, just maybe if more people tried to love their neighbor instead of judge their neighbor, we could all just get through 2020 together.
It takes a village to survive a virus. Wear a mask. Wash your hands.
Way back in August of 2016, I learned I am allergic to wheat, milk, sesame and soy. Other foods like egg whites, peanuts, shrimp, walnuts were also on the foods to avoid list. Since then, it has been a journey of learning a whole new way to look at food and cooking.
My youngest daughter, Natalie has helped me create recipes that are, at times gluten-free, sometimes just wheat-free, and yes, there is a difference.
While this blog began as a food/recipe only blog, our life has changed 180 degrees in the past couple of years.
In September of 2019, we became a 100% RV living family of three. After just over a year and a half of both fulltime RVing and worldwide pandemic, we turned in our keys and put the trailer into storage.
This sunshiny blog records the craziness of our lives and is now the perfect place to document another momentous life change. As I write this, I am still surrounded by boxes, so many boxes. And so little furniture.
We spent 15 months being hotel nomads. 21 tucked inside an RV. What the future holds from here, it is hard to say. Today, I am watching a couple of house finches build a nest in my begonia plant hanging out on our new patio. Life is good.
As we lay our RV dreams to rest, I will continue to document the triumphs and challenges of downsizing from house to apartment to hotel to our successful goal of full time RV living and now back into an apartment.
There are plenty of trails to hike and oceans vistas to gaze upon.
As always, we will new recipes using our IP (instant pot) once I find the electric cord, missing from the move. And, for the first time in over three years, we have a real oven…macarons, corn bread, MEAT LOAF! Oh, so many possibilities. Recipes to come!
These first few days, we are enjoying just having space to breathe. Hope you enjoy this journey as much as we do. Time to get this show off the ROAD, setup and ready for new adventures.
By the way, I write as I roll, please excuse any misspellings. I will come back and fix them at some point. Life is busy, busy, busy.
