Captain's Log #56 - Covid update & August 2020 lightning fires

 In Sonoma Valley we are between two large fires: to the east, in Napa County on their eastern Vaca hills, the LNU Lightning Complex fires; to the west, The Walbridge fire threatening Healdsburg, Windsor and Guerneville. The wind is favorable for us, at this time, blowing, in general, parallel with our valley, northwest to southeast. Wind is a crucial factor because a big wind can hurl glowing embers a mile. 

At work, in Napa Valley, we saw the LNU fire begin and grow, see photo below.

This photo was taken Thursday, from the top of the western Mayacamas range which is on the Sonoma/Napa county line. The Vets Home, in Yountville, is on the valley floor below and is in no immediate danger. One employee in our office had to dash out due to an evacuation order; she and her family live in those hills. We know she is safe but don't know about her house. Other employees in my office who live in Napa Valley were on the phone calling their friends, "come to my house if you need a place to stay." It was very stressful.

There was, briefly, a fire behind Mondavi Winery in Oakville on the west side of Highway 29 on the valley floor. That would be very bad news. If it crossed 29 it would have access to Sonoma Valley on the other side of the Mayacamas, like in 2017. Although, the fire that threatened our house at that time, started in a canyon on this side of the mountains by an electrical short because of the BIG wind blowing east to west. We get those typically in September or October. At that time the fire stopped a mile from our house because the wind stopped blowing and the firefighters made a valiant effort to save the Sonoma Developmental Center, where Kevin and I were working at the time.

In short, we're ok, for the moment. Today I'll pack a Go Bag. I still have my grandmother's (and mother's) sweet little wooden jewelry boxes packed from 2017. They'll go in the trunk, again. This year we only have one cat to evacuate with, if necessary.

I have always enjoyed thunder, lightning and rain. As a 5-year old I remember giddily running barefoot across front lawns in Falls Church, Virginia, during a torrential downpour laughing and squealing with delight. In the early '90s I spent a summer in Boulder, Colorado, while interning at a fabric shop. The first day it started to rain I ran out to the sidewalk, my arms raised to the heavens, face upturned glowing in praise, "Look everyone, it's raining!" It rains every day at 3 o'clock in Boulder in the summer. While there I took my customary walks in the rain at every opportunity, I mean, it starts raining you go out for a walk, right? One time I found myself strolling across a large grassy field ringed with large oak right under the Flat Irons:

Black clouds impaled on the mountain peaks, rain pouring, thunder loudly rumbling, me blithely traipsing across the field. The thunder gets louder, really loud, and I finally start to think: lighting strikes trees or anything upright in an open field - that'd be me. I high-tailed it home. But this storm, that brought this lightning and its fires, came right over our house as I was about to set off for work. I mean right-over-the-house BOOMING-CRASHING-BOOMING. I felt very small. I Googled: is it safe to drive in a lightning storm. No it's not. Pull over, don't touch the steering wheel, don't use your phone (and try not to wet yourself.) The storm passed and I was a little late to work. The forecast calls for another lightning storm to come tomorrow, Sunday, and into Monday. :-( 

Photo credit: ActiveNorCal - Instagram

Yeah, lightning. Wet yourself, yet? This photo is from the Marsh Creek Complex, Sunol. And  the nut-case photographers that go out in this weather!

On top of the fires we have Covid. (Enough, already!) By the way, one of the first two employees diagnosed with Covid died. That got everyone's attention and everyone is being more diligent with mask wearing (but not diligent enough.) This past week 8 employees, out of 850, have tested positive and were asymptomatic. They work in transportation, the kitchen and respiratory therapy ("uh oh;" right?) They were sent home. Still no residents have tested positive, except the asymptomatic one from a couple of weeks ago who was quarantined. We've got angels looking out for us, no doubt about that! We in the administration building get tested once a week, I think that applies to the entire facility. (If they're testing everyone: 1,550 tests/week @ $125 ea... = $193,875/ week. Ouch.) I've been tested 4 times. The inside of your nose is surprisingly sensitive, you can feel almost every fiber at the end of the swab. I don't think they're using high quality Giza cotton; no, it's Low Middling at best. The nose knows.

"No one wants to be there"

There is a wonderful man at the Vets Home, he has made the effort to learn everyone's name and greets them by name. He went into the hospital to have minor surgery on his nose, had an allergic reaction to the anesthesia, almost died and has been weeks recovering. He's out every day "taking my walker for a stroll," like you would your dog. Walking is getting more and more painful for him. "Have you spoken to anyone about it?" No, he doesn't want anyone to know because they'll move him to a higher level of care. He'd have to share a room and lose his freedom. He talks about avoiding "getting in the crosshairs" of the medical staff. "____, what happens when you fall and break something?" "I'll be in the crosshairs for sure." "They'll put you in the hospital for weeks where you won't have access to your stuff and won't let you out until healed -  no one wants to be there." I can say that with certainty because I meet with the people who have been put there, almost always against their will. I was trying to encourage him to seize control, imagine the future, and make plans for the inevitable because "no one wants to be there," although, we all know we must, against our will. We'll see what he does. 'Da Nile' is more than a river in Egypt...

About the job, my supervisor was on vacation last week. Before he left he gave me a hefty project either hoping I would finish it before our last probationary report, in 11 days, so he could let me go, or resigned to the fact that I would be able to take it on and see it through in the weeks ahead, and thus, keep me on. I don't know. We've got the covid, the fires and this uncertainty about the job, I-am -just-f'ing-numb. But, being the proactive problem solver that I am, I have arranged a job interview by phone this Friday for the Office Assistant position in the Chapel. I am enthusiastic about this opportunity; they certainly need the help, I overhear them limping along from the woman across the aisle from me who handles deaths at the facility. If my supervisor keeps me on, I'll stay, if not, I hope to have another job in hand.

Now you know everything, except I had my computer worked on and they wiped my hard drive clean and me with limited back up. I have Microsoft Live, backup in their cloud but I'm having a dreadful time accessing it, and not everything I had was on it. They got me in last weekend, but my files are not there today! Plus, I've had no end of problems accessing TrueKey, my password management software. I am dead in the water without my passwords. I get to spend more time with tech support today in order to access the file with the email addresses of all of you who receive this Log, along with a whole bunch of other stuff, and I get to try to download, and reinstall, Microsoft Office Suite. Ugh, one more stressor, and alcohol doesn't help, I've tried. Wish me luck.

I'm trying to think of something positive to end on. Where is the opportunity in these multiple crises? 

Fire:

Covid:

Job:

Hard drive wiped: I have the opportunity to talk with the very polite technical staff working the night shift in Southern Indian. I'm thinking about calling them just to cry on their shoulders, they're very kind and empathetic. 

I hope you're holding up better than I am. Let me know.

Many blessings,

Karla, mom, k.j.