Fire

Wow, this really takes me back to the last time. It was Donna's 16th birthday and she had Lauren spend the night on that Saturday since her birthday fell on a Sunday. I woke up and went out to get some last minute gifts (okay, I didn't have time to shop so I was buying her real gifts that day) and was greeted by an orange sky with a decidedly smoky smell to it. We were out of work and school all week that time and it came within a half mile of my house.

This time is much worse and much better in some ways. The magnitude this time is much greater. Fires in the North County and South County and pretty much to the east of us as well. Yet they are far enough away that we actually have pretty good air quality in comparison. There is not a whisper of wind where we are at and the wind has been the fires friend and our foe from the start. We are better prepared to evacuate than the last time. I'm worried but not out of my mind with it like the last time.

I'm just glad Donna will be spending her birthday in England this year. I never thought I'd say that, glad that my baby will spend her birthday away from me. But I am. I'm glad she will be spending it with a group of people that will enjoy Hamfest with her. Glad that she will have a boyfriend to share it with this time. Glad that she is safe and away from this craziness.

Jo seems to be taking it in stride. She's not a panicky person by nature...unless there is a bee or just about any flying insect around. Then she pretty much pegs out the meter of losing it. But the fires, meh!, nothin' but a thing. It certainly makes it easier for us 'rentals.

So if we have to evacuate we will be moving to our "yacht" at Silver Strand. We have an old 25' sail boat that can house us but it will be very tight quarters. Much like a jail cell, so ya, I'm praying the fires (more than ever before) don't reach us.

I hope this ends soon, there are a lot of good people out there that have lost their homes, let's hope there won't be many more.

AHHHHH!

Donna please write more! That's it, period.


okay, new pics too, please!

It's time

I wrote another blog.

Well, things have been busy in casa de Blaisdell. Homecoming dances, birthdays, and just plain day to day living. I haven't been grocery shopping in 3 weeks. But today is the day. The days fly by as always but the weeks drag on. I have tons of stuff to do at work. I feel like a cartoon character where their feet and legs are nothing but a swirly circle, yet they are getting nowhere. I put one project to bed and 3 more pop up. It's like the line from a Steven Curtis Chapman song, I'd pull my hair if I could just get one hand free. But it keeps my work day from getting boring and me on my knees in prayer. God has had my captive attention consistently like never before.

I love autumn, it's such a wonderful time of year, nice warm days, cool nights. I can cook things in the oven again without feeling like I'm the one roasting. My thoughts turn to baking cookies and bread. Just my thoughts however, I'm such a procrastinator!

Bible study has been fab. I really like inductive study, gets to the meat of the bible, not just the milk, if ya know what I mean.

Well, grocery shopping, cookie baking, and family loving is calling me.

Ciao!

Hey it's my birthday day!

Yep, another year older and not much wiser. Had a great day so far, God was particularly sweet to me. Talked to Donna and got my first happy birthday of the day from her. My sister and my brother called, great sermon at church, fab worship (guest singer and all my favorite worship songs), good lunch, gonna have a great dinner, the sun is shining and I feel loved by all my family and my good friends (thanks Cyndi for yesterday and your ewishes today).

God blesses us every day, it's whether we choose to acknowledge it or not. I praise you God, not just because I'm called to do it out of obedience, but because I truly want to. You really are the ultimate father and I'm glad I'm your child.

Autumn is here, kinda

Well, it is autumn here. We haven't had true summer-like weather since the end of August. But still, the nights aren't chilly enough to really call it autumn. Maybe it's more like we are fall-ing into autumn (I know, groan). All I know is, it is my favorite time of the year weather-wise. My fave season was, is, and most likely always will be Christmas.

I guess I better start figuring out what we are going to do Thanksgiving since we are down to the 3 of us. Les said let's just go to Denny's. EWWWW!!! I'd rather go to McDonald's if we are going to go that route, which we aren't. Makes me wonder what it will be like when the girls are gone. I've always imagined big dinners at my place, all the grandkids and extended family gathered 'round. But who knows, I moved away from my mom to Guam. Now that I'm on the other end of the stick, I realize how lonely she must have been not having all of us kids together at holidays like when we were little.

Well, I guess I'll just have to make sure the girls want to stay near, not quite sure how I'll do that but I have at least a couple of years to figure it out.

Done been broked

80 days has done been broked, yep, yep! It puts me 10 days closer to seen my Bun. I am near the eve of my birthday and it will be the first one I've spent separated from her in 20 years. Can't say that I like it, nor can I say it'll kill me. I need to get off before I get maudlin.

Around the world in 90 days

So, three more hours until they'll be home in 90 days. Cyndi said time is flying this morning. I don't know if I agree. Time seems to have slowed down to a crawl in some ways for me. The weekends fly by and the evenings sail through, the days themselves crawl. I sooo just want for her to be home. I'm missing Donna so much. I know when she gets home she'll be in my pocket for 2 maybe 3 days and then she'll be back to her usual schedule of never home. But at least I'll have access to her. I can look in her room and see her sleeping. I haven't been this lonesome for her since she first left.

Maybe because the conversation we had this morning sparked it. She is feeling discouraged with life away from home in a foreign land and misses familiar things. It's part of the process of being gone. I went through the same thing when I moved to Guam, except it's an US Territory so some things were the same. I missed milk, the milk plant on island reconstituted their milk with coconut milk, yuk. I like coconut but not all dairy products are supposed to taste like it. So anyway, on a small scale, I can relate.

I just pray for her to not be discouraged, it will pass and I pray for me to be encourage that she is safe in God's arms. If they can't be mine, what better ones to snuggle in?

I love you Bun.