Hollywood Fire II

Just like all good things in Hollywood, there is a sequel. So it is the same with the Hollywood Fire. This one struck in the early afternoon, and by 3pm we could see a lot of smoke over the hills. This one was bigger and better, just like a movie sequel. The smoke covered most of Hollywood, and drifted downtown. It burned all night long, with winds fueling it. We have had dry and 90 degreee plus weather to make everything super dry explosive. In the morning when I got back to work, Hollywood smelled like a BBQ pit amd the fire was still burning. It was amazing, the estimate is that 1/3 of the park, (Griffith Park) where the fire was raging was burned. No homes were burned, and only one person suffered minor burns from the fire. (a golfer at the golf course) Many people were evacuated from homes nearby, and the LA Zoo was closed, but not burned. None of the other buildings near the park were burned either. Needless to say, this was one of the closest fires. This categorizes as the worst fire in LA since 1961 when one of the canyons in Beverly Hills burned. It is pretty much like a park smack in the middle of the city being burned. Imagine Central Park in NY City burning, and you will have some Idea of what is/was going on.

A River out of Eden

by John Hockenberry

This book has a great start to it, and it has a great conclusion. The rest in between is what makes you wonder what happened? I did love the way the book took off with a murder mystery, and the start of a terrorist plot in the Pacific Northwest with the book centering on the Columbia River from the head in British Columbia all the way to the mouth at the Pacific Ocean near Astoria. The author started out with some great descriptive writing on the river, it's surroundings, typography, geographic history, all nicely woven into the story. Somehow it all lost steam in the middle of the book, and then at the end he pulled it all back together with the conclusion of the murder mystery, and terrorism. It was a good read none-the-less. I would certainly recommend it if you have any interest in that area at all whatsoever, as it will pull you into the novel with it and the way the author describes it all. It does have a great deal of derogatory language in it that I don't normally like to read, but it is part of a few of the racist characters in the book and I think it was there for the integrity of them. I still feel self-conscious reading a book like that when I am out in public, as anyone can look over my shoulder to see a few choice words and take them out of context and assume I am reading something much less noble than what I am.

Saddleback Butte State Park

Dale and I took a drive up to the Antelope valley the first weekend in April. Well, it was technically the last of March/first of April. We went up to the high Mojave Desert to camp at Saddleback Butte State Park located 17 miles east of Lancaster. (it is about a 2.5 hour drive north) It was a nice weekend, not too hot, and not too cold at night, but just right to make it a cozy time in the tent with heavy blankets to warm you with and snuggle under. Nice enough to wear shorts and t-shirt during the day. The moon was almost full, and the Joshua trees were just about to start to bloom. We went for a nice hike about 3 miles or more up to the top of the butte where you could see the entire Antelope valley from east to west. It was spectacular.
This state park was once called Joshua Tree State Park, but people kept getting it mixed up with Joshua Tree National Monument, so they changed the name.

We had practically the entire campground to ourselves, only 3 other campers were there, and they were in campers, not tents. So it was like being there all on our own. We had beautiful sunsets, bright moonlight, that you could even read by, and also some very pretty stars to gaze at. The weekend was not complete though with out it's drama. My camp stove was leaking, and had been due to a small drip near the control knob, and finally on Sunday while making breakfast the entire thing caught on fire. I shut it off an ran away to wait for an explosion, but it didn't happen, so I quickly took it apart and smothered the flame with a towel. That was all! it was a little tense, but we just went right back to cooking again, after it all cooled off, and it was fine. I think we will need to fix the leak in the camp stove for the next camping adventure.

Hollywood Fire

As I was walking back down the street from lunch today, the sky was dark with smoke coming over the Hollywood Hills. Turns out two youth near an apartment building on the other side of the hills had started a fire that spread FAST! It took off in no time at all and before all was said and done 130 acres burned. Many of the studios in Burbank were filled with smoke, freeway exits were closed. Anyone who was outside could only stop and stare at the smoke and fire. It came close to the HOLLYWOOD sign, but did not burn it. All in all, no homes were burned, and no people were injured or killed in the fire. It was all out in a few hours. The electricity did flicker a few times as the flames got into the high voltage eclectic lines that go over the Hollywood hills. It could have been much worse, but was a very dramatic day all in all!

Anza-Borrego State Park

The 2nd weekend in March, Dale and I took a 3 hour drive out of the city East to the Colorado Desert to Anza-Borrego State Park in Eastern San Diego County. It was traffic nightmare getting out there though the 91 freeway pass and the 15 freeway was not any better in Corona. However, once out on the smaller 2 lane highways, it was so much better, and once in the rural areas it was like a heavy weight of the city was lifted off. We both remembered, that this is the reason we go camping.

This is the LARGEST of California stat parks, comprising some 600,000 acres, 1/5 of San Diego County is held in trust within the park boundaries to give you a bit of perspective. The park is home to the endangered Peninsular Bighorn Sheep, the park's namesake, (borrego). The Octillo cactus, Cholla cactus, and also The Black Tailed Jackrabbit and Roadrunners. The park is one of the best places to view wildflowers in the spring, but unfortunately we have had so little rain this spring, that the wildflowers are not blooming like they normally would. That was a bit disappointing, but also it meant it was easier to get a campsite. We camped at the Tamarisk Grove campgrounds with the campground in the middle of a very tall grove of Tamarisk trees that were beautiful just on their own.

Even though it was March, we had some very warm temperatures. It was up to 95F when we were leaving on Sunday. We also took along our neighbor Ren's dog that we were pet sitting. She has a very cute little Shena Ebu, named Hatsu. She loved the camping, and especially when we did smores around the campfire, she thought the graham crackers were the most delicious.

We also did a couple of short hikes in the area, the park is great for well marked trails to hike in in the desert. We went on the Cactus Loop trail that features an excellent view of the surrounding area and well marked cactus. The Yaqui well Nature Trail was also great terminating at a desert water hole.

We took a nice drive back on Sunday through the mountains and the cute town of Julian up at 4000 feet, known for their apple orchards. We also drove through Escondido, and stopped for a nice lunch in Oceanside, before heading up the coast to Long Beach.

It was a great weekend camping get away!

Tracers

Dale and I went to the Long Beach Play House with our neighbors across the street, Stacy and Trapper on Saturday the 3rd of March. It was a lot of fun, we went to a great Mediterranean restaurant in Belmont Shore, on 2nd Street, before the play, and then headed over, to the playhouse. We saw "Tracers" by James Scarborough.

I thought the play was very well done, the actors were top notch and it was directed very well, it was a great play. If I were to make any remarks on it's lacking, it would be a central cohesive plot to draw you in and take you through the play. It seemed to be a conglomeration of small scenes from Vietnam, and experiences from soldiers. It covered these in depth, emotional, physical, and left nothing out from drug use to suicide. It was quite intense at times. However, I was most curious in seeing this play with our neighbor Trapper who served in Vietnam. I wanted his opinion more than anything. After he stated that the play was good, but only one tenth as intense as the REAL Vietnam experience he had. Trapper said the language, and scenes and occurrences were all pretty much right to the point. It was great to see the play with him, and to be able to get these perspectives from him. It is always great to talk to Trapper about this subject, and he is not afraid to discuss. He calls it his therapy, and willingly talks about all aspects of the war. (yes his REAL name is Trapper)

Plant Of The Month

Jasminum officinale


It is a Semi-evergreen to deciduous vine. This vine has lots of fragrant white flowers in spring, summer, and fall. Blooms on new growth. Prefers a moist well-drained light soil enriched with organic matter. Drought and pollution tolerant. Jasmine associates nicely with climbing roses, honeysuckle or clematis, but it looks superb grown on its own. Grown in the perfume fields of Southern France, it has good tolerance to a wide range of temperatures and is easily maintained in pots. Min. temp. 45 F.

When walking down the streets of Southern California at this time of year, especially in the early evening, you will smell this distinctive flowering vine. You will stop in your tracks to look for the plant the smell is that strong at this time of year. The only temperate plant close to this strong of a smell is Lilac. They are now in full bloom all over, and so it is a delight for the next few weeks to see this all over fences, walls, and many places you least expect it. I have grown it in a pot on my patio before, and was delighted each spring with the lovely flowers and scent. Sleeping with the window open and a light breeze brings the delightful scent into your room to make for a peaceful night's rest!