A high of 109 is expected here tomorrow, and 108 on Monday. Happy Labor Day. After that we go back down into the nineties for the subsequent two weeks. So far we haven't had any power outages here, though rotating blackouts will be imposed if demand for electricity gets too high over the next few days. Sometimes it feels like this summer will never end.
The established fires are still being gradually brought under control, and Saturday brought quite a few flights of firefighting aircraft over my neighborhood. The worst fire news came from Fresno County, where a fire that got started late Friday exploded overnight and has now burned 36,000 acres. Upwards of 150 people were trapped in a popular recreation area called Mammoth Pool, and several suffered burn injuries. Many of the trapped campers and backpackers had to be airlifted out by helicopter when the only paved road providing access to the area was blocked by the flames. So far I haven't heard any reports of anyone missing in the area, but I wouldn't be surprised if there were. This is not a great time to be going camping in California. It may never be a great time again.
As I suspected might be the case, Imperial County has accelerated its rate of coronavirus infections more rapidly than Butte-hole County, knocking us back down into third place statewide. Still, we managed over 400 new infections, which is about 20% of our grand total for the entire pandemic, over the last seven days. Perhaps when the weather cools down enough that I can go walking to the nearby stores again, which seems likely not to be until October at the earliest, I'll be able to use the corpses lying in the streets as steppingstones if it should turn rainy. Unless, of course, I'm one of those corpses myself. Well, I should know within thirteen days, since I was last out on Friday and probably won't be having any actual human contact for quite some time.
Tonight I intend to use the air conditioner to knock the temperature down to around 72 before I go to sleep, to get a head start against the day's heat, and then reset the thermostat to 78. There won't be any open windows or unasited fan usage tonight. I hope I don't fall asleep before resetting the thermostat, though. Leaving it at 72 for several hours could be quite expensive. I'd be bound to reach the costlier second tier of electricity usage.
Sunday Verse
Laguna Blues
by Charles Wright
It’s Saturday afternoon at the edge of the world.
White pages lift in the wind and fall.
Dust threads, cut loose from the heart, float up and fall.
Something’s off-key in my mind.
Whatever it is, it bothers me all the time.
It’s hot, and the wind blows on what I have had to say.
I’m dancing a little dance.
The crows pick up a thermal that angles away from the sea.
I’m singing a little song.
Whatever it is, it bothers me all the time.
It’s Saturday afternoon and the crows glide down.
Black pages that lift and fall.
The castor beans and the pepper plant trundle their weary heads.
Something’s off-key and unkind.
Whatever it is, it bothers me all the time.
