Weather report/ Fire report

I don't usually bother with weather reports on this blog, but I have just (reluctantly!) plugged the heaters back in at both ends of the apartment, and cranked them on. The windows are closed tight. The draft-blocker is snugged up at the base of the back door to keep the outside air out.

This is a switch. I've been trying to get a walk in every day, and lately I've had to pull myself out of bed earlier than usual just so I can make my rounds before it's too hot. Next week, mind you, I've been told to expect it to be around 100 degrees by the end of the week. But today, I have the heaters on in here. And I'm hardly wearing summer clothes, either.

Outside, it has been raining off and on for hours. This is good. While you weren't looking, the total acres scorched by wildfire this year in the United States has already passed three million acres. If you want to get specific, the stats so far are 3,006,282 acres. The ten-year year-to-date average for July 9 is 1,846,859. (See here for current stats, updated regularly.)

We've lucked out so far this year in this part of Oregon, but we've had some awful fire seasons around here - the sort that make a person grateful for a bit of summer rain without lightning. (Even if it makes a person turn the heaters back on...)