"...and all the wave was in a flame." ~ Alfred, Lord Tennyson "The Holy Grail"

...waking Sunday morning, I turned on the TV and watched the stories unfolding: fire in Malibu, Kashan Castle burned, Santa Ana winds with gusts of more than 70mph, power lines snapped. We tried to do other things that morning -- I read a few more pages of my book while CM clicked the other channels to see what was on -- but the fires drew us back. And we sat as the helicopters hovered far above the large water-dropping copters as they showered the burning areas, reporters on scene attempted to report through the heavy winds, one man described how he and his son drove through the flames hoping to get through only to have the car stall but managed to reverse out of the flames and run from the car. Every channel from the major players to the smaller locals devoted all their time to the flames....

...driving to Polly's Pies for breakfast, I pointed toward Signal Hill. The light blue sky stopped suddenly into a wall of beige-grey that obscured Cherry St. and the buildings surrounding it. We entered that wall, the light changing to a preternatural dusk, the bursts of wind throwing dirt leaves trash and ash at the car. I briefly turned on the air conditioner to clear the charred smell and hopefully to make breathing a bit easier....

...CM read the paper while I concentrated on the funnies and the crossword puzzle. But the images of smoke and flames continued to draw us in. Malibu fire caused by power lines snapped by the wind. Flames and embers jumping streets and causing more damage. We watched only up to a point -- when a reporter stepped into a dry fountain and began displaying many of the items pulled from Kashan Castle, paintings photographs family documents, without any tact. CM turned off the TV, and out the door we headed....

...dirt smoke ash flew into our eyes as we walked to The Center Long Beach for a few hours of bingo. I constanly blinked, rubbed my eyes, coughed until we stepped inside the Center. We each paid our entry fee and sat down at a back table with our daubers poised. Three hours and thirteen games later, we'd met a few new people and enjoyed a nice break (though I spent quite a while later vainly scrubbing at the ink on my hands). From the Center we strolled to The Pizza Place for an early dinner. Peope passed us shielding faces from the flying debris; I kept my head down for the same reason but still had to force tears to clear my eyes....

...before going to bed, the news told of a new fire threating homes in Irvine. The bright orange-yellow fireline shone against the blackness of the hills, merely feet from tract homes. Arson was suspected, this time. Zero percent under control....

...I toweled down the shower this morning, cleaning away the ash that filtered through the tiny bathroom window and screen. The apartment smelled of smoke, as though the heart of the fire had rushed through Long Beach while we slept. A thick layer of dirt mixed with ash covered my car. I ran the wipers three four times without the cleaning spray to clear the windshield. Driving down 7th St. toward the freeway, the loose dirt and ash quickly blew away, and I saw the dark orange-brown cloud hovering toward Orange County. I merged into a lane on the freeway and sped to work.