Mackerel Sky

Cumulous clouds filled with ice! They are said to resemble the scales of a fish and presage a change in the weather. Unfortunately for us, the prediction is for dry lightning and most of the county is on a red flag fire warning. Once again the bags are packed, but just the bare minimum on the same theory that says if you remember to take your umbrella it won't rain!

The crush is in full swing in the vineyards. We passed a lot of trucks, some hauling bins full of grapes, some tankers full of juice and even a few tractors, but it's been pretty quiet around here today....almost ominously quiet, but that is probably just my hyperactive imagination with a touch of PTSD thrown in. The occasional empty truck rattling down Los Alamos road behind us sounds strangely like thunder....

My heart began racing when I got a phone call from our neighbor, Cindy. We call her the neighborhood den mother and she was the one who called to warn us that the Glass fire was bearing down on us and we needed to evacuate. Fortunately, she was just calling to arrange a party for the new neighbors across the street who we know are there only from their car in the driveway. 

We really had fun yesterday when Dan arrived to brew up a batch of beer with John and brought with him, in addition to a large cauldron and an equally large glass carboy, some homemake snacks...sausages and 'beer bites' with cheese dipping sauce. Oh and he also brought Tobi. Usually Wednesday afternoon is strictly guy time at Trail House, but an exception was made for beer making....We drank too much wine, ate too much good food and just enjoyed being together. We now have two large containers full of vile looking looking liquid fermenting in our bathroom. We also drank a toast to our friend Bob who had parathyroid surgery in the morning and was home by dinnertime. 

I hope he has the same kind of immediate relief from a whole constellation of random symptoms that I did when I had the same surgery, and that we will be seeing him at coffee again very soon....