lol, J-Man. I know that was an odd thing to post up about, but damn... 1/4 $ Billion lost in freaking guacamole?! Just found that insane. Please give Mary a big hug from us, and we do feel the love. 
Here's a map I found from the LA Times that shows all of the SoCal fires:
LA Times Fire Map
I second Kitty on the major, major kudos being sent out to all who are assisting in the battle. I heard yesterday that some of the crews in the Lake Arrowhead area hadn't been given meals for almost 24 hours. UNACCEPTABLE! This is my personal opinion, and it's something I'm passionate about, so please understand my following rant:
Chula Vista (part of the Harris fire area) earlier this year was planning on cutting funds to their Fire Agencies. This was to include shutting down one existing station, the cancellation of plans for a new one to be built and pay cuts for the fighters. The funding issue for the Fire Department(s) here in SD has been an ongoing issue here in our local politics. Many districts have been dealing with extremely unhappy protective services (Fire and Police, specifically). Many of these agencies haven't received the raises they so dearly deserve for many years. And as unhappy as they are, they are out there putting their lives on the line to protect our lives and our property. I hope what is happening will open our politicians eyes to the fact that these men and women are an invaluable asset to our communities and our lives, and that maybe funding should be cut from other places in order to make these people happy, safe and secure in their heroic jobs. That is a discussion for another time and place, though.
There have been reports of attempted looting, price gouging and people trying, already, to scam residents and/or victims. (are you fucking kidding me?!?!?!) How some people can use tragedy as a means of dishonest income absolutely sickens me/pisses me off to no extent.
Some good news, though... My Uncle in Malibu is safe, as are his family and property. My boss and her family are safe. This whole situation has been 100x more organized than four years ago. San Diegans have shown an unprecedented outpouring of support and compassion for the evacuees. The loss of life has been kept to an absolute bare minimum, as the stats now stand. No firefighters have been killed, though a couple are in critical condition being kept in induced comas. Areas of Poway and Rancho Bernardo have been issuing statements that residents can come back in. Ocean breezes are starting to come in from the coast (this could be bad as well as good, though).
Here's a map I found from the LA Times that shows all of the SoCal fires:
LA Times Fire Map
I second Kitty on the major, major kudos being sent out to all who are assisting in the battle. I heard yesterday that some of the crews in the Lake Arrowhead area hadn't been given meals for almost 24 hours. UNACCEPTABLE! This is my personal opinion, and it's something I'm passionate about, so please understand my following rant:
Chula Vista (part of the Harris fire area) earlier this year was planning on cutting funds to their Fire Agencies. This was to include shutting down one existing station, the cancellation of plans for a new one to be built and pay cuts for the fighters. The funding issue for the Fire Department(s) here in SD has been an ongoing issue here in our local politics. Many districts have been dealing with extremely unhappy protective services (Fire and Police, specifically). Many of these agencies haven't received the raises they so dearly deserve for many years. And as unhappy as they are, they are out there putting their lives on the line to protect our lives and our property. I hope what is happening will open our politicians eyes to the fact that these men and women are an invaluable asset to our communities and our lives, and that maybe funding should be cut from other places in order to make these people happy, safe and secure in their heroic jobs. That is a discussion for another time and place, though.
There have been reports of attempted looting, price gouging and people trying, already, to scam residents and/or victims. (are you fucking kidding me?!?!?!) How some people can use tragedy as a means of dishonest income absolutely sickens me/pisses me off to no extent.
Some good news, though... My Uncle in Malibu is safe, as are his family and property. My boss and her family are safe. This whole situation has been 100x more organized than four years ago. San Diegans have shown an unprecedented outpouring of support and compassion for the evacuees. The loss of life has been kept to an absolute bare minimum, as the stats now stand. No firefighters have been killed, though a couple are in critical condition being kept in induced comas. Areas of Poway and Rancho Bernardo have been issuing statements that residents can come back in. Ocean breezes are starting to come in from the coast (this could be bad as well as good, though).
