Evacuated Due to Fire 04 Jul, 2008
Today is the first time I've honestly wondered, "what is the proper whitebalance for a sky that's raining ash?" The Gap Fire which has simply been making it uncomfortable to breathe, threatened my neighborhood last night so an evacuation order was issued while I was out setting up a UPS to keep the network gear alive at the office. I'm staying with my coworker Roberto and his wife Karen now (thanks, guys).
The sky at the office last night
Cathedral Oaks near La Patera, two days ago
I wasn't conscious of the area covered by smoke until I left it last night — in the normal course of life I've been under it for three straight days. In the evenings it blows south, straight to the ocean; during the day, to the west. The fire is creeping around so instead of being just a mile west, it's also a mile north (see map at the side, pulled from Google Earth with the Forest Service's fire kmz overlay).