I think that's an actor hired for the pictures...

The most recent fire news
The firefighters made great strides O/N, getting 40% containment. I sure hope this is true, since the winds are supposed to pick up this afternoon. Good on your sister, FHM. Reno has been getting together multiple clothing/food/water drives. It's great when everyone pulls together like this.

I have to agree and disagree with you SH. Yes, there are some places homes should not be built (flood plains, unstable hillsides, etc.), but there are other places (like Tahoe) that could be better managed and still be livable. Many problem with this fire stemmed from the fact that there was not (for the most part) any forest management in the housing developments, nor defensible places around the homes. Such practices were actually forbidden by the home owners association.

There are probably inherent risks anywhere you build, some more than others. If you build on the banks of a river, you have to realize that, at some time, the river is going to go over the banks. How do you think those big rocks got there in the first place? It may never happen, but more than likely, it will. Who's to blame? Try to sue Mother Nature! There are things that happen that really are not expected. We have had had two "100 Year" floods in the last 10 years. One in 1997 and one on New Years Day in 2006. Who's idea was it to run a river right through the middle of town? Ooops! Massive flood. We got hit pretty hard with the last flood. On New Year's Eve, we had a lot of very wet snow. New Year's Day, it started to rain. A lot. All the snow on the hills to the east started to melt from all the rain and run down to the lake. Add all the precip on top of that and the ditches couldn't handle the volume of water. All of that water was just trying to get to the lake and we happened to be in the way. Who's to blame? Who would have thought we'd have flooding problems in the high desert? It was soggy for a while and I think the area under the house has finally dried out, but we didn't blame anyone. Although, we did have insurance companies trying to sell us flood insurance the week after...

I'm with remmer on this one - afterall isn't rr always talking about actors & acting?
The stage is his milieu - wouldn't be hard to get some of his cronies to play out the part

rr, whether or not you are the labourer responsible for restoration, I LOVE your place and I love the idea of restoring/renovating old barns & granges into people spaces - great work that 'someone' is doing over there

Well SH, I agree with your comments about building homes in odd & dangerous locales, but remmer makes a very valid argument too.
The world is changing so rapidly that places that were once safe & sensible building sites may not be so now.
But it still surprises me, with all the advancements in science, the info quite readily available about geology & climatology & such, that there isn't more stringent control over what can be built where.
I guess in the end it just comes down to whoever has the most money has the most clout

Of course remmer you expressed the idea better than I did - and sometimes 100 year problems come along much too often and sometimes the loction is worth the risk, if one is willing to assume the harm. After all no matter where you are or how careful one is, life is not without danger and unimaginable happenings. And as you said, sometimes protective measures can be taken. It is all a toss up - too many people and farms in too many places where there is too little water to support crops, grass yards, large cattle operations,etc. Things are never perfect and cycles come and go. And in the end maybe CM is right - those who die with the most toys/money win!! Though I rather doubt it!

Country Mouse, what do you want from me, photos of my blistered hands in front of today's newspaper? Yes and about the acting bit, well, you caught me, the jigs up, my real name is Brad Pit and I've been hiring this bozo in the photos to restore my Normandy cottage(it's for the baby sitter of all my adopted children, you see.)

I think I will go back to sulking in the wings...rr

Well, thanks! I've been in both situations, where nature can and will take it's course and where a home was built where it really shouldn't have been. Our house in northern California was on the side of a hill. You could only see top of the roof from the road, that's how much they dug out the side of the hill for the house. Great view with a wonderful deck, but the hillside wasn't very stable. We moved before it happened, but apparently the garage detached itself from the house and slid down the hill. Not good! I'm sure they had some kind of survey assessing the soil and other conditions, but they went ahead anyway. So, are people building in unsafe places intentionally? Hard to say. But, if a fire or flood is coming through, I don't think there's much you can do!

The most recent fire reports state that they hope for full containment by Sunday. It has consumed ~2730 acres, 200 homes and 75 outbuildings. The current estimate is $100 million in damages. The cost to fight the fire is estimated at $35-$50 million, since there are currently 1900 firefighters, 11 choppers and 171 engines on scene. That is an amazing amount of people and equipment.

I keep forgetting to add to the "life begins at forty" idea. I didn't start riding at forty, but on my 40th birthday, I met the man I had apparently been waiting for all those years. I wasn't exactly dreading that birthday, but it sure turned out a lot differently than I expected!

rr, umm... I mean Brad, don't go away sulking
That house will be perfect for all your children and, with so much activity & energy created by all those kids running around & such, it should cut down on the heating bills Oh wait, aren't you filthy rich - why would you be worrying about heating bills
Do I smell another red herring ????

Oh...his name is Brad!! Thought he looked familiar....so the rr would stand for...radical ruse?? Are you going to send a picture of yourself or someone who is impersonating you (or you impersonating someone) doing a sulk?? Does Brad think he is old? Just wondering.... If you're famous could I touch you?.....or have your autograph? Poor rr - it's a wonder you ever come back!!

And can one smell a red herring? Herrings yes, red, I dunno know.

And remmer - I am glad you had moved on when your house started to slide off the hillside - I always marvel at housing locations in California. As well as the cost of the housing!! Yipes!

Well SH I'm glad we got that cleared up - I was wondering which one was the actor - the block of wood or the humanoid!
RR - must be Rad Ritt!

Funny you should say about building in dodgy areas, as you know Aus is a mighty boig island and mostly inhabitated around the coast lines, well they have predicted in about 10 years or so our tides will be so big that the coastline properties will be gobbled up and reclaimed by the sea, we already have bushfire areas that will not be insured for loss so we now have a situation where these houses built close to the beach will not be insured either, so the risk is the owners and they will have nothing if flooded or burnt to the ground. Glad I live inland enough that I am not affected by either too much, although when DD gets out with the matches sometimes I do wonder!

Well, at last it has stopped raining, the skies are clear and blue but IT IS FREEZING COLD!

And to make matters worse, the builders have locked of the toilets on my floor here at work and I have to take a trip to find one, how bloody stupid is that!

Hope to get in some work with my pony tomorrow, was still a bit too wet this morning when I got up, he is going to be pretty frisky with no work and the COLD! still hopefully we will be able to get our lesson in, my coach informed me yesterday she had ducks swimming on her arena ,so maybe I will miss out bah humbug!

Well better go and find me a loo, as my legs are getting tired being crossed so tightly - gotta run!

Cious for now Ange

Morning! Worked late and the dog woke me up way too early! Last day of work for Dominique! Starting this evening she'll take one month off and have her one month paid vacation; 2 months to get us into the other house and we have even evened rented small beach apt(one hr away, on the Norman Coast,) for a week's vacation! We have never spent more than 2 days in one summer at the beach. CAN YOU BELIEVE IT!

Well the sun is out but they're saying it will cloud up and rain by the end of the morning.

Tried to get some more information on MSNBC/internet about the fire. How you doing Remmer? I once ran through a minor forest fire. We were 14 or 15. There were three of us, all from the same scout troop. My parents let us go camping in Yosemite National Park for one week alone(one was 17yrs old and an Eagle Scout.) We were doing a 20mile hike for some special merit award or merit badge and were WAY BACK in the out back when we noticed the fire. The trail home took us through part of it! It wasn't heavily forested nor too dangerous but was burning on both sides of us. We ran something like 6 miles to report it to the forest rangers.

I emailed my brother near Pioneer/Jackson area and he hasn't gotten back to me yet!

rr

rr- the aerial flush occured AFTER I was turned away at the border. And I still maintain my innocence about "disparaging" the French. I only DUMPED on them. Completely different. ~FH

You probably had some pasteurized cheese in your pocket...It must have pissed them off.. rr

Good morning all - hope you haven't floated away AMM - that was almost too much information!!

Wow,rr, two months to get moved into the big house - hope it all works out!! It will be great to have another adult around to help out - esp if she cleans her paint brushes (is there any painting left?)

And the news reports that the Tahoe fire jumped the fire lines yesterday and another 300 homes (or was it people?) have been evacuated. Rough times.

And didn't I just read an article about what Americans call cheese?? FH - I have a feeling you might be above that stuff!

Brad, a.k.a. rr, you have enough money. Hire a BIGGER crew to restore that cottage for you babysitter!!! LOL!!! 2 months until move in? Does that mean we all get to come over for a house warming in about 2 months and 1 week? I've never been to France. Sounds like a good time and looks like you will have plenty of room for a big party. I'll start looking for airline tickets now. OH wait!!! I have to go to work right now. I'll find a ticket tonight.

DD, why not come over TWO MONTHS EARLIER and help! Always friends who want to show up when everything's done!...rr

OH - "waving hand and jumping up and down!!!" I want to help, like some other chores, it is more fun to do at someone else's place than your own ...but you only asked DD ..... but on the off chance that you want other helpers, let me check my calendar....oops!no can do - the lake is calling me for the next many months - how about November? That is a good month to be away from here ...