As soon as I saw this, I knew right where to share it! These very brave people do one immense service for humanity, we all know it. These are the warriors who stay in top physical shape because they have to and the dragons that they fight breathe fire horrifically as resources, homes, and lives are consumed.

You firefighters mean so much to us! (Click on 'Faces of the Fire' video!) Thank you and thank you to your families for putting up with your loved ones' absence while they save our cities.

God keep you all safe. You are admired by many!

The Ten Commandments (Version 1) - from firstpeople.us

1. The Earth is our Mother; care for Her
2. Honor all your relations.
3. Open your heart and soul to the Great Spirit.
4. All life is sacred; treat all beings with respect.
5. Take from the Earth what is needed and nothing more.
6. Do what needs to be done for the good of all.
7. Give constant thanks to the Great Spirit for each day.
8. Speak the truth but only for the good in others.
9. Follow the rythms of Nature.
10. Enjoy life's journey; but leave no tracks.

There are many versions of the commandments we have received from Our Creator. There is a common thread of compassion, care for our world and those in it, gratitude, and Truth.

This was in my email this afternoon -

"August 18, 2007 - Fire News

An evacuation warning was issued last night for East Camino Cielo Road from Gibraltar Road east to the Ventura County Line. The Fire, 171,750 acres and counting, is 20 miles from Ojai, but still burning within the indirect fire lines. In other news, a local teen won the California Junior Miss title, the News-Press union vote has been officially certified by the NLRB, angry citizens stopped a construction project at the Botanic Gardens, and the new steakhouse at La Cumbre is already involved in a labor dispute. It's not too late to vote in our weekly survey (or to vote again if you had trouble on Friday). Where's the best potato salad, pet store, and pastry in town?"           ~ from edhat.com

I've got all my stuff in a place where I can grab it quickly.  I am downtown and at less of a risk than the mountain top at East Camino Cielo.  That's about a 20 minute drive up hills. But this is not good.  I guess I'd better go get the pet carrier out of the storage lockers in the carport. 

This was Friday's sunrise.  This was taken with a basic HP Digital camera.  No touch up was done nor colors added. 

This is the ash on a spider web on the juniper bushes outside our apartment.  I didn't add anything (flour, more ashes, etc.) to make it look worse than it really is.  Friday morning photo.

Big smoke clouds like these are up there every day.  Sometimes the wind pushes the smoke downward to create a blanket over the city.  Then we get health warnings to stay in. 

East Camino Cielo Road runs along the ridge of the (Santa Ynez) mountains in this photo.  Santa Barbara is in the foreground, at the bottom of the mountains.  The Evacuation Warning is for East Camino Cielo.  The fire has moved south toward the cities in the last few days.  Montecito, Goleta, and Carpinteria are also along the coast, like Santa Barbara.  At least fires do not go downhill as well as up, but when we get the Santa Ana dry hot winds blowing down from the mountains, flames could be down within a few hours.  I've seen it happen once.  It's a bit scary.

What's burning up:

And that's what's happening in my life today.  I'll keep you all informed.  I hope you are all doing well!

"Chamber of Commerce Seeks Donations for Firefighters

The Santa Barbara Chamber of Commerce is organizing efforts to gather donations for firefighters currently stationed at Earl Warren Showgrounds. Restaurant meal donations, products, gift certificates or other services are being rounded up to show appreciation to the firefighters.

“Thousands of firefighters are risking their lives to protect residents of the Santa Barbara area from the devastating back country fire and the Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce is encouraging businesses to show their appreciation through a donation,” said Chamber directors in a release.

For more information, or to make a donation, call Wendy Figueiredo at (805) 965-3023 or e-mail her at wendy@sbchamber.org."

I found out that an acre is approximately comparable to a football field.  This fire has consumed a bunch of them. 

Morning Update Saturday August 11, 2007

Joint Unified Command: Los Padres National Forest and Santa Barbara County Fire Department

Fire Status

Acres Burned: 81,795 acres
Acreage Increase (last 12 hours): 1,008 acres
Fireline to Build: 57 miles
Date Started: July 4, 2007 at 10:53 am
Percent Contained: 68 percent
Expected Containment: September 7, 2007
Injuries:22
Structures Threatened: 595
Structures Destroyed: 1 outbuilding

Resources

Crews: 71
Engines:193
Helicopters: 20
Air Tankers: 8
Air Attack: 2
Dozers: 29
Water Tenders: 66

Total Personnel Assigned: 2,912

Cost to Date: $61.5 million

Headlines:

• Two informational meetings on the Zaca Fire will be held on Saturday August 11 in the Lebec/Frazier Park area. At 12 noon a meeting will be held at the Pine Mountain Club, 2534 Beechwood Way and at 3pm at the Frazier Mountain High School, 700 Falcon Way, Lebec.

Current Situation:

The fire continues to be active on three fronts and is generating significant smoke. A focal point for today's activities is to finish containment of a small slop over in the Little Pine Mountain area. The fire continues to burn actively in Rattlesnake Canyon west of Samon Peak and the Alamar Canyon area. Hand crews, engines, and dozers are continuing with constructing contingency fire lines in the areas of Paradise, East Camino Cielo, Sierra Madre Ridge, Pendola Road, Matilija Wilderness, Dry Canyon to Hwy 33 and south of Hwy 33 to Divide Peak. Within the next couple of days, Fire Commanders will start burnout operations along many of the contingency lines. The purpose of the burnout operations is to create a black line to stop the forward progress of the fire. The burnout operations are expected to go on for several days and will generate significant smoke.

Forest, Road and Area Closures:

• Happy Canyon Road is closed at Los Padres National Forest boundary.
• Figueroa Mountain Road is closed at the Los Padres National Forest boundary.
• East Camino Cielo is closed between Painted Cave Road and Gibraltar Road due to fire equipment traffic.
• Paradise Road is within the Evacuation Order Area and is currently closed.
• Los Padres National Forest closure information and map are available at www.fs.fed.us/r5/lospadres

Evacuations:

An Evacuation Order is in effect for Paradise Road and Lower Santa Ynez River to Gibraltar Dam. This includes Paradise Road Community, Santa Ynez Road Recreational Area to Gibraltar Dam, Los Prietos Boys Camp, and the Rancho Oso Guest Ranch.

Basic Information

Incident Type	Wildland Fire
Cause	Human Caused
Date of Origin	07/04/2007 at 1053 hrs.
Location	15 miles NE of Buellton
Incident Commander	Molumby/ Schmit/ Dietrich

Current Situation

Total Personnel	2,912
Size	81,795 acres
Percent Contained	68%
Estimated Containment Date	09/07/2007 at hrs.
Fuels Involved	Heavy brush contains a high dead component. Some conifers at higher elevations. Live fuel moistures are below critical levels. A continuous fuel bed lies ahead of the fire's dominant spread direction.
Fire Behavior	The fire continues to be active on three fronts and is generating significant smoke. The fire continues to burn actively in Rattlesnake Canyon west of Samon Peak and the Alamar Canyon area.
Significant Events	A focal point for today’s activities is to finish containment of a small slop over in the Little Pine Mountain area. Hand crews, engines, and dozers are continuing with constructing contingency fire lines in the areas of Paradise, East Camino Cielo, Sierra Madre Ridge, Pendola Road, Matilija Wilderness, Dry Canyon to Hwy 33 and south of Hwy 33 to Divide Peak. Within the next couple of days, Fire Commanders will start burnout operations along many of the contingency lines. The purpose of the burnout operations is to create a black line to stop the forward progress of the fire. The burnout operations are expected to go on for several days and will generate significant smoke.

Weather

Current Wind Conditions	1 mph E
Current Temperature	62 degrees
Current Humidity	47 %