mono wind event

on monday night (the 18th of january) zane got me up around midnight to go out for a pee.  there was a breeze and an eerie howling/roaring/rushing sound in the distance---something tremendous was coming.  we went back to bed and i woke up around 2am to the most incredible wind i have ever experienced.  the house was being buffeted.  i could hear objects being picked up and thrown around.  there was just enough light to see the tree tops twisting around violently.  by 3am the power went out.  the wind continued until about 9am tuesday morning.  

it's called a mono wind event...

(from an informational pamphlet issued by the national parks and national weather service)

"...Mono Winds are strong winds that blow downhill across the western slopes of the central Sierra
Nevada from the northeast. In an ideal atmospheric pattern, air moving from the northeast and flows up
and over the high peaks of the Sierra Nevada. As this air rushes several thousand feet downhill, it
increases in speed and also dries out. The rugged topography of the Sierra Nevada also causes the air
to be funneled through tight spaces which further increases its speed. This results in winds that can
reach speeds of 50 mph or more. Mono Winds form when an area of high pressure sets up over the Great Basin. Air flows in a clockwise direction around high pressure. In some situations, the air is “squeezed” better than others because of the differences in pressure in the atmosphere. The more air is squeezed, the faster it blows. In a typical Mono Wind event, winds reach speeds of at least 50 mph while stronger events can see winds exceed 100 mph!..."

 

we lost several large trees and part of the asphalt roofing on the back of our house.  the garden fence was damaged as well as a few fruit trees.  the power was out for a little over 72 hours...

 

staal, patching the roof in preparation for the soon to come rain and snow

fence on north side of the orchard garden...several fruit trees buried in a tangle of huge oak limbs

broken 4x4 corner post on the southeast side of the orchard garden

this massive oak in front of the house could have taken out our power pole and hit the house but it somehow fell alongside the driveway without even causing any blockage

benji, enjoying a climb on the fallen oak pictured previously

one of several broken and fallen trees around the property

 

we were very fortunate and i'm grateful.  we've repaired the garden fence and the roof and done some chainsawing and cleanup (thank you for the help, mama).  we used our generator to pump water and make light when we needed it.  we were able to go about our daily business without hardship.  some people had large trees fall on their homes and cars.  some people don't have a generator.  some people still do not have electricity.  the county has declared a state of emergency.  

my gratitude to all the people who worked and are still working long, hard hours to clear roads and restore power.

carry me

 

the end of our morning walk

nearing home

he pauses and holds out a paw

(the one he injured the day before)

looking at me a bit helplessly

it's just a scrape

and he's only bumped it

but his expression is so earnestly imploring

it breaks my heart

i ask him if he wants me to carry him

this seems enough to encourage him onward

and he manages without the slightest limp

as we walk i tell him

i would carry you

...forever

and i mean it

he carries me everyday

more effort

a dream

without images

a voice

without origin

saying

only

more effort

 

the bargers

though

in truth

they never were

the

just

bargers

barger and mrs.

neighbors of my grandparents

i don't know what brought them to mind

maybe the gray

rainy morning

and the smell of wood smoke

they have only ever been

an imagining

as a child

i heard them spoken of

by my great aunt and grandparents

gathered around the big table

laden with my grandmother's cooking

as i sat silently amongst the giants

of my little existence

all i can recall ever hearing about them

(i never once saw either of them)

is

mrs. barger was always cold

and mr. barger

barger

smoked cigarettes 

(maybe)

the rest

like so much of my current conception of reality

was left to my imagination

i imagined them

and still do

an elderly couple

gaunt

and ghostly

eating soup in their dark, little house

a perpetual curl of smoke rising from the chimney

poor

but not wanting

and that is where and how they will always exist

because that is the only place they have ever existed for me

in my imagination

haunting that little house

contentedly eating soup by a warm fire

forever

 

happy birthday, zane grey!

 

 zane is 9 years old today!

 

happy birthday, my friend, i love you.

first snow of the season

 but it can't put out the fire in those persimmon leaves...

stay pink, benji cat

at the beginning of last month benji had some kind of energetic collapse.  normally, he's a very active cat, so, when he suddenly shut down, i knew something was really wrong.  one day he just hunkered down on the bed and seemed to be having trouble staying conscious.  

i got him an appointment with the vet for the next morning.  she checked him out and couldn't find anything obviously, physically wrong with him.  he didn't have a fever or any respiratory symptoms or digestive symptoms.  she said to keep an eye on him and if he showed no improvement or worsened to bring him back.  

later in the day, benji seemed a bit worse and i was very worried so i left a message on the after hours voice mail for the doc.  the next morning we got a call from the vet's office saying we could bring benji in.  

doctor wise (such a great name for a doctor) ordered some blood work and after the tech took the sample we went home to wait for results.  that afternoon i got a call from the doctor saying benji was anemic, his platelets were low, and she had sent out for additional tests to rule out leukemia and fiv.  

after a restless night, the morning brought good news.  benji was negative for leukemia and fiv and the doctor thought his condition may be the result of an autoimmune attack on his platelets so she prescribed an oral steroid.  i gave benji the medication twice a day, every day, and after a short time he seemed to be feeling much better.  he even seemed to like the medication and would come to me when he knew it was time and open his mouth for me when i offered the syringe.  

after some frustration in locating the prescription at the pharmacy (likely due to some creative spelling of our last name), we got things figured out.

 

after a few weeks, we took benji in for a follow up blood test to check his platelet count.  when we were getting ready to leave the vet's office, doctor wise came up to us, smiling, and said, "he's pink".  she said that when we first brought him in, weeks earlier, he had looked pale to her, but he seemed to have much better color this time around so she was encouraged that the steroid had helped.  i got an email from her later that day when the test results were back saying his platelets were normal and i could taper him off the medication.  

the doc thinks the autoimmune attack could have been an isolated incident and that benji should be okay now without any medication.  

 

so far, so good.  stay pink, benji cat.  we love you.