There was a huge number of lightning storms around California.
Which resulted in a large number of fires. This one is buring just across the highway from our home.
It was so hot the glue on this piece of art melted and the rock fell off.
A nice sunrise.
Seventeen Moments of Spring was a very popular Russian TV series.
Ogii bought me the book to read, as well.
The white praying mantis on a plant.
A bunny.
Ogii has organized all of her puzzle pieces.
A few fires spread throughout California.
The sun through the smoke from the fires.
Fire on the hills behind these homes.
Burning through the brush.
More over here.
The flames.
Some right along the side of the road.
Black on this side.
Ash on the ground.
Evacuation warning close to us.
Ogii packing up in case we have to leave.
A donut eating a cookie.
Only a small space left.
The fire is south of the highway.
Thankfully we live to the north; but it's only a road away.
When you prepare breakfast when you're half asleep, you put Cheerios in the drink.
Ash on the ground.
Me sweeping it away with some paper.
Ash on top of my car.
Emergency vehicles.
And firetrucks.
At night.
The fire was burning on top of the hill across the highway from us.
It was moving surprisingly quickly.
A helicopter carrying water.
Almost.
Almost.
And done.
The police were blocking off access to these houses as they were under mandatory evacuation.
The crescent moon lit by the fires.
The air quality around us didn't look too bad, but when I got home on Friday night, I got a headache after only half an hour.
However, the air was much cleaner up north a few hours.
Although only on the coast; inland it was pretty bad.
So we got a hotel in Palo Alto and drove up there on Friday night. The first room we were given hadn't been cleaned yet. Normally that would be a little bad, but since there's COVID, it was really bad. Thankfully they had another room available.
Each room had a nice little patio area with a table and chairs.
It's always nice seeing happy memories on Facebook. I loved playing volleyball in the warmth with friends.
This guy directed the Democratic National Convention from his living room. He has a ton of Emmies but is using a cheap Costco table.
Although the chair he is sitting on is not cheap.
The air quality is insanely bad just north of Santa Cruz. 600 is literally off the charts.
The fire seems to be moving south, away from our home.
Breakfast on the patio.
A nice pool area.
All of the balconies.
We went for a little walk on Saturday morning.
A very small creek.
Some sort of fruit.
And some berries.
Some red berries. I wonder if the homeless people around here eat all of these.
The bark on these trees peels off.
Ogii between the railroad tracks.
A little park.
Some people worked to preserve the area.
A redwood tree.
Another plaque for it.
Ogii under it.
Me on a bridge.
Sitting on some logs to call the family.
Playing games on the call.
A rather large nut.
Oops, its hat fell off.
Ogii by another big tree, this one going sideways.
Oh, there's a shopping center right across the street.
Ogii wants to go check that out.
Now is a great time for construction as fewer people are shopping from COVID.
Weird statue.
Pretty painted field.
I like their name and logo.
All of the stores had limited capacity.
And lots of rules.
Large mural at the center of the mall.
A Ray-Ban store.
Which is so small only two customers are allowed at a time.
A small line for Tiffany.
That blanket looks very expensive.
Beautiful mural of buildings.
A longer line for Louis Vuitton.
Cartier had a barrier.
Some large flowers.
You need an appointment for Hermes.
Ogii copying the statue.
More big flowers.
This one had some long, curved strands in the middle.
This optometry office was down a small alley with nothing else around it. You have to really want to go there; you wouldn't just walk by.
Fat men.
Frogs.
It was really hot, so I found this nice shaded walkway to sit in while Ogii shopped.
Neat shoes.
Love The Melt.
Eating lunch.
There's a store in Palo Alto that sells those expensive chairs the producer was using.
And it's only a few blocks away.
They're also for sale on Craigslist. I tried to contact the ads that had them at $200 to $400, but nobody replied, so either they were scams or they were sold too fast.
That would be a pretty place to work.
An old watertower.
Built in 1910.
And dedicated to a city council member.
Love the rooftop gardens.
The street was blocked off so the restaurants could sit tables out there.
A rug shop.
The store with the expensive chair.
Me trying it out.
An even more expensive one.
At $7,000.
Don't break it.
A red Swingline stapler, which was only created and sold after Office Space had it.
We like these standing lamps.
This clock looks like an eye.
That chair is interesting.
But not very comfortable.
All of the stores at the Sanford shopping center were too expensive, but Ogii found a dress store here that was much cheaper.
Some of her finds.
Old cabinets.
More outdoor eating.
Outdoor ping pong tables.
This lamp is really cool.
As are these dishes.
An old fire station bell.
From 1904.
I told Ogii and her brother to go back to the hotel because I wanted to buy some boba tea. Ogii waited here, hid behind a tree, and then jumped out and scared me.
We wanted to pick up some Korean BBQ to take home, and there were a lot in San Jose.
But even though Google Maps said some of the places were open, they didn't answer their phones and they looked dark. The one near our home was open for take out, though.
The neighbor kids setting up a lemonade stand. They sold it way too cheaply, though; only 10 cents a cup. So I gave them a few dollars.
I tried making cheesy green beans, but all of the cheese stuck to the spatula instead of the beans.
Many vehicles are still fighting the fires.
The air is much better quality now.
Even though there's still smoke, it's not nearly as bad.
They tried playing volleyball earlier, but were told to stop by the police. Maybe they're allowing it now.
That's a neat watch, but a bit overpriced. Although it is on a back-to-school sale, in case your kid needs a new watch for the upcoming scholastic year (which s/he will probably be at home for).
Ordered some N95 masks on Amazon. They will only sell them to you if you create a business account and enter your NPI number.
Received them quickly.
Although none of them were particularly comfortable. These HDX ones from Home Depot which Ogii had were much better. Unfortunately, I can't find this particular model, H910F, anywhere. Even Ebay has some other models but not this one.
This woman who works at a gas station near us goes out and feeds a large bunny here.
Karate out in the parking lot.
A baby lizard had wandered into our kitchen.
He was tiny.
Gotta go outside, buddy.
A picture of Ogii and her sister as babies.
Another.
Her father and her grandparents.
Now there are a ton of fires across the state.
The fire is moving even farther south.
We're very lucky because this fire mostly burned empty land; very few houses were destroyed.
Fire fighters eat for free.
Much more contained now.
Although lots of space burned.
And now a hurricane lands in Texas.
Bill & Ted Face the Music was a needed movie for 2020; simple, happy, and uplifting.
How can you beat that slogan?
Ogii made some great chicken.
Online poker. We were flipping preflop.
I really sucked out here.
He made his flush, but I had the full house. Always be wary of paired boards.
The poor threes never had a chance.
And I hit a very lucky turn to win the tournament.
California has a ballot tracking service you can sign up for.
A Contra speedrunner created some funny names for the game's levels.
Baseball has no fans, so some teams put mannequins in the stands.
Johnny selling his art.
I don't know if I could play poker here; I'd probably end up playing the Street Fighter game in the back instead.
Cool four-colored deck.
This app will read your glasses prescription so you can order new glasses. I wonder how well it works and how it works. I tried to download it, but it says it's incompatible with my phone.
My two favorite CE speakers, Melton and Thomas.
Mile Brujic has a ton of honoria. I wonder how much he makes doing that.
These new MiSight contact lenses are supposed to slow myopia progression. The early studies seem to suggest they at least work somewhat. It will be interesting to see what the long-term data indicates.
Tips on fitting sclerals.
It's really useful to see what to look for.
Rather than just reading it.
VSP held a webinar to discuss their new reimbursement changes.
Which many doctors are angry about.
Aw, the Straight Dope is done. I used to love reading that website.