Removing Karin And Our Son From San Diego Air

We have decided to move Karin out of the area. The air quality is still poor and there is a significant amount of ash lying around and being stirred up by winds. Karin shouldn't have to sleep with a TB mask on.

Karin worked most of the day yesterday. My office, on the other hand, remained officially closed. I spoke to some clients in the morning and then headed to the airport to meet Nicolas and to get some more photos and video of our scorched territory. The airport was still eerily quiet - almost nothing landing and departing. Unfortunately, the airplane I had reserved had a few issues and I decided to cancel the flight.

It's a...............

We had a really cool ultrasound today. Much more modern than the last two. And the woman doing the ultrasound was truly one with the computer. There is a good chance she is a fembot but I decided not to bring the issue up with her directly. (Remember when Vanessa's head exploded??)

Anyway, this fembot lathered up Karin's belly with hot liquid goo and then proceeded to manipulate the baby with the ultrasound probe in her right hand, while simultaneously typing furiously with her left hand. All the while she was calling out information to us: "There's one kidney. There's the other kidney. That's the heart. 160 beats per minute. Within limits. There's a foot. There's the spine. There's the face..." And so on. The image was changing constantly. At one point, I swear I saw a rabbit in there. Most of the time it just looked like an alien. Who knows if the ultrasound was even turned on? It could all just be simple animation and a very good billing system. All in all it was very entertaining and worth every penny.

And then she asked "Do you want to know what you're having?" I must say, that was rather a dramatic moment. The question just hung there, in the darkened examination room, waiting for us to make our first of what we anticipate to be hundreds of thousands (millions?) of decisions as parents. Of course we had talked about it... but everything seemed significantly more poignant at that moment, in that examination room, in front of that fembot. We looked at each other in great anticipation, and then blurted out, "Yes!"

Five seconds later she had the Money $hot on the screen:

Apparently the fembot had been stimulating the little guy. He seems to be rather happy to have met her.

Here is the conversation that ensued:

Fembot: It's a boy.
Me: Is he well tempered?
Fembot: What?
Me: Is he a good boy?
Fembot: I can't tell that from the ultrasound.


Fembots are n0t known for their sense of humor.


Had you spent the last 4 days evacuated from your home and in close quarters with a group of adorable little people melting down at various times of the day, you would have asked the same thing.

It was all very exciting. Black and chrome it is (and I won't have to spend the next 14 years worrying about what happens when she becomes a teenager!).

The little guy weighs 12 ounces, comes complete with a full set of limbs and organs, and is 100% innocent.

The proud mother is in very good spirits today, notwithstanding the fact that she has been moving every day, living out of a suitcase, and has been living in complete uncertainty about whether everything we own even exists anymore. I expect her mood has a lot to do with the fact that, while we were abruptly displaced from our home, we were immediately welcomed and accommodated by friends and family.

STAY TUNED LATER TODAY FOR...

a post that begins with "It's a..."


(ultrasound at 1:30 PM local time)

The House Is Still Standing

Karin and I ventured back to the house yesterday. There was smoke billowing from a mountaintop behind it (a few miles away) but our house was as we had left it. Outside the house there is a fair amount of ash. Inside the house there is the distinct smell of smoke. In fact, Karin was bothered enough by the smell to immediately order an air purifier (local stores are sold out). We decided to go back to Del Mar until the air is flushed out. That should be in a day or so, now that the Santa Ana's have abated. Typically we have on-shore winds that keep our air quite clean.

I had been toying with the idea of going flying in order to survey the area around San Diego. There are restrictions in effect, of course, as well as significant obscuration due to the smoke. I had emailed a few people that I fly with to see if anyone had been up. Most were waiting out the fires. I had also looked up the TFR's in effect and had spoken to an FAA briefer. Clearly it was legal to fly but most planes were staying on the ground. Then my flying buddy Mike called me. Mike is an Air Traffic Controller by day and knows the entire air traffic control system - from the controller side! It's great to fly with him. Mike told me that he had been flying daily since the fires started. He wanted us to head to the airport immediately. Karin and I were still at our house, assessing the situation there. I told Mike I'd call him when I knew what our plans were. A couple of hours later, I was taking Karin back to Del Mar and heading to the airport.

The airport was practically abandoned. MYF is one of the busiest general aviation fields in the USA. It generally has two active runways with nonstop landing and departing traffic. During our taxi to the active I saw no other plane.

We departed without delay. We flew up the coast to Del Mar and then headed east, toward the Witch Creek Fire area - and to our house. Our house is located just south of one of the Temporary Flight Restriction areas. We were given clearance to enter Miramar Marine Airbase Class Bravo airspace and surveyed the area around our house. There was no damage visible from the air.

There was significant smoke north of us and south of us. We decided to head to the south to survey the area around Mike's house (we both had been evacuated from our respective houses). As we approached Mike's neighborhood, the sky became dark with smoke. We decided to climb to 7,500, above the TFR. Because all fire-fighting operations are conducted from a much lower altitude, we are able to fly over any of the fire fighting areas, as long as we remain above 7,000 MSL.

The scene from above the fire was quite unbelievable. Multiple lines of fire along mountainsides with smoke billowing up for miles. You've probably seen the satellite images that have been broadcast on television. Those are impressive. But flying above a massive fire and seeing a line of flames from 7,500 feet is really dramatic. I will post a couple of photos shortly.

GWB will be visiting San Diego today so our airspace will be shut down. The president now gets his own TFR wherever he travels. I probably will fly with Nicolas tomorrow. By then the fires will likely be extinguished for the most part and we will be able to survey the damage.

I apologize for putting a flying story here but people are asking what we are doing. Once the situation normalizes here, I promise not to post such off-topic items.

Emerging On The Other Side Of The Crisis

Karin and the Little One

Since this is a site about Karin's pregnancy, I'll start with this: We felt Karin's passenger kick for the first time. Karin thinks the baby was upset with me because I had inadvertently backed into her.

Because we were considering leaving town, Karin had called the hospital to see if it might be possible to reschedule tomorrow's ultrasound. They hospital rep told her that, due to the high number of cancellations resulting from the fires, we might not get an appointment for a while. We decided not to leave town.

Evacuation, Part Two

Our one night stay in Point Loma turned out to be a pleasure for us. The air was much cleaner and we were given Andrew's very comfortable room. Julie and Holly really came through for all of us on Monday night. It was a very last-minue thing. At 10:00 PM they received a call and were told to expect 10 people (in addition to their 4), two dogs (in addition to their 1), and one cat (in addition to their 2). By the time we arrived they had beds prepared for all of us. This is all in the midst of a pretty intensive renovation that they are undergoing. Their kitchen has been completely taken apart. And, in fact, on Tuesday morning, the contractors arrived early and started working. Yet, we were all made to feel very comfortable.

Impacts Vary Significantly

That is a perfect example of how localized this all is. We in the northern (and southern) burbs were evacuated and our houses are all at risk. People living more centrally were barely affected. For example, Karin and I had lunch (and very fine Gelato) with friends who live in Little Italy yesterday. Their living situation had barely changed. The central part of San Diego (from a north-south perspective) was almost unaffected. Planes and trains are running, the streets appear to be quite normal, and the air is barely compromised. But go north or south 5 miles and it is clearly a major natural disaster. Over 500,000 people evacuated from their homes.

Air quality really varies significantly from area to area. We have been successfully avoiding the really awful stuff. When we had driven back from Vegas during the 2003 fires, we had to constantly wear masks. This time we have not yet been in the really disgusting thick stuff - and we will not be going into any such areas.

Santa Ana Winds

The fires are the result of dry conditions and Santa Ana Winds. Santa Ana's are föhn or adiabatic winds. We learned about them in pilot school. In essence, they are created when cold winds pass over a mountain range and fall, creating pressure. That pressure heats and expands the air, which then turns into strong, dry, hot winds. While Southern Cali normally has onshore winds, during the Santa Ana's, the winds come out of east. They make for ideal fire weather.

Luckily for Southern California, the Santa Ana Winds only last for a few days at a time. If they were to go on for weeks at a time, for example, people would have no chance of maintaining any kind of normal construction in their path. They are completely overwhelming. During the height of Santa Ana Winds, the relatively insignificant amounts of water and flame retardant that firefighters can delivery - even in massive aircraft - are completely overwhelmed. We really are at the mercy of mother nature. As soon as the winds die down and some moisture returns to their air, the fires become manageable. Before then, there is really no contest.

Work

As for work, Karin's office has been closed most of this time - primarily because they are in an area hard-hit by the fires. Many of the employees had been evacuated and many of the main highways in the area had been closed. Karin probably will be going back to work on Friday. She may be asked to go earlier to do admissions at one of the hospitals in the area. We are going to keep her and the little one out of polluted air, however.

My office is closed and will probably reopen only when the courts reopen. The Director of our organization has been going in to the office to access the database because our web portal has stopped working. Yesterday I had to go in as well to make sure my client appointments had all been canceled. There was kind of a funny thing that happened while I was there but I'll save that story for another time.

Media Coverage is Insufficient

Media coverage has been completely haphazard. In a time of crisis, leaving the provision of information up to private entertainment-driven news sources is really not sufficient. It's expensive to provide real-time information about a massive natural disaster, and there is no news outlet that is going to put together an army of well-equipped reporters to gather the data necessary to keep people properly informed. But, this country also doesn't trust evil government. That puts us in a real bind when we need an entity to provide us with crucial real-time news. There just isn't a third choice (I guess you could count NPR as a third choice but they have significant limits too). So, what gets delivered to us, is absolutely stunning hi-def images, with very questionable accuracy and a paucity of useful information. A lot of it is contradictory between news sources and even on single news source. Technology is making things much better, however; although websites go down when they are inundated with traffic, there still is more info available now than there would have been even 5 years ago.

We Are In Good Shape

We have been inconvenienced and there have been some unpleasantries but, overall, it has not been too bad for us. We have enjoyed hanging out with our family and friends. It is reassuring to know that we have somewhere to go and people who will welcome us in times of crisis. We thank everyone that has made us feel so welcome and everyone who has emailed and called to make sure we are alright and to offer assistance in various ways. There is no need for concern at this point. Even if our house, and its contents, is gone (it is probably fine), we are in a good position to move forward. Our physical health is good. Our mental health is not bad either. And we have a network of people that is very supportive.

Thanks
Thank you to our family and friends who put us up (and up with us). Thank you to everyone that has offered us a place to stay and to our families outside of California who have offered (in some cases demanded) to fly us out of here and to support us in any way necessary. And thanks for your expressions of love and support. All is much appreciated.

Last night around 11:00 PM we set off from Del Mar. We contemplated going to LA but insteaded headed to Point Loma. There are now 14 people staying in Julie and Holly's house - including dad's tenant! The forecast for today is hotter, dryer and windy - perfect fire weather. The weather is forecast to change tomorrow - for the better.

The television coverage has been quite frustrating. We are told conflicting things about where the fires are. Often the networks put up videos of houses burning but do not identify where the video was taken. And often their information is incorrect. Mind you, it is all in Hi Def - so the video is quite impressive.

Of course it's tough to cover something like this. The situation is changing constantly. And it is affecting more than a million people - in various ways.

The air is much better here in Point Loma. Yesterday in Del Mar we had to keep the windows closed the entire day. It was quite unpleasant. The living environment is better here... even with 14 people under this roof.

It's 6:45 AM. The sun is just coming up. We shall see what daylight brings.

As of 10:30 PM: Del Mar is now being evacuated. We probably will be driving up to LA. If the roads are too congested we probably will be driving south to Point Loma. We had contemplated trying to get a flight out but it's too late for that. The San Diego airport closes relatively early.

We packed up our computers, some clothing, some food, important documents, and our camera equipment and headed to Del Mar. At right is a picture of the traffic heading west. The parking lot ahead of me is generally completely empty. This is the first time I have seen significant traffic on Del Mar Heights Rd. That stretch took about 20 mins.

We have been hanging out at my father's place in Del Mar. It's hot inside but we can't open the windows. Doing that would fill the house with ash.

It is hard to say how far the fires are from our house in Poway now. I just saw a graphic on television that made it look like the flames are right on top of the house. I guess we will know in a few days.

For now we are fine. Karin is napping. There are a bunch of people here who are in the same situation - SoCal Fire Refugees. We're watching the fires' progress on the tele.

And by the way, we are scheduled to find out if the baby's room is going to be pink and flowery or black and chrome this week!

A photo that I took this afternoon from our home. We are once again in the midst of smoke and ash from massive forest fires. The sun in this picture is being filtered through that smoke and ash. The Witch Creek fire is approximately 20 miles east of us. Updates to follow.

Monday update: We are taking precautions. Each of us will be taking quite a number of items with us when we leave the house today - on the off chance that we will not be able to return for a little while.

It is unlikely that our area will be evacuated but once the winds really start blowing it's hard to say where the fire will go. Most, if not all, of the schools in this area are closed.

Last time this happened we were in Las Vegas and many of the roads heading into San Diego were closed. Those road closures had forced us to be diverted to a town east of here and we arrived home over 24 hours after the fires had begun. By that time, a layer of ash had covered everything in our living space - through a couple of open windows. That will not be an issue this time.

Monday update 7:30 AM: The fire is worse and closer. I am canceling my clients and we are packing up some things and heading to Del Mar.

Monday update 8:30 AM: Our area has been evacuated. Highways are packed. We're heading out with a bunch of stuff.

The Heartbeat

Karin is now haunted by her own heartbeat. It wakes her up. It keeps her up. The little guy (or gal) is obviously trying to get Karin's attention. But pushing her heart into her Eustachian tube is probably not the best way to do it. I, personally, prefer email or, if I'm close enough, hand-signals. Mind you, I have not tried pushing her heart into her Eustachian tube so I guess I shouldn't knock it. I just think it's not polite.

The nausea may have waned slightly but it certainly has not gone away. For example, K demanded crackers in bed yesterday morning. And she is back on her anti-nausea regimen. I thought the haunting heartbeat might distract her from the nausea and pain but apparently that's not how it works in the (choose your own adjective to insert here: wonderful, miraculous, ridiculous, absurd, fun...) world of pregnancy. Maybe the discomfort, nausea, and pain just keep escalating for 9 months so that, in contrast, the actual birth seems pleasant.

17 Weeks

Karin is reporting the following:

- Diminished ability to engage in physical activity

- Headaches (this likely is due to Karin being upset about bad decision-making by one Mr. Harry Potter)

- Pain throughout her body

- Constant hunger

- Inability to eat spice, onion, and almost anything that has taste of any kind

- Exhaustion

- Extreme discontent with the current leadership of this country (likely has little to do with pregnancy but who am I to make that call?)

- Nausea (hopefully that goes away after the next election)

She looks great, though!

We are about to head out to the airport, fly to LA, attend Art of the Brain, and then drive back to San Diego. Portland was good fun.

We Like Portland

I think we have found our Portland groove. Yesterday we dined at the Clyde Common, a restaurant in the Ace Hotel. The Ace Hotel is rather boutiquey but with a distinctive Portland feel. It's not like the Mondrian or Standard - as in lots of white and leather... I don't want to say it's the grunge version of a boutique hotel but it's certainly not going after a yuppy crowd. Great restaurant.

If you like wifi and coffee, Portland may be your utlimate destination. There are multiple cafes on every block. And, if you open up your laptop, you will have to choose between free networks. Portland has a city-wide free wifi network and every hotel, cafe and resto seems to have their own as well. It works for me.

Another surprising feature here is the ubiquitous $2 Happy Hour. Practically every restaurant in this area - I am referring to rather upscale venues - has a Happy Hour where they feature $2 dishes off their menus. We have yet to attend one but they look inviting. If Karin is done early enough this evening we will be checking out the Jake's Famous Crawfish version.

C O C C Y X

Pronouced "cock six". Bizarre little word. For example, how many 6-letter words can you think of that have 3 c's? Anyway, Karin's coccyx has taken on a central role in her life. In its current state, it serves as a constant reminder that she should avoid sitting whenever possible.

"Portland" might well be renamed "Grungeland". First of all, it's not much of a "port". It's not even on the ocean. Secondly, downtown Portland is grunge-central. Based on my own one-day, purely-anecdotal, experience I can authoritatively and definitively say that downtown Portland is dominated by people dressing down... waaaay down. Around our centrally-located hotel, we are approached by young beggars on a regular basis. And many of the other people in this hood are young, attractive, and doing everything they can to make themselves look unapproachable and downright dirty. Mind you, they are extremely friendly grunge-people.

There is a tremendous amount of beauty in the area. We just haven't had the opportunity to see much of it yet. It has been enshrouded in fog since we arrived.

And here's a little-known Wikipedia "fact" about Portland: In the 1890's, corruption in the government resulted in "white slavery", including the abduction of men to be used as forced labor on sailing ships. It's all a rich tapestry.