And you know I had to jump in my car and go out there for a look at it.

The fire department had blockades up on the two known roads into the valley, however they underestimated the resourcefulness of a curious journalist in a 4-wheel drive. I drove around in the pitch black, save for glow of the orange sky from the fire over the ridge, until I found a wide dirt trail that wound around the edge of the mountain, bumpy and rough, and finally dumped me out right into the side of the mountain overlooking the fire racing across the valley.

There were people running, horses running, firetrucks and equipment speeding down the dirt roads. The fire was stringing along in rope-like tangles across the valley floor, twisting and looping like strands of hot molten spaghetti.

It looked as though everyone got out ok, but I felt sick to my stomach; those houses were barely holding their guard and the acres and acres of scorched brush, somebody’s western dreams.

I wasn’t supposed to be there, so I turned around and bounced back down the mountain and snuck home before anybody noticed.

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“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.”
- T.S. Eliot

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We drove up to Zephyr Cove on the northeastern shore of Lake Tahoe this afternoon, after a lunch in Truckee, to this cool, secluded beach I found a few years ago. We took our inner tubes and just spent the afternoon floating on the lake, eyes shut against the sun, skin browning by the minute while the water lapped and tickled our arms and legs. When we got out we had to brush glittery, gold dust off ourselves and out of our hair.

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After a day of questionable successes I threw everything to the box for tomorrow and called Joshua up at 8 o’clock and told him to get ready, I was on my way.

By 8:30 I had picked him up and we drove over to Billie and David’s for the tail end of their post-wedding reception party (7 months after the ceremony). There were only about six people left by then, out of what she said was at least 60 at peak, so we picked at some of the buffet to make up for the fact that I had skipped dinner, each had a slice of wedding cake, and sat on the floor and chewed the fat with everyone for awhile.

Once Joshua got the whole room doubling over with laughter, because he does that, we took off for The Garage and relaxed in their big leather couches for a few hours, drinks in hand, and took in some hip-hop Cajun music, which was better than it sounds.

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It’s not a bad gig when you get to have an evening out on someone else’s dime for a change. Just got home, damages of $275.00 in all and they weren’t mine, and we have little more to show for it than a bad case of the giggles, dirty hands and a decadent aftertaste.

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