From one fire to another
There's yet another round of wildfires happening in California, only this time, it's hitting home--the main city the fire is near is one where my aunt lived for a good three decades. She moved a few years ago, but whenever I hear the city's name I automatically think of her. Three decades ago, when we spent Easter vacation with her, that was the town we went to. I checked for that house on Google Maps; the pool is the same. I have no idea if that house is affected, as it's in the foothills, but it had been made famous years ago when it was on the cover of National Geographic because of a mudslide. The other house they lived in appears to be a few miles south, so I doubt it's in as bad of shape, but still. I imagine they still have many friends and acquaintances there, so I hope they're safe.
Because I hadn't heard from her in a while, and I am a bad niece and don't keep in as good contact as I should, I sent her an email last night. No surprise, she replied, and as of yesterday all seemed okay on her end, in terms of the fire. I mean, now she lives miles away, but from what she knew things were all right. Oh, and by the way, my cousin got married yesterday and is pregnant. ...What??? I wasn't aware she was seeing anyone, much less about to wed. Yeah, well, these things happen. Supposedly she and her husband were going to do it anyway--marriage, people--but the impending arrival made them push things up. Well, great. And the funny thing is that the due date is close to my dad's birthday, so it's entirely possible he'll have another niece give birth on his day. That would be amusing. My dad's more amused that his sister's going to be a grandma.
Because I hadn't heard from her in a while, and I am a bad niece and don't keep in as good contact as I should, I sent her an email last night. No surprise, she replied, and as of yesterday all seemed okay on her end, in terms of the fire. I mean, now she lives miles away, but from what she knew things were all right. Oh, and by the way, my cousin got married yesterday and is pregnant. ...What??? I wasn't aware she was seeing anyone, much less about to wed. Yeah, well, these things happen. Supposedly she and her husband were going to do it anyway--marriage, people--but the impending arrival made them push things up. Well, great. And the funny thing is that the due date is close to my dad's birthday, so it's entirely possible he'll have another niece give birth on his day. That would be amusing. My dad's more amused that his sister's going to be a grandma.