Where There's Smoke

The Catlins have been visiting New England for the latter half of June, leaving Bob and me with the full responsibilities and rewards of the property: bed and breakfast, garden, barn-in-progress, cats, and pool.  With the overabundance of interesting goings-on in and around Mariposa, I've been looking forward to the opportunity to get really heimisch for a couple of weeks, focusing deeply on the plants, animals and guests at One Light.

As usual, the universe had other ideas.  We bid farewell to a dear friend that first Sunday afternoon after a lovely 5-day visit, and I lay down for a nap while Bob tinkered away in the barn.  When I awoke, the wind was moving the trees and a strange light illuminated their tops.  Half of the blue sky was covered by a gray-orange haze.  The air felt strange, and I assumed a storm was passing over us on its way to the mountains.  I greeted our new B&B arrivals, and began cooking dinner.  Then Bob came into the house with news from friends in our old neighborhood on Triangle Road: an enormous wildfire had everyone on the northeast part of Triangle on pre-evacuation notice. 

Smokey haze over the setting sun bathes the back yard in golden light.

A number of different thoughts flashed through my mind in rapid succession.  What about our friends' pets and livestock?  Their homes?  What would happen if the fire came our way over the ridge?  What things should we try to take out with us?  Where would I sent the B&B guests?  What about the Catlins' home and their treasures?  The garden?

Orangey-grey smoke to the north and blue sky to the south.

Happily, the combined efforts of the weather and 2,200 firemen got the fire contained, and all evacuees were able to return home just a few days later.  1,700 acres burned in the Carstens Fire, but no structures were touched.  Apart from a few days of smoky air and one B&B cancellation, nothing in our lives was disrupted.  But there was a fair amount of self-knowledge to gain from the situation. 

Ash and blackened leaves rained down on us from the fire site.

First, I learned that I am terrified of wildfire (and probably all natural disasters).  This wasn't really a surprise, because I'd always tried to imagine how upsetting it would be to have to gather up your essentials and flee your home.  But secondly, I gained a new gratitude for the wonderful house on wheels that Bob built for us, and the lifestyle that we've chosen.  Over the past few months we've mostly focused on things we need to improve on the motorhome, or things we wish we'd done differently.  But when faced with a worst-case scenario, I realized that in spite of its shortcomings, this house is adaptable to sudden change.  There's no need to have an emergency kit ready by the door; we can fairly easily pull up stakes and drive away with our own (too short) bed, (one-cook) kitchen, (slightly less-than-optimal) bathroom, (too large) music collection, (seasonal) clothing, toothbrushes, and cat. 

I love this land, and would mourn deeply the loss of its trees, garden, outbuildings, etc.  And Bob is still itching to build a permanent structure that would expand our indoor space.  But I have no sense of urgency about growing out of the motorhome.  For now, I'm enjoying the paradoxical feeling of security in transience; of carrying our house on our back; of making the outdoors as much my home as the indoors is.

Lastly, we had more reasons than ever this week to appreciate the community that we've found here.  I called friends on Triangle to offer them a place to stay, and within minutes another friend further east called me to make sure we were all right and offer his help.  The Chois' eldest son emailed from the grazing site down in southern California to see how we were faring.  A group that we volunteer with, Mariposa Open Arms, fed and hosted evacuees.  The Mariposa Bed and Breakfast Association called to see if we had rooms available for evacuated guests.  After the worst was over, big hand-painted signs sprung up along Hwy 49 thanking the firefighters.

It seems that the best gift we could give back to this place would be to teach the most fireproof form of building construction that we know--strawbale walls coated with earth-plaster, covered by a metal roof.  Mariposa County has a lot of building codes related to fire resistance, but no amount of asphalt shingles or chemically-treated lumber can compare with metal, sand, clay and earth.  Neither Bob nor I have much experience doing "informational outreach" (that is to say, marketing).  But history is full of people who were called to perform duties far outside their comfort zones, not to speak of their job descriptions.  And if it takes a team to spread the truth about truly sustainable construction, then I believe that this team will manifest.  But first we need to pull our heads out of our daily tasks and start developing our thesis.

All the Comforts of Home

Lysander demonstrates proper siesta technique.

The month of May brought big changes around here: 

1) we had our first truly hot weather, 

2) we finally got electricity in the motorhome, and 

3) (most exciting of all) we now have a working phone!!  Right next to the couch!  

With any luck, internet access is soon to follow.  No more driving ten miles just to make calls and check our email at the library.  Best of all, we can finally kick our useless cell phones to the curb.  Bob’s phone has already been decommissioned, and mine is soon to follow.  If our new number hasn’t found its way into your inbox yet, shoot us an email! 

Little Motorhome in the Big Woods.

The biggest change of all is that in order to acquire these luxuries, we had to move the motorhome to another property nearby.  We are now enjoying a living/working partnership with George and Theresa Catlin on their enchanting 70 acres off of Hwy 49.  The domesticated animals here are limited to cats so far, but we see and hear our many wild neighbors daily: countless lizards, squirrels, gophers, and field mice; acorn woodpeckers, hummingbirds, and songbirds; snakes, tree frogs, and a pack of coyotes that like to run laughing past the house at around 2 in the morning.  

Acorn woodpeckers are THE bird around here.   They have a crazy laugh to go with their crazy white eyes.

Bob is helping George to complete a replica of George’s father’s barn, which will provide a guest/living space upstairs and the shop space downstairs that Bob has needed for so long.  They painted the exterior this week, transforming the structure into a truly graceful addition to the property, even in its unfinished state. 

There is plenty of work for me in the established garden area here, and plenty of booming brassicas and salad greens for us to help devour.  Now that the hot weather has arrived I try to limit my garden work to mornings and early evenings, but a quick midday salad trip often turns into 45 minutes of weeding or mulching or hummingbird-watching or…

Ahh, arugula nectar.  Does it taste peppery?

I found this little guy camping out in the broccoli rabe.

I’m also getting a little paid work in the bed and breakfast that George and Theresa run out of their house, called One Light (http://one-light.us/).  They have some travelling planned for this summer, so it works out well for everyone for Bob & me to learn the B&B biz—something we’ve been curious about for some time already!  Yosemite draws literally millions of people to this area every year, and the B&Bs tend to fill up fast with visitors who want locals’ insight into enjoying the park and surrounding areas.  Many of the guests at One Light are from overseas, which is extra fun.  I’m brushing up my German with the help of some novels written by a relative of George’s which were picked up by a German publisher and translated.  

By far the best part of living at a working bed and breakfast, however, is that there is a pool.  Oh man, it is so awesome to fall into on a hot day.  Because an outdoor pool surrounded by trees takes a lot of upkeep, Bob and I are also learning Pool Maintenance 101 from George.  It’s the perfect excuse to don a suit and get up there every afternoon to, you know, check the water quality :)

I dare you guys not to visit us now!