Fires and Floods and Writing, Oh My!

My post today was going to be very mild, concentrating on the fact that I have the day off and four stories awaiting my attention. But my youth is under attack. OK, I know that sounds rather strange, but it almost seems as though Colorado is burning up. There are fires on the eastern slope near Fort Collins, where I went to school. There is one up the canyon near Boulder where my ex-fiancee, Seth, grew up and a city/town that holds many special memories for me throughout my youth. There is a huge blaze near Colorado Springs/Manitou Springs. That one has grown so quickly and become so dangerous that tens of thousands of people have been evacuated and the Air Force Academy has been closed and evacuated. It's frightening. The fire dangers are one major reason why I have stayed in Minnesota instead of moving back to Colorado or New Mexico. I don't recall them being this bad when I grew up in the area, so I'm wondering about what changed to cause wildfires to be such a major thing over the past ten years or so.

The background in this picture of the Air Force Academy chapel is sunset, but pictures taken now might show the deadly orange of flames on the horizon instead.

And, in the southeast we've got rain. A LOT of rain, the result of the passage of Debbie (hurricane or tropical storm depending on wind speed). More than 30 inches (76.2 cm)of rain in just a few days in some areas. That much rain in that short of a time means vast flooding and intense damage to life and property. My heart goes out to them.

Hurricane Debbie also spawned a number of tornadoes including this one.

So, that's our latest disasters in this country. Somehow having all of those things happening makes my computer issues seem so minor in comparison. I'll go to an early breakfast with Meghan and her delightful young son, and then a few errands ending up with as much writing as I can fit in. I want my AinA complete by the end of the day, and I also want a start on at least one of the four stories I have waiting in the wings. It's going to be hot today and I'll be sweating in the computer room, but I need to get in gear....