Our window unit air conditioner apparently cannot run without sucking in the thick, acrid smoke from outside. It kind of filters out the ash, but so what. The wild fire had doubled in size, the smoke/ash were way worse than before, and we hadn't slept a wink. Respiratory distress had joined general physical discomfort and exhaustion. With predicted temperatures over 100 degrees and humidity in the teens, we fled in search of breathable, cooler air. And found it in Huntington.
We'd been meaning to check out the dog beach, anyway. It's a very popular spot, much more crowded than the places we usually go. Gentle waves close to the shore (breaking farther out), so a good swimming area for Violet and us. Perfect weather and water temperature. Fantastic place to watch surfers. And to spot fake boobs, which, of course, isn't difficult. I guess it's an Orange County thing — or pair of things.
It was a little surreal to be about fifty miles away from our house where the air and weather were gorgeous and to look back and see the smoke, "our" smoke, billowing on the horizon. That's what the picture below shows. (It kind of looks like the smoke is coming from the oil refinery, but that stuff is nearby in Huntington. The smoke is over Mount Wilson, back by our house. Sorry I don't have a better picture.)
Our hotel was actually in Costa Mesa on the other side of the 405. Considering our budget and dog-friendly needs, it was a very nice place, but when we got back there, everything on TV was horrible news about the fire. Mom & Dad insisted we stay in the hotel at least another night, and it turned out that we needed to. Even with nice accommodations, the time wasn't really a vacation because we were constantly aware of having fled, afraid of what was going on at home, worried about the expense, and most of the time, doing school work on our computers, which we had lugged with us out of necessity. I was kind of freaking out about my first class meetings of the fall semester — would I be able to go back to the house for books, clothes, etc. before my Monday class?
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