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Mx flies home tongiht:) Lots going on here so I'll be posting pretty randomly for the next week or so...Happy Spring all!

I did want to post some pics from our travels:





Our Laundromat




The bulletin board at the laundromat




Construction begins on Cielo

Last night was very special. Joe and I met for a cocktail at the newly opened bar and restaurant at The Ventana Inn. We started out the night by watching the sunset over the Pacific at the new firepit and then watched the moon rise over the mountains behind the Inn. We had a marvelous time just enjoying the moment. I love that the firepit is part of Ventana, the flames having a place of honor. A way of making peace with the summer fires. Almost a year after we arrived here to do the renovation and with all the ups and downs and major challenges, there we were, sitting in the new restaurant in the remodeled lobby of the Inn, joined by the guests. It's been so wonderful to see Ventana open up again [after being closed for about 5 months due to the fires this summer] and see the guests once again relaxing and having a wonderful time. Our dinner was fantastic and our celebration was even sweeter because we got to share it with all of the folks we have gotten to know that had now come back to Ventana to work. The evening had a little bit of of a family reunion feel. A family reunion with incredible food and really great wine:)

It's even more amazing to be typing this here at the beautiful library. A place that has had so many memories for me as a writer. Off and on over the past year I've gotten so much inspiration here, and refuge. During the worst of times, it was here that we watched the helicopters take water out of the sea to dowse the flames on the mountains behind the Inn, when Joe and I realized that the fire had taken a turn for the worse. So, to be posting this on a beautiful, sunny November afternoon and see the Inn receiving guests again makes me especially happy.

Today's sentence: The kiss revealed a secret to each of them.

EEEEEEKKKKKKK!

Before the fire hijacked yesterday's post, this is what I wanted to post.

I've lived in California, a land of tarantulas, for over 20 years and never, not ONE time, did I ever see a tarantula sauntering up our sidewalk. Until.....SATURDAY! Yup. A big hairy black tarantula out for her/his afternoon stroll. Just as regal as you please. And when I got out to ooogle over his most amazing creepiness, he stopped and let me take a look. WOW! They are hairy and big and...They. Are. Out there.

And since I saw him/her just a day before Cielo burned I couldn't help but wonder. Is there some connection? ['cause you know I'm part Irish] So I did a little research, and consulted the WEB [READ: googled] about Tarantula superstitions and found that snakes and spiders symbolize death and rebirth. OK. Yeah, I guess a fire can be seen as both of those things. Go on. There is a way cool blurb about the superstitions of spiders here.

I believe the tarantula I saw is better known as Eurypelma californicum and what I didn't know about these beatsites: "Many also produce a hissing sound by rubbing their jaws, front legs, or palps against each other." Hmmm. Cool. The one I saw didn't hiss.

The other bizarre fact? Tarantulas have barbed, irritating hairs, called urticating hairs, that can be thrown by the back legs toward an enemy. These hairs can cause an allergic reaction in humans, being most serious if they get in the eyes. Whoa! Glad this guy/gal didn't throw any my way.

OK, back to the superstitions...

So is a black tarantula crossing my path the same sort of karmic vibe of a black cat crossing my path? Is a tarantula sighting, in fact, big black hairy bad luck? Everywhere I seem to read spiders are good luck except for tarantulas. They sort of don't really say that tarantulas are bad luck just that they aren't good. And most spider superstitions say the bigger the spider that you spot the more good luck you'll have....except if you spot a tarantula. Hmmm....this got me digging deeper. Just what does seeing a tarantula crossing your path mean?

As a totem spiders can bestow: creativity, balance, interconnectedness, industry, self-expression, camouflague, self-protection.

One of the more bizarre things related to tarantulas was this fact about "the St. Vitus' Dance, one name for the dancing epidemics which prevailed in Germany and other parts of Europe during the Middle Ages. These epidemics in general have been called tarantism because they were believed to be started by a tarantula bite; the name St. Vitus' Dance was given to a particular outbreak in Germany for it was to his shrine that the patients repaired for a cure." [from the Spiritual - Theosophy Dictionary on Viti Chorea Sancti]

So I guess the tarantula is a dichotomy of good and bad. Kind of how life here has been over the past month. After we rebuild the restaurant post-surviving a major wildfire, then being consumed by one-we hope that some good may come out of all this, although it's hard to see now.

But, I'm hampstering....like I do after all news of either impending or engulfing flames. Better get back to revisions.

Last night Joe and I toured the damage. Generators shed light on the restaurant. Basically 2/3 of the restaurant burned-most of the damage occurred in the kitchen/restroom areas. Damage assessment continues today. Heartbreaking. The gift shop and meeting rooms did not burn. I'm going to post here from a reader who commented early this morning and it about sums up how we all feel:

"Last paying customer
My family was the last party to pay for their meal. Our waiter quietly told us that we would have to soon evacuate, seconds before the maitre D yelled at everyone to get out. Later, we could see plumes of black smoke billowing over the trees from highway 1. Oh, the irony to see the cielo burn after surviving such a raging firestorm."

Took these photos on my way to The Big Sur Relief Benefit Auction yesterday. More Big Sur Fire photos here.





Officiating at the auction was Magnus Toren, the Executive Director of the Henry Millar library.

Alice, the owner of the The Ventana Gift Shop and Gallery, hosted the event at her art gallery in Carmel. Many in the community of Big Sur either donated time, food, talent or artwork to sell.

Joe and I purchased a copper etching by Hans Kaindl called “Friend Holding Friend” a beautiful piece that echoes what remains important during times of crisis.

Joe and I took a walk at Point Lobos State Park yesterday. Wonderful to hear the bark of the sea lions and watch the utter exhaustion of sleeping seals. Little by little trying to get back that “normal” feeling. Smoke is in the air at Ventana again today. Yesterday was clear and sunny. Restaurant should be open Saturday. Target date to open the Inn remains the first of August.

THIS JUST IN: [from www.surfire2008.org]:
“The opening is beginning. Tonight at 6:00 PM (Officially) Highway 1 will open from Palo Colorado Road to Coast Gallery - no restrictions, no mumbo jumbo.
Sunday, July 13 at 8:00 AM Highway 1 will be open clear through from Carmel to San Simeon.”



The statue of The Phoenix at Nepenthe means more today than it ever has. [a foggy photo]

This morning I got my cup of coffee at The Deli, the only place that has been open for breakfast in Big Sur since Tuesday when lots of residents came back to town. On the front steps was a guy, with long blonde hair, that I’ve seen every morning this week at The Deli. Today he said hi. He and a friend were playing the guitar. A couple newspapers lay open on the ground at their feet. His friend sang the news from a few articles, one from The Los Angeles Times and the other from The San Jose Mercury News.



The Basin Complex Fire, on our way to Fernwood last night, as it burned along Devils Peak.

Last night The Fernwood Bar and Restaurant re-opened. Joe and I went to show our support. We’ve had many good times here. Most people sat at the bar, the restaurant only had a few tables full. The limited menu last night included your choice of a burger, a veggie burger, or fish and chips for $7. Beers were $3.

Three firefighters fresh off of the line sat at the bar, two of them brothers, all from Oregon. Mark, the bartender [and chess king], kept the firemen’s glasses full. They had gotten to know some of the locals here and pledged to meet up for a beer at Fernwood when it re-opened. One firefighter clicked through pictures of the fire on a laptop. I talked to his brother for a little while.

I asked him how they make dozer lines during a firefight. He told me that a Dozer Boss walks ahead of the bulldozer. The Dozer Boss marks the dozer line and the operator follows his path. I asked him about hot shots, how the injured firefighter, a hot shot from Alaska, was doing. He said he thought she was 19 years old and that she wasn’t great. The firefighters had all signed a card to send to her while at their fire camp at Molera State Park.

He explained that there are levels of hot shots. There are the smoke jumpers, people who parachute out of planes close to the fire to dig and clear brush. There is helitac, people who repel out of helicopters to fight the fire at the fire line. Then there are hot shots who usually hike up to the fire line and spend up to eight days fighting the fire there, they sleep next to the fire line too. Helicopters usually drop them food.

Stopped by Nepenthe again last night. Much lighter turn out. Many people are recovering from the fires and getting back into their homes. Many others have missed work. All the businesses are looking forward to the opening of Highway One. One man showed us his videos of the fires. Another relayed his story of staying to protect a house that he had built. It was on the west side of Highway One. July 4th he said was the most memorable, watching the blaze descend the mountain behind Ventana. The fire roared and when it burned redwoods, the trees would explode due to the heated pitch inside. By July 5th the smoke and ash drove him out of Big Sur.

Click here for all fire photos.

After a pretty smoky night, Joe was out the door early to make sure the contractors were granted access into Big Sur at the northern road block about ten miles south of Carmel. Jaci, at the Big Sur Station MAF [Multi Agency Facility-a place that houses all of the information on the state parks in Big Sur], helped to facilitate the many passes we required for the contractors to gain entry tomorrow.

Quite a few challenges today. A big one was to get to the two wells that are down [out of 5 wells total] and assess their condition. Haven’t been able to because the area they are located in is very dangerous because of falling trees and hot spots. Joe and the Inn’s engineer, William, checked the wells out this afternoon and found quite a bit of destruction at the wells, melted pvc water lines and many trees with this ribbon wrapped around them and many more that had fallen. I don’t want to know when Joe and William go down there. I would be a hot mess until they got back.



Dustin, a firefighter from central Oregon.



Firemen worked hard today to get their equipment, gather, rollup and store the hundred fire hoses left from the firefight.



Firemen retrieving their hoses and pumps from the pool. As it turns out they didn't need to use the pool water to fight the fire. Our tanks were all drained, but they are filled now. Don't have potable water at the Inn just yet, but hot showers by tomorrow:)

I have such respect for the physical strength of the firefighters. This property takes a person’s breath away just walking the path from the lobby to the library. I couldn’t imagine what that was like during the fire with equipment, heat, smoke and ash.



A huge thank you to all the firefighters. They are truly amazing. This sign is located outside The Deli.



The Wedding Site



A view from The Wedding Site

These photos are for Dawn, from Texas, who wrote and told me she’d been married at Ventana four years ago, and for all former and future brides and grooms that will celebrate here at Ventana. The flames didn’t affect this side of the property and the Wedding site looks beautiful.

Big day today as the mail was delivered for the first time since the evacuation.

Most of us who have been through the fire now for a little over two weeks are getting really sick of sandwiches [all that’s been available to eat] and long for salads and veggies. Joe and I are going to sneak into Carmel for some tonight. Excited to eat vegetables? Yup.

Feel like I’ve smoked a pack today. Not great air quality and we are thinking about spending a few hours a day in Carmel just to escape the smoke for a while.

Thanks to all who feel like sharing their experiences at the Inn and Big Sur. Been wonderful to read about all the good memories and the good times people have had here.



Closing tonight’s post with a view of the scorched mountain from Cielo’s patio. You can see one bulldozed fire break that wasn’t able to contain the fire. There are three such breaks bulldozed into that mountain. I imagined what it must have been like to bulldoze that break. It is overwhelming to think that the person driving that bulldozer did so in thick smoke and ash, and needed an unwavering faith and keen instincts to get that job done. Yet again, I am amazed at how the firemen fought this fire.

It's quitin' time. Here's a little Wild Turkey for ya.



Click here for all fire posts.

Click here for all fire photos.

Leaving the plumes of the Gap fire behind on the road through San Marcos Pass I traveled up the 101 to Carmel and then down south to Big Sur. The first fire truck I spotted was in King City. The Santa Lucia mountains weren’t visible from Salinas.

Knowing there wouldn’t be any food in Big Sur, I stopped by the Safeway in Carmel on Rio Road and pulled up next to a white car splattered with ash. A sign on its door read “Fire Information.” After shopping for a few essentials–water, milk, cereal, a few bottles of wine [syrah and pinto noir], and some fruit–I walked up to a man with diagrams of the spread of the fire and learned more about what I was driving into. I met Rick Acosta. His nametag stated he was from Mt. Hood National Forest Service. Rick came down to California from Oregon and has spent the past few days as a liaison, explaining the fire’s movements to people living in Big Sur and Carmel. Mr. Acosta explained that The Ventana Inn is currently under an Advisory Evacuation, which means that all non-essential personal should not be in the area because of hot spots that still burn on the east side of Highway One.

I drove up to the road block on Highway One and since Joe had put my name on the list I was allowed through the check point. Only residents are able to access Big Sur at this time.



Once through the road block, fog shrouded the Point Sur lighthouse and took my breath away, so I tried to photograph it. It was as if a maritime ghost decided to swallow the lighthouse whole. Further down the road I saw the grounded helicopters that I had photographed in the air so many times over the past few weeks. Many times flying right over our room at the Inn.



Nearing Ventana, with every twist of Highway One I realized just how lucky we are to be here still renovating, not rebuilding. All the while on the drive into Big Sur hand-painted notes of thanks sat propped up against mailboxes and barbed wire fences. Some were brushed letters some were spray painted, thanking the firefighters.



As I drove up to The Ventana Inn The General Manager of the Inn, Johnathon Farrington said, “Welcome Home.”

Joe was spraying a walkway with water when I walked up to our room. He wanted to get rid of the ash for me. We walked out across a bulldozed road to the fireline just in back of The Cottage, our home for many weeks. Two small fawns and their mother were making their way across the doser line at the same time. They didn’t run. We looked at the fire’s fury while the deer grazed. They seemed happy to have company. It was sweet to have the deer so close, not fearful of us in the least.

Joe and I were on the way to the community meeting tonight when we ran into County Supervisor Dave Potter walking around The Ventana Inn with his assistant Kathleen. He asked how we felt being up here alone at this time and was very interested in the renovation of the property.



Concerns at tonight’s community meeting ranged from getting people into the area who work here but don’t have a Big Sur ID [or speak English] to the monitoring of hot spots overnight. Officials at the meeting urged returning residents to keep to 30 mph on Highway One in order to avoid possible collisions with bulldozers or fallen trees, called widow-makers. Heard that the fire was loud from eyewitnesses. When the flames took over the redwoods, the trees exploded.

Latest technology is being used to spot the hot spots. This is the photo that NASA took of the Basin Complex Fire.



The pub was open for business and we had fun sharing stories with the folks who stopped by. While there, I learned that The Coastlands, a housing development to the south of The Ventana Inn, has no water because their water lines melted in the fire.



That's Craig playing the guitar.

UPDATES: Highway One will be open in both directions to residents.

It's hard to describe how I felt today.....but this sums it up pretty well....

Escape Route at The Ventana Inn
Before the fire crews came in to fight this fire they figured out their areas of safe refuge. Then, they marked their escape route with this tape so if the smoke or fire endanger their lives they are able to get out quickly. This escape route tape is wrapped around a tree across the path from The Ventana Inn’s Valley House.



Photo of firefighting helicopter
The firefight continues today this photo taken North of the Point Sur Lighthouse.



PG&E Restoring Power at the entrance to The Ventana Inn



Clean up at Cielo

Among the concerns for The Inn is the removal of the Thermo gel spray from the buildings, proving difficult at the moment. Biggest threat at the Inn other than a change in the weather? Falling trees. The upper campground’s burned trees could fall at any time. Very dangerous down there. Difficult to repair the fresh water collection reservoirs that were damaged in the firefight until the trees are abated.

Firefighters continue to be courteous and very helpful. Firefighters from Idaho have been on site helping with the removal of the brush that got cleared away during the firefight. The firefighters are also using chain saws to cut down trees in the Upper Campground.



Fighting fire on Highway One-this photo taken north of Fernwood. The striped tape indicates trees that might fall. This tape is seen in and around Big Sur today.



Ash on flowers
Because you know I’m The Flower Lady.

Click here to see pictures of The Ventana Inn before the fire.



This is a picture of the fire's aftermath just below The Cottage. We think [and hope] we are through the worst. There are still some hot spots in the campground but the general feeling among the firefighters today is that the danger has passed for Ventana. Spotters situated on the property remain vigilant but the battalions of firemen that had once surrounded the property have moved on down the road.

All fire photos here.

Joe stayed at the Mission Inn again last night, our refuge in Carmel. Firefighters stayed there too.

Flames flickered on the east side of Highway One around The Fernwood Resort on the desolate drive to the Inn this morning. The flames haven’t jumped the highway. The ashy accumulation on the pavement and trees lent an eerie vibe to the usually tranquil drive up the hill to Ventana's lobby. The ashen landscape and gel-coated buildings gave the resort an otherwordly feel. The fire retardant gel looked like a thin coating of day old whipped cream, foamy and dried up, kind of blotchy in places on the redwood siding.



A deer below The Cottage



The Ventana Inn Lobby



The Ventana Inn Upper Campground

Joe says Ventana is in “very good shape.” And the smoke has cleared a bit since Wednesday.

Still no structures lost. In a couple of places the fire burned right up to the buildings. The brush was cleared but not destroyed. Smoke damage is severe to the interior of the buildings.

No update yet as when we can return to the Inn for repairs. Maybe in a week to do some water source recovery. Lots of clean up to do. But so far, we have been spared any great loss.

Good news, no buildings lost at The Ventana Inn. Came very close, and firefighters are still battling to save it. Winds have died down. Campground burned. Water main broken and none of the water wells work at the moment. Plants/trees around the buildings were removed for fire protection. Foam covers the buildings. Big problem is smoke damage so far.

We keep hoping that we'll continue to hear good news about the Inn today, we are taking it hour by hour. Joe goes back up on Sunday to assess the damage.

Had a great time catching up with a good friend this morning.

Happy 4th!!!!! Woohooo! Have a WONDERFUL, relaxing weekend! Here’s to good friends, great bbq and good war movies.

Still no buildings lost at the Ventana Inn. Firefighters continue to battle the blaze at the Inn today. Updated photos of the fire here. Now that we’ve had a good night’s sleep at home and the first of the smoke-scented clothes are in the wash, I’ve had a little time to reflect on some of the funny things that have happened over the past few days.

When I’m nervous/anxious I engage in the sport of hampstering, activities that neither improve my plight nor bring me closer to resolving my situation yet keep me distracted, much like a hampster. I began hampstering on Wednesday night, the night of the evacuation. I did things like flossing my teeth, twice. I rubbed lotion all over my body, every inch, making sure I didn’t miss a spot [wish I could say I do the same with sunscreen, but alas, I’m doomed to be called “spot” for the rest of my life for the artwork I create every summer “sunscreen on and not-on skin” my favorite medium]. And then came the weirdest part. I put on my pajamas. As I pulled them over my face I smelled the smoke. I took a deep breath. I took another breath. I wanted to write down exactly what I smelled. Exactly. What. I. Smelled. I didn’t want to forget the smell, like I ever could. But I wanted to describe it fully. I kept whiffing and writing like I was a lunatic. I finally boiled it down to a couple sentences and then, only then, did I collapse on the comfy Marriott bed.

When Joe was sick this week he wasn’t hungry for anything. So I set out in search of soup on the smoky almost deserted night that was last Monday. One restaurant had ginger carrot. Hmmm. Another restaurant had curried lentil. Really? Really? Can’t we just get a simple soup for a guy who isn’t feeling well? Our fave soup, most amazing chicken soup on the planet, wasn’t an option as the Bakery and many restaurants closed due to the fire. People stood on the porch of the Bakery to get a better view of the flames and the water-dropping helicopters. In the spirit of the birth of our country, and getting poor Joe a descent soup, I soldiered on. The Roadhouse had tortilla soup, just right. So Goldilocks, or should I say amber-shimmer locks went back to the Inn and Joe had the soup that helped get him feel a little bit better.

About the last thing we feel like doing is smelling any more smoke. But, Joe's picking up a few steaks tonight and we will prolly go check out the local fireworks up on a hill somewhere close by.

First the facts. No buildings at Ventana lost, campgrounds have burned as have three houses north of the Coast Road. Firefighters have been battling to save the Inn all day, so far successfully. Will be battling all night. Updates as they become available here.

We are home. But I'm questioning what home even means at this point. Home is a state of mind, it's people, friends, memories–not a structure, not a building. Of course, we love our home in So Cal and seek it as a refuge today. But I am essentially between worlds, between homes, having parked part of our hearts here while the rest of our hearts long to be up north, with the folks at the shelter and our friends, currently evacuated and waiting word on the Inn.

We woke to Joe and Oso on the cover of the San Jose Mercury newspaper today and many, many calls from friends and folks Joe works with wondering how we are. Very surreal to see your husband and dog on the cover of the newspaper in the Starbucks I stopped at on the side of the road on the way home.

Tonight is a big night for the Inn and all who love her. We continue to keep the safety of the firefighters foremost in our thoughts.

Sometimes when it rains it pours then, lightening strikes.

But that’s ok. The fun and fantastic are born of these situations too.

Like this morning’s breakfast.







And last night when everyone pitched in to put on an instant dinner for 50 + firefighters and prepare for a bigger breakfast this morning. Running out of food, and with most staff evacuated, this was no easy task.





Every Californian has a fire story just like every Angelino living in Los Angeles during the riots has their LA Riot story. Up until now, my fire story was about The Green Meadows Fire of 1996. But The Gallery Fire in Big Sur might trump that one. In the case of The Gallery Fire, the question everyone is asking each other here is “Where were you when the lightening struck?”

Responses to my partial and full requests trickled in while I was on the road. Some good news. Rejections are always the hardest. But, at least I’m climbing the rejection pyramid and getting some personalized great feedback like, “…your beginning was very creative and lyrical and I think you have a solid plot going forward.” Gold. And “…your work is interesting and well-written.” Encouraging. And most have requested partial or full mms. So that’s great.

I don’t know whether it’s being smoked out of The Ventana Inn and seeking refuge in the sunny confines of the Carmel Public Library this morning, or whether it’s the process of putting myself out in the world literarily, but today I’m a little distracted, restless, not quite focused on the projects at hand. And today I am reminded of how I felt during the LA Riots when we would seek refuge in Glendale and Pasadena because Echo Park was under Marshall Law. It seems so otherwordly here in Carmel. Where there is no smoke. Where people go to the library and walk their dogs and everything is normal when things are so not-normal close by.

I think I’ll try and dive into a little fantasy this afternoon. Something to take me away from fire, people at the Inn losing their homes, smoke, figuring out where Joe and I might sleep tonight, stocking provisions and feeling guilty when I eat the food at the Inn because the firefighters need it more.



The quail and their babies huddled around the room we stayed in yesterday and the deer swung by too. I told them that everything would be OK. And I’m sure it will, very soon.