My heart goes out to those poor people who've lost everything. The reason I bring this up is that all air traffic to SoCal has been stopped or delayed from the Bay Area and elsewhere until they get a handle on the fires burning out of control down there. Is this situation going to affect the Quakes trip down to Carson for the match on the 1st. and will they have to take the stinky bus all the way there instead of fly? Either way this is a terrible thing for those folks to deal with, I know first hand. Let's hope everything gets better for them in a big hurry.
I woke up yesterday morning, the sun was an orange red, the sky was yellow, and my throat was scratched. There was ash all over the kitchen counters and floor. And I live by the beach. Hardly anyone is at work or school; the few people on the streets are walking around with masks on. It's like the entire city has just stopped in its tracks, waiting for this to end and clinging to the hope that the worst is over. Everyone is feeling it down here, from those with sore throats, to those who won't get to see Seau return to San Diego, to those who've lost homes. Fortunately, all the family I have in the closest areas are OK (knock on wood) but a friend of mine has co-workers who live in Scripps Ranch and one of them lost everything. I guess I'm fortunate to just have a sore throat and to be stuck indoors with the windows shut. At least I have windows. Anyway, thanks to all who've expressed their concern. And, although if you can't it's not a big deal, if you can in anyway donate something to the Red Cross, that would be wonderful as well. Thanks. PS. The news is saying that some of the bigger fires won't be considered contained until the 30th (!!) Which may or may not impact the Earthquakes traveling.
The flights haven't ended entirely - just be prepared for hassles. Los Angeles is getting a light shower of ash - but I drove out to San Bernardino, where my mom still lives, to make sure she was ok. It's awful. The smoke blots out the sun, but everything glows a dull red from the light of the fires. It's hot and unbelievably gusty (you're fighting your car's steering to stay on the highway), hard to breathe, with bits of charred debris and ash everywhere. It's worse than snow - most snow sticks to the ground, ash just keeps floating at the lightest puff until you inhale it. Try to brush it off your clothes, it just smears like grey baby powder. Incidently, the fires in Crestline and San Berdo aren't far from Landon Donovan's home town of Redlands. I believe he still has family there - hope they're ok - and that they've got the Landon baby pictures all packed, should they need to evacuate.
Same here, guys. My thoughts and prayers go out to those fighting the fires, as well as to those who have been victimised by the fires. I said it on another thread, but it bears repeating that these fires, even from as far away as I am, do take on a personal note. My brother, in his duty as a forest ranger, has been trained to fight fires, and every time he goes out, I think about him and fear for his safety. On this ocassion, I'm sure he's been called up into reserve duty, although I don't know that for certain. As for this weekend's playoff game, might there be other possibilities as well? Perhaps moving the game to a more neutral site, such as somewhere between Fresno and L.A., or perhaps Portland? Or even flopping the home games, putting this weekend's game at Spartan and the second-leg game at the HDC? Just brainstorming ideas and possibilities here-- wondering if you guys had any other thoughts or ideas...
I was one of those unfortunate souls who got stuck in the San Jose airport yesterday, trying in vain to fly back to Burbank. I was finally able to fly out this morning. The scene from above, as we flew past Simi Valley was eerie, to say the least. Massive billows of smoke could be seen for miles. I am in my office in Thousand Oaks (Ventura County) and I can still smell the smoke. Walk outdoors and it seems like its snowing, only instead of snowflakes, its ashes falling from above. The Simi Valley fire is threatening Chatsworth, mere miles from my home in Winnetka. I really hope these fires get under control soon. Cooler weather mid-week will hopefully help. We need some rain!
And for the Santa Ana winds not to be such an influence, either. That could be as much of a factor as anything else, certainly. We'd be glad to send you some of the rain here, but we're in the midst of a drought here ourselves.
after i read this i stopped reading the rest.."My heart goes out to those poor people who've lost everything". most if not all that "lost eveything" are rich fukcs that have insurence etc... i would be too worried about them...
Wow, you're a jackass. Insurance may provide some cash but it does not replace the unique, irreplacable things that mean a lot to the people. And there are surely poor people who are suffering from these fires who don't have insurance, should we not attempt to feel sympathy for them as well? This isn't like the Malibu Hills fires where celebrity homes were being destroyed, and some losers were starting up collections for them. These are real people, who are losing their homes, maybe their pets, and in a few cases, their lives. In summary, eat me.
It's one of those "let's set aside our differences" issues and just hope this disaster quells soon. I would hate to see a series delayed because of this. Mostly, I hope everyone down in SoCal pulls through this. All the best.
We played a match in Redlands on Saturday. It was almost cancelled because of the air quality (or lack thereof). At one point, just barely past noon, the smoke from the fires blotted out the sun completely.
I think it's been said, but it needs to be said again.... You're a heartless, materialistic bastard. What was lost was so much more than tangible items.
I wouldn't be too suprised if the game is moved away from the HDC. Rumor had it that MNF was to be played there instead of San Diego but air quality in Carson was also too poor. All the better for us.
Impaled, here's to hoping you die a horrible painful slow death you heartless fvck. I live in Simi Valley and stayed at my girfriend's house Saturday night. Sunday morning we had a knock on the door from the neighbor at 5AM because the fire had burned down to within about 300 yards of her street. Fortunately, only one house was damaged in that area. I never thought I would experience a war zone, but since Sunday morning my small town and Ventura County overall has resembled one.
My thoughts and prayers are definitely with those in Socal, those killed by the fire and those who have lost so much. This is a terrible time for all of them down there. sjqf, I hope you receive news soo nthat your grandma is okay. As for the game on 11/1, if it were to be moved, where are possible relocations?
thx and the same to you. how the fukc can you compare a fire with a warzone? are you an idiot? this just shows that you havent experienced sh!t in your measly life!
      The fact that most poeple aren't like that clearly shows that God does exist...
I'm not big on it, but sometimes you run into people on these boards that the Ignore option was created for and Impaled is a perfect example. Unfortunately, though I used the option on him some time ago, either the BS crashes or the premium membership deal have allowed his posts to raise their ugly heads again. This is as good as Impaled's posts get, folks. Ignore if you can...
I'll second that. This kind of thing can happen just about anywhere in California (and has). I am praying for rain (or at least less wind, cooler temperatures and some humidity).
No, but he proves that evil does exist and good people need to fight it to prevent hell on earth. Imagine California with 35 million Impaleds.