Smoke & Magic

As some of you know, California is only about two inches away from Hell. Yes, you read that right. For the past years, every summer, from June to November, the valley is blanketed by orange air and the smell of roasting everything-that-lives-on-the-mountain. Today is the worst. The AQI is at 180, unhealthy, and I'm wondering what the long-term effects of breathing this air full of toxins will have on us all. Today's blanket of orange smoke has been brought to you by a lovely, out-of-control backburn in Miramonte. Well, technically not out of control fire-wise, but definitely an issue with wind direction. The wind is blowing this crap straight into the valley, and like a bowl of soup, it just holds there until it's blown out. We just changed the air filters on the AC a couple of days ago, something we do often when the fires hit, and the filters, just six weeks old, were blanketed with ash. The cars in the driveway are blanketed with ash, as are the plants in the garden, the shed, the patio table, and chairs. Ash everywhere. It's apocalyptic. I thank the ancestors every day that I have a home to protect me from this, and I worry for those who do not. I miss early fall with its manic weather, hot today, cold tomorrow, blue skies, rustling breezes, falling leaves, misty mornings. All there is now is orange. 

Olive has turned out beautifully. She has spent a considerable amount of time jumping from the magnetic stirrer to the ultrasonic in an effort to get her fully and completely done in time for the Halloween season. Viridescent has sat upon the magnetic stirrer for days now, and it goes into the ultrasonic today for intermittent zapping. I had to make a few adjustments (vetiver co-distilled with rose Edward, and my own distillation of Kupang santalum album oil) as V wasn't cooperating one little bit. I'm hoping the zapping will remedy that, put a little material dynamics magic into the mix.