In all the years I’ve lived in California (and it’s been many), I have never seen this kind of smoke. Even the Oakland Hills fire of 1991 didn’t have this kind of atmospheric impact. The picture above is pretty much what the sun looked like today, all day, every day this week. Normally, we don’t see that kind of color except right at sunset. As far as I can tell, the closest fire is about 50-60 miles away.  It’s very strange to wake up in the morning and smell smoke like this. Today none of the local geography was visible from our house, not even the highest point in the Bay Area, nearby Mt. Diablo.

There are currently just over 1,000 wildfires burning, mostly in Northern California, of which 36 are considered major fires. About 159,000 acres have burned or are burning. The situation exploded last weekend, with 512 lightning strikes happening during mostly dry storms.

Here are some information resources if you’re interested:

Google’s wildfire map

California Dept of Forestry: wildfire information page

Governor’s Office of Emergency Services

As a guy whose parentage is half-Filipino, I could hardly believe my eyes and ears when I caught this latest insulting gaffe from the Idiot-in-Chief.

The president of the Philippines, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, was in Washington on my birthday (Tuesday) for a visit that unfortunately included a trip to the White House. Never mind that typhoon damage and the ferry disaster loom large on Filipino minds: GW had to make cute about a Filipino-American who works on the kitchen staff at the White House.

PRESIDENT BUSH: Madam President, it is a pleasure to welcome you back to the Oval Office. We have just had a very constructive dialogue. First, I want to tell you how proud I am to be the President of a nation that — in which there’s a lot of Philippine-Americans. They love America and they love their heritage. And I reminded the President that I am reminded of the great talent of the — of our Philippine-Americans when I eat dinner at the White House. (Laughter.)

 

PRESIDENT ARROYO: Yes.

 

PRESIDENT BUSH: And the chef is a great person and a really good cook, by the way, Madam President.

 

PRESIDENT ARROYO: Thank you.

SHEESH!!! What a jerk…

YouTube video

Huffington Post

Now this is something you don’t see every day and certainly not something that would happen here in drought-threatened California. This week, the waterfalls in New York City were turned on. A public art installation by Olafur Eliasson, there are four humongous man-made waterfalls: underneath the Brooklyn Bridge, above the Manhattan Bridge at Pier 35, between Piers 4 and 5 in Brooklyn, and on Governor’s Island. They’ll be dripping away until this fall.

Above is an early video of the Brooklyn Bridge running. Below are pictures taken during a test run by NY Times photographer Vincent Larforet:

It’s an ideal time to take a Circle Line tour.

Video via Gothamist

Pictures and article at the New York Times

A little learning each day is good thing, right? Bookmark this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random

You’ll get a random article from Wikipedia.

Today, I was relieved of my ignorance of Drumcree, in County Westmeath, Ireland.  Also, the entertaining etymology of thagomizer, which describes the arrangement of spikes on a stegosaurus’ tail.

(p.s. - There’s also a “random article” link on the left side of every Wikipedia page.)

In other developments today, the newest version of my favorite web browser, Firefox, is being set loose at 10am. Why do I like it? Pretty much all of the usual reasons, it’s faster, safer and a whole lot more fun. With all the extensions and themes out there, the most used piece of software on your computer can also be the most you.

     Firefox 3 download

Today is the first full day of same-sex marriages here in California. It’s a historic day, carrying great cultural significance. It’s controversial for some small-hearted souls and welcome for the rest of us.

With all the ruckus, it’s easy to forget how touchingly romantic this day is  for couples tying the knot, the unleashed joy in all the days to come.

It’s also worth noting that marriage is not the only path to happiness. For decades, we have nurtured our relationships despite society’s indifference and institutionalized prejudice. And for some, legal legitimacy is not a terribly important goal in life.

Still, it’s definitely day to celebrate and to remember. There might be a Lesbian/Gay/Bi Pride Parade happening near you this month. This year, chances are they’re going to be transformed into the largest wedding receptions ever seen. How about joining the party?

(For those with long memories, the photo above was taken at the site of the Castro’s formerly boisterous bawdy Victorian, the Jaguar.)

        Google’s list of Pride Parades