Facing evacuation

k0k0peli

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I posted an earlier version of this a couple hours ago on Mandolin Cafe -- it applies here too.

The Amador-Calaveras Butte fire (see here), California's worst of the year, is now burning within seven miles from my home. Most of its spread is in another direction but evacuation is already being recommended only half a mile away. We had no power for two days; juice was restored only last night. I am not sure how long we can or want to remain. As soon as we receive a warning, we're outta here!

We spent yesterday gathering our most precious and irreplaceable possessions and loading them into our two SUV's. (We're on a dirt road in a remote mountain community.) That was a tough call as we have a museum-quality collection of ethnic crafts, a huge library, and of course a mass of musical instruments. And memories.

Ah, the instruments -- they're the point of this post. Which did I decide were "most precious and irreplaceable" ?? (Also the easiest to grab!)

* The bag of harmonicas and a handful of hand-carved fipple flutes.
* My two pro-quality guitars, an Ibanez Performance and an Ovation 12-string.
* An ancient Martin tiple; the Kala and Alvarez tenor 'ukes my wife and I gave each other; my cheap but lovely Harmonia concert 'uke.
* The cheap Harmonia mandola because it's not *too* big and a better mandola is still in my future.
* Grandpa's banjo-mandolin; my crafted KE Coleman mandolin; the old Lunacharsky mando I glued together and detuned for blues -- the inheritance, the costliest, and the funkiest. (The Rogue, Kay, and Harmonia mandos are Left Behind.)

What else are Left Behind? All the electric axes and musical electronics; they're all easily replaceable or just too big. Two dulcimers; two Cumbus o'uds (well, I might pack those, too); Orlando 5-string banjo; cheap Chinese-made 'ukes and Puerto Rican cuatro; Arte et Lutherie and Martin Backpacker guitars; and I don't know if I can load the old Varsity banjo-'uke. All the percussion. All the books, CDs, DVDs, records. Most of the paintings and pottery and weavings. Almost all cameras and lenses and other photo gear. Most of what we've accumulated over seven decades.

We have already decided that if our mountain house burns we will buy a motorhome and go nomad. But we would rather not.

My thanks in advance for expressions of concern. I'll ask: If YOU received an evacuation recommendation or order, what would you grab? Suppose your lead time was not measure in days, but in hours, or minutes? Yes, our instruments are literally "expensive kindling with strings" and none of them are worth a life. What would you choose?

An hour before noon now. The sky is dark and smoky. Ash fall is heavy. At least we have power again so we can run the AC and filter the air a bit. If the word comes, we can be one in ten minutes or less, heading uphill, away from the fire, to take refuge in Reno NV. But I hope my next message comes from right here. C'ya!

UPDATE: Still okay so far. Winds are favorable now but will be rather UN-favorable this afternoon. We expect we have time to pack a few more things and put the place in order but we might have only an hour's notice after the winds shift. The sky is awful. We fortunately have no pets or nearby young or elderly kin to round up. The closest relatives were safely away before the fire started; the next closest have a big house they've tried unsuccessfully to sell -- they'd be just as happy to see it burn down.

Whatever hapens, we are fortunate. Cheers!
 
Oh, my, I cannot even imagine. Many thoughts and prayers heading your way this afternoon.

What would I grab? My dog and two cats, first of all. Uke-wise, my LFdM, Griffin, Boat Paddle concert, the lowly-but-so-easy-to-play-and-no-longer-made Takamine, and the Mya-Moes.

Please send us good news soon.

Thinking of you.
 
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Stay safe! Most stuff can be replaced, lives can't.
 
Good luck to you. Wildfires are especially scary. I lost a property in Placerville (not far from you) some years ago. We also had to evacuate from a fire in Florida once. In fact, no matter where Ive been it seems we've evacuated more times that I care to remember, mostly due to hurricanes. Maybe because of this I've always been a big fan of downsizing and eliminating a lot of useless stuff in my life. It might be something to think about in the future. It'll get you ready for the motor home, which BTW sounds awesome. Good luck, we'll be praying for all of you threatened by the fires.
 
Thank you for sharing this, and hope all is well.

Our family has had a similar experience. Our home burned to the ground in 1994. I was not at home at the time, but my husband was. He remembers investigating smoke around 11:30 am, and that was it - to this day he does not remember getting out of the house. The structure burned in 15 minutes. Some items in one bedroom were salvaged, but my dad's guitar from Mexico (which I learned to play guitar on) was lost. More important to us was that my 5 year old son was supposed to be home that day, but I took him in with me at the last minute and he was at the YMCA drop off day care. So, the moral from this is DON"T waste time with your collection. Sometimes there is no time. I regret losing my dad's guitar, but I would have regretted my husband trying to save it and dying in the process even more.
 
Here's hoping you don't have to evacuate. I can't imagine what it would be like to be in your situation.

If I may make a suggestion, you might want to walk around the house and take pictures of everything you can think of that you would add to an insurance inventory. Also, if you haven't already, computers, hard drives, photo albums, wedding videos, important papers, heirlooms, artwork, medicines, etc... should already be packed and ready to go.

Stay safe.

Scooter
 
Update: Still here. No call yet. Based on nearby notices, we'll probably have at least an hour warning, but we can be out and rolling in three minutes if necessary -- that includes the eighteen seconds needed to unplug and stash the stack of hard disks. Yes, we've photo'd the house. Yes, everything not-last-second is stowed, or will be before the winds shift. Yes, we know all this stuff is mere STUFF and not worth going in harm's way for. Yes, we're stressed. But we're glad to have as much warning and prep time as we do. We have each other -- and if necessary, we can move into our kids' guest house in San Francisco. ;) Then we'd only have to worry about earthquakes, urban gangs, and high prices. No hu-hu.
 
I went through the same thing many years ago in California. They said my house had burned, but when I went back, it was still there. I hope you are as fortunate! Just don't wait too long to get out.
 
I would grab all I have - my Mainland red cedar concert and Seagull folk guitar. And I would be glad I don't have to choose what to leave behind.

All the best to you and all those affected!
 
Praying for your safety and for the safety of your home.

I would grab my cat, my computer, my Mainland Mango uke, my ordination to ministry certificate and my Master of Divinity degree. If I had enough time, I'd grab my classical flute, two Native American flutes and a couple of paintings that aren't valuable but ones I love.

As I sit here thinking, I realize there isn't that much that I would be scrabbling to save. I am once again reminded of how much useless clutter I have and how much I need to get rid of. Makes you think about what is really important in your life.
 
Wishing you safety!!!
 
UPDATE (hopefully today's last): Winds and clouds have been favorable as the fire isn't approaching closely but that same weather is lousy for breathing. The clouds kept the fire from burning hot and clean and trapped its smoke in a thick, heavy layer. I was ready to pull us out in early afternoon but there is really no accessible place with better air. We were fagged from exertion and stress. We are keeping a close eye on conditions and will figure out in the morning just if and where to go. At least we'll be rested for a long drive.

Ah, the instruments. All the keepers are safely packed in a sealed SUV. I could not leave the 1925 Varsity banjo-'uke behind, nor the 1995 Martin Backpacker guitar -- too many memories, and they don't make'em like that anymore, and I just cannot consign ANYTHING with the Martin name to the tinder heap. The Cumbus o'uds will be Left Behind; there are more where they came from! We have 34 stringed instruments; just twelve will go with us. Those we ARE taking will be subjected to some stress as temps go above 90f and relative humidity stays below 25%. Too bad I can't leave a vaporizer in the car. Or a couple of cut pineapples. ;)

All in all, we are not quite so panicked as earlier. But we can still be gone in five minutes.
 
That is good news! As for the humidity, can you put a bucket of water in the car so the evaporation will at least provide some moisture? Not sure how much it would help, but it is a thought.

If you could put a humidifier and run a cord to it that might be the best bet.

Hang in there... still praying for you.

John
 
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