"Evacuate - Get Out Now!"

Those were the chilling words I heard yesterday when a policeman came knocking on my door!!!!!! After just telling you about the wildfires raging around here yesterday,  you still never think it's going to happen to you. I actually saw flashing lights in the cul-de-sac first and was just getting up to 'investigate' when I saw a policeman coming to my front door. "You need to evacuate now, there's a structure fire right behind you" he said. I didn't hesitate, I went calmly up stairs, grabbed the fire safe we have all our documents in, got Boo's leash and my purse and got in my van and pulled out of the garage. The fact that I couldn't smell smoke, or hear sirens was probably what helped keep me a little calm, although I must admit I was still shaking a little.

It hadn't really sunk in what the policeman said, the 'structure' part that is, so for some reason I thought the fire was something to do with construction (they're still building in our neighborhood, but not directly behind us), whatever it was, I did as I was told and got out of there. Now the question "where to go?"  I was about to leave the house in a little while to take Boo to the groomers, so my plan of action was, take him there as planned (just an hour earlyr) and see if they would take him, then go and get Kristen from school (wasn't sure when we would be allowed back in the neighborhood, and I just wanted her with me) then call Jason. Just as I was leaving Petsmart, Cheryl (my neighbor) called my cell, she was at home and the fire she explained was in the house right behind me!! It was out by this time, so it was safe to go back home. I decided to leave Kristen in school and just headed home.   This is the house that sits right behind me  . . . . .

and this is what I saw when I got home (from upstairs in my game room) . . . . 

 :-(

Devastating!!!  and SO sad. News is that the owners weren't home and a neighbor had called the fire department, and last night Cheryl had been told that all the pets had perished! :-(  This morning though, I've seen on a local newspaper Facebook page that the pets got out? I am SO hoping that is the case.  The cause is possibly a dryer (so the FB page said). It's so hard to think this can happen to any one of us, any day?  A few months ago the house just across from our cul-de-sac was on fire when it was hit by lightening (that was probably the last time we had rain here too, it was a really bad storm that night). The couple living there have had to move out for at least 6mths, because the house was 'fried'! All the wiring in the walls had to be replaced. The whole roof was taken off and replaced too, they still aren't back home in it. We can see the workman are still there every day, removing sheet rock etc.

Makes you realize that we shouldn't take anything for granted, every day is a GIFT.