I Smell Smoke

Karma -- Divine Intervention -- Pure Ass Luck. Pick which ever fits your life philosophy more and keep it in mind as I tell you a little story.

I'm made several mentions about how dry it has been here in the Texas Panhandle. heck I got excited about 3/10 on an inch of moisture over a two day period. But even with that tiny bit of rain the ground at my house was covered with dry, brittle buffalo, the mesquite trees were nothing more than kindling with roots, and the whole canyon where I live was a tinderbox.

Then last night the skies opened up and unleashed a downpour like we haven't had in at least a year. Nearly two inches of rain fell overnight. Granted we had high winds, a bit of hail and lots of thunder and lightning but we finally got the good soaking we needed.

And it couldn't have come at a better time. here's where the karma,/divine intervention/pure ass luck comes in.

This morning I woke to the sound of sirens and that is not a common sound out in the boonies where I live. I was a bit groggy after a night filled with puppy whines and trips out the the yard at dark thirty so it took a while for me to realize the sirens were close. REAL CLOSE!

I was getting dressed to investigate when my wife yelled, "There's huge fire right behind the house!"

I'm not a morning person but nothing gets the lead out like the a screaming wife yelling about a fire.

I made my way out through the mud and standing water in my yard. The smell of fire hung in the air.

There about a seventy yards away was a huge ball of flame. Not on my property but the one adjacent to the back of my three acres. The property HAD two structures. A large four bedroom house and a smaller half underground dwelling that was the original home on the site. The smaller structure had flames a good thirty feet into the air though they didn't last long as the firemen extinguished the blaze.

All in all the excitement didn't last long, but had we not had that rain the fire would have spread quickly and who knows what would have happened. Here's another tidbit that could be karma at work.

One of my other neighbors believes the resident at the burned location is none other than our neighborhood gas thief. I have no clue if this is true but it does make one stop and think.

*************************
Speaking of fires, y'all all need to pop over to Christine Eldin's new blog, Book Roast. The blog is going to be happening place where readers will have a chance to interact and ask published authors questions,s o if you are a reader, a writers, or just a curious blogger stop by this next week and check it out. And while you are blog hopping, check out Chris's regular blog here.

****************

In the comments of my last post fellow blogger Packsaddle wrote a little ode in regards to the new puppy. I pasted it here in case you missed it in the comments. His words certainly made me smile

Hi my name is Sharky
But y'all can just call me Shark
I would say Hi back to you
But I don't know how to bark
I'd like to thank the Erwin family
For saving me from an untimely death
I will always remember their kindness
Every time I take a breath
I really hope the boys like me
I will learn to fetch, heel, and roll
And I hope Uncle Travis doesn't get mad
When I pee on his fishing pole
Yes I'll do some bad things
Like digging under the fence barrier
I just hope they don't get any crazy ideas
Like trading me for a freakin' Terrier.
I'm ready for a life of fun
But it's important that we all agree
There will never be mention of the word
C-A-S-T-R-A-T-E

Stop by his blog and give him kudos for his mad poetry skills.