The Old Folks Home

[ShrekDawg]

Good morning, KDOGG.

trumpeting, that is a beautiful picture. I used to love going to see my parents in KY in the fall, when all the trees would change colors. That doesn't happen in this part of Florida.

I don’t think I could stand not having the trees change. I love it too much haha

 

[microchick]

No fall color here yet. Should start seeing some after the weekend when we have our fist frost.

Lots of deep golds and yellows but no bright reds. I remember walking to the post office in IL. Th PO there had red maples planted along the sidewalk and in fall when you walked under them everything was colored red on sunny days. The sun would reflect the color of the leaves on anything that was near it. Quite a stunning effect.

I've been reading about the PG&E black outs and talking to DH about it. He pointed out the fact that here the power company spends time and effort to clear away underbrush and tree growth from under and around their power lines here. Both rural and in the towns. They run a flail that pretty well pulverizes vegetation in any form from under the power lines. This past spring they went down our road and on the sided sporting the heaviest tree growth, they ran a huge vertical saw that neatly cut through the tree overgrowth like a knife through bread leaving a straight line margin where the trees ended and the undergrowth began. Later they flailed . They do this religiously. The railways spray for ground growth so sparks from the rails won't start fires.

We still have the occasional brush fires in our area but nothing on the scale that CA has and yes, we have an abundance of timber and prairie here that could go up like a tinder box if given the opportunity. Our summers here can be hotter than Hades and dry as news paper. They put out red flag warnings and people respect them. One year they even banned fireworks due to the dryness.

What I'm saying is why isn't PG&E doing the same maintenance on their lines that others or do they do this maintenance and still have problems? It reads as though they are cutting people's power because of the fear that one of their lines 'MIGHT' start a fire?

I know you have the Santa Anna's out there that raise cane, more of a reason to keep things like over growth under control. We don't have Santa Anna's but we do have some pretty gusty winds.If the environmentalists are involved, well, they shouldn't be. Peoples lives hold precedence.

If I'm reading this wrong, please enlighten me. Around here people just sort of snicker at the way everything is so heavily regulated our there, it's a different world entirely from the way it is here.

I really feel for the people out there who are having to suffer through this. There has to be a better way.

 

[ronott1]

I do know up here we have fire teams burning off underbrush and felling bad trees they are selling trees to the small mills to clear some they have a budget just like anything else they have been doing what was stopped when they killed logging

We cannot do that here at this time of the year. There have been some use of burning underbrush but that has to be done in the winter and spring.

A fire was stated here by a farmer disking his field yesterday. A blade hit a rock and that was enough to spark a fire.

3 million people are out of power

 

[ronott1]

No fall color here yet. Should start seeing some after the weekend when we have our fist frost.

Lots of deep golds and yellows but no bright reds. I remember walking to the post office in IL. Th PO there had red maples planted along the sidewalk and in fall when you walked under them everything was colored red on sunny days. The sun would reflect the color of the leaves on anything that was near it. Quite a stunning effect.

I've been reading about the PG&E black outs and talking to DH about it. He pointed out the fact that here the power company spends time and effort to clear away underbrush and tree growth from under and around their power lines here. Both rural and in the towns. They run a flail that pretty well pulverizes vegetation in any form from under the power lines. This past spring they went down our road and on the sided sporting the heaviest tree growth, they ran a huge vertical saw that neatly cut through the tree overgrowth like a knife through bread leaving a straight line margin where the trees ended and the undergrowth began. Later they flailed . They do this religiously. The railways spray for ground growth so sparks from the rails won't start fires.

We still have the occasional brush fires in our area but nothing on the scale that CA has and yes, we have an abundance of timber and prairie here that could go up like a tinder box if given the opportunity. Our summers here can be hotter than Hades and dry as news paper. They put out red flag warnings and people respect them. One year they even banned fireworks due to the dryness.

What I'm saying is why isn't PG&E doing the same maintenance on their lines that others or do they do this maintenance and still have problems? It reads as though they are cutting people's power because of the fear that one of their lines 'MIGHT' start a fire?

I know you have the Santa Anna's out there that raise cane, more of a reason to keep things like over growth under control. We don't have Santa Anna's but we do have some pretty gusty winds.If the environmentalists are involved, well, they shouldn't be. Peoples lives hold precedence.

If I'm reading this wrong, please enlighten me. Around here people just sort of snicker at the way everything is so heavily regulated our there, it's a different world entirely from the way it is here.

I really feel for the people out there who are having to suffer through this. There has to be a better way.

You have moisture where you are. Imagine that your place was the Mojave dessert but with vegetation. Also imagine how easy it would be to start a fire.

We cannot compare our place with other places because they are not the same. I have seen this with incubation of eggs. What works here often times will not work in another place

 

[microchick]

True.But we do have stretches for 4 or more months where we will have very little rain. Everything toasts because of the heat (it's gone to 105 here)

Couldn't the company establish pilots to do routine fly overs of the areas at risk like they do here for the pipeline? It just seems as though there is more they could do to prevent this from happening.Besides shutting the power off.

Wouldn't better management of the areas under the power lines that have chaparral and mesquite help alleviate the fire risk and prevent them from having to do these power outages. Don't get me wrong, I am for the consumer and citizen who is paying good $$$$ for service and not getting it for whatever reason.

Right now it sounds as if you are all being forced to live like Amish. Only there nobody knows how to do it because you haven't got a lot of homesteaders and well, Amish around you.

My heart goes out to everyone.

 

[ronott1]

True.But we do have stretches for 4 or more months where we will have very little rain. Everything toasts because of the heat (it's gone to 105 here)

Couldn't the company establish pilots to do routine fly overs of the areas at risk like they do here for the pipeline? It just seems as though there is more they could do to prevent this from happening.Besides shutting the power off.

Wouldn't better management of the areas under the power lines that have chaparral and mesquite help alleviate the fire risk and prevent them from having to do these power outages. Don't get me wrong, I am for the consumer and citizen who is paying good $$$$ for service and not getting it for whatever reason.

Right now it sounds as if you are all being forced to live like Amish. Only there nobody knows how to do it because you haven't got a lot of homesteaders and well, Amish around you.

My heart goes out to everyone.

NPR had a segment today about PGE adding Minnie weather stations to monitor the local conditions. This will allow them to only turn off areas more surgically and effect less people.

Tree trimming and line maintenance is also moving to being managed by the Public Utility commission. Hopefully they will do a better job

 

[bruceha2000]

What works here often times will not work in another place

Very true. The Santa Ana winds blow in southern California, not up where they are cutting power. I believe the areas where they are cutting power are also mountainous to some extent, certainly Paradise was. Not so easy to run a flail along the power lines there.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I’m back to cooking again. sort of. Only did last night and then now lunch but still. Better than toast with peanut butter and jelly

Now that I’ve been eating vegetables again too, I have way more energy.

The egg and the greenish/brownish/chocolateish pepper are homegrown. The rest is from the store but still good.

Plenty more if anybody’s hungry lol

Oh and having a cup of green tea with it too.

 

[bruceha2000]

That looks very healthy, pretty fancy lunch. I never get more creative that one of 4 meats plus cheese in a sandwich.

 

[ronott1]

Very true. The Santa Ana winds blow in southern California, not up where they are cutting power. I believe the areas where they are cutting power are also mountainous to some extent, certainly Paradise was. Not so easy to run a flail along the power lines there.

There is a dry wind that comes in over Napa here. The last time was in 2017 and it was part of the fire that destroyed part of Santa Rosa