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High tech, low tech
Oct. 24th, 2007 09:14 amIt rained on and off here yesterday, and last night I woke up to the sound of more rain. My first reaction was guilt--in my drowsy state I felt there ought to be some way to send the rain to San Diego.
Yesterday was phase two of the server migration, which did not go well, and meant I was at the office for over 12 hours, before packing up to keep working at home. Much of the day was spent with web browsers open in the background, for the latest news on the San Diego fires. I have two aunts who live in Rancho Bernardo, plus a cousin who lives just east of San Diego, so it's been a tense few days for them. High tech was great in that I could access the San Diego Times Union's fire blog site for the latest news, not to mention other sites with maps showing the progress of the fires, burn areas, evacuation areas, etc.
Low tech in that I couldn't reach anyone for much of yesterday. Both aunts had been evacuated from their homes so I couldn't call them there, the cell phone number I had wasn't working, and although my cousin was in a safe area, I didn't have her phone number with me--it's on a piece of paper at home. Since it's an unlisted number so I couldn't even call directory assistance.
But I could access San Diego's city website, so when they finally posted the list of homes destroyed in Rancho Bernardo, I could see that their homes had been spared.
Finally heard from my cousin last night that everyone was fine, if a bit shaken up. It's still not over, of course, and it's likely to be a while before they get to go back to their homes in Rancho Bernardo. But they're among the lucky ones--they had friends and family to go to, so they're not camped out in an emergency shelter. So there's room for optimism.
Still wish I could figure out a way to email them some of this rain.
ETA: I can't send rain, but a donation to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army is a good way to start. The number of evacuees is approaching the one million mark, and there's obviously significant need for both short term and long term assistance.
Yesterday was phase two of the server migration, which did not go well, and meant I was at the office for over 12 hours, before packing up to keep working at home. Much of the day was spent with web browsers open in the background, for the latest news on the San Diego fires. I have two aunts who live in Rancho Bernardo, plus a cousin who lives just east of San Diego, so it's been a tense few days for them. High tech was great in that I could access the San Diego Times Union's fire blog site for the latest news, not to mention other sites with maps showing the progress of the fires, burn areas, evacuation areas, etc.
Low tech in that I couldn't reach anyone for much of yesterday. Both aunts had been evacuated from their homes so I couldn't call them there, the cell phone number I had wasn't working, and although my cousin was in a safe area, I didn't have her phone number with me--it's on a piece of paper at home. Since it's an unlisted number so I couldn't even call directory assistance.
But I could access San Diego's city website, so when they finally posted the list of homes destroyed in Rancho Bernardo, I could see that their homes had been spared.
Finally heard from my cousin last night that everyone was fine, if a bit shaken up. It's still not over, of course, and it's likely to be a while before they get to go back to their homes in Rancho Bernardo. But they're among the lucky ones--they had friends and family to go to, so they're not camped out in an emergency shelter. So there's room for optimism.
Still wish I could figure out a way to email them some of this rain.
ETA: I can't send rain, but a donation to the Red Cross or the Salvation Army is a good way to start. The number of evacuees is approaching the one million mark, and there's obviously significant need for both short term and long term assistance.
