At Sasquan: Worldcon in Spokane, WA

Actually, technically I'm not at Sasquan yet. We got in later than we expected and registration was closed by the time we walked to the convention center. But we had a nice light dinner at an Irish pub and explored the immediate vicinity.

The tarnished silver and platinum sky as we came in glowed in tones of tangerine, hot pink and white gold. The waitress we spoke to at the pub told us that the smoke blows in and out. It caused at least two major wrecks in the area, including a 40 car pile-up near Ritzville (which we drove through on our way.) These intense fires transform the area from a beautiful desert filled with starry skies and brilliant days of clear blue into gray, mysterious places where one moment everything is uncertain and unnerving to deadly. Between the dust and the smoke when a fierce wind blows through, driven by heat from both the sun and the wildfires, visibility can go from okay to nothing in seconds.

We were lucky, and I was shocked by the scope of the fires. As an owner of livestock on acreage that's vulnerable to wildfires (can you say uphill from a freeway with dry grass, dry trees and inaccessible gulleys that could seriously hamper firefighting efforts) my heart aches for all the impacted people, but especially those with livestock who are having a rough time trying to find somewhere to take their horses, cows, goats, sheep, etc. or who have to go through the heartache of having to leave their animals behind and hope that they escape the fire somehow.

I'm grateful that we're safe, and well-fed, and that our animals are safe. I plan to enjoy myself at the convention, but those intense skies and that smoke-filtered sun are a constant reminder that there's a nightmare burning not far away.

Come see me at Sasquan! I'll try to post my schedule tomorrow. In the meantime, Oubliette is available for 99¢ during the duration of the convention and for a couple of days afterward. I'll also be signing copies at the NIWA table in the dealer's room. If I'm not there, catch me at a panel or in the halls or check back at the NIWA table later. I'd love to autograph a copy for you!

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