Update from LA

Hi all, just a quick hello, and reassurance that we're doing okay. The kids and I are safe, as is their dad. We rallied. We got out of here for a few nights at a hotel, because smoke was inside the house. It's rained ash every day.

I'll never forget the night of that storm, with hurricane force winds. It sounded like huge ocean waves pounding the building. It destroyed a lot of things, and of course the resulting fires have led to loss of life, thousands and thousands of homes, and broken our hearts here in LA.

We are a resilient universe of a place, and we are all in it together. It's not all movie stars: it's a working class city, and we are part of a tapestry that is so vibrant and special.

Just wanted to thank everyone for reaching out and checking in on us. We are back home. I hosed down a lot of soot (wearing a high quality mask) off of plants, patio, porch, etc. today at this rental, and left out some fresh water for wildlife. Most of our neighbors had fled too. My God, we got lucky, but we know a lot of folks who didn't. My teens know other teens who are now without a home. School is out for the next week too, so it's giving weird 2020 flashbacks in a not great way.

And...as for what was lost? I was just there, you know? A couple weeks ago we were looking at Christmas lights in Altadena, and now most of that city is leveled. Those houses are gone. I was just out the Pacific Coast Highway this past weekend to Malibu. I was looking AT THE RESTAURANTS that are no longer there and at one point even thought, "I need to stop at one of those sometime." (In particular, I was looking at Moonshadows and Reel Inn. They are gone now.)

Here's a good roundup of resources to help folks affected by the LA fires: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-08/how-to-help-victims-of-pacific-palisades-eaton-and-hurst-fires

I'm so tired. We had that tight window of time, looking at the fires, not sure how far they'd spread, so close by. It came down to my telling the kids this: what's one or two things you would miss the most? Okay, pack that. Let's go. All I cared about was getting the kids to safety. But as we had enough time, giving them the choice to bring something important to them was priceless.

We drove several miles away south, fully out of the red flag warning area, and had much fresher air. We couldn't afford to do this forever, so I was very glad to come home last night, and the air is better tonight. (Still not great, but SO much better.)

It's especially surreal after seeing my home region Appalachia hammered by Helene with catastrophic flooding just a few months ago, and then to have tragedy unfold next door here with fire.

When I went for a short drive tonight, and saw the mountains for the first time fully in days, I finally got really emotional. We aren't out of the woods; there's no rain in sight, and more wind can become a problem. But for right now, things are stable where I am.

Thanks for being here. Love y'all.

Jendia