It stormed last night. I had already gone to bed, only to be awakened by its thunder and lighting. The younger denizens of the so-called sleeping porch were all still awake though. You’ve heard of thunder snow I’m sure, we’re talking thunder soot here. Pictured is Dan’s car covered in ash. On the way into town this morning, I saw a cross-country cyclist headed the other way. He was wearing an N95 mask. In town Walgreens sold out of them. The smoke is so thick that it does not photograph well. It is a uniform gray. In the past, Canadian forest fires have led to tremendous sunsets. All of the particulates make for brilliant red colors. Not so much this time.

Gray is the ultimate sophisticated neutral, acting as a perfect balance between black and white. It offers a chic, calm, and versatile backdrop that allows bolder textures and accent colors to truly shine. Its understated elegance makes it a staple in both high-end fashion and modern design. The beauty of gray lies in its incredible range. You can achieve different moods by playing with its undertones. Unfortunately, a uniform gray sky makes for very dull photography and that’s what we have had. No sun sighting and other than the sky being gray no cloud formations either. All of this weird weather is caused by Canadian forest fires. Mostly from around Thunder Bay in Ontario. A northwest wind is blowing the smoke across the lake to us. A couple of years ago, we experienced a similar meteorological event. Like before, you can smell the smoke, and it irritates your eyes. Smoke gets in your eyes, when your heart forest is on fire. Before the Canadian fires were in Alberta. This time they are a lot closer. I think this explains the ash that has accompanied this smoke event. Here is a link to a short video that shows a Canadian train near Thunder Bay. It shows the engineers in the locomotive’s cab. They are engulfed in flames. They had to sit there until another train passed and cleared the track. The photo is from a controlled burn in Texas. It has nothing to do with today’s smoke but looks more picturesque.

Notice as the room heats up that she slides along the bank bench away from the fire. 🔥 Here she acts like a human thermometer. Measuring the room’s warmth by translating it into distance. It has been cold up north here this summer and according to the latest long range forecast it will be cold for the rest of the summer. According to the weather channel July is supposed to be colder than normal and August is supposed to be much colder. Huddled around a stove all summer does not sound very fun.