The Fire

[tallulahdahling]

Here is a funny TRUE story penned by my sweet hubby..........hope I attach the photos properly....Enjoy!


So my sweet wife is going to stay "home alone" for most of the day,
Tuesday. She has been feeling good and schedule wise, I'm back
to work and so are various relatives who came to help out through
Monday. I'm taking Wed.-Thur off and another kinfolk is coming into
town in order to help out through the weekend, but we all figure she
can handle Tuesday alone, might even like a little peace and quiet,
right?
> >
It's mid afternoon, my darling is cozy on the couch, sipping tea,
watching some tee-vee, letting the dogs come inside for awhile
because it's so hot (99 degrees) and just taking it easy. She
really must take it easy post surgery, because she's sore, has stitches
& staples, a dual hose fluid drain bag that is hooked up to her side
etc. etc.
Then the big dog (Angie) starts to growl and woof. Sumpin's going
on, if Angie reacts then there is something going on for sure.
Could be the mail lady bringing a big box or perhaps a truck going down
the road but something. The dog doesn't settle down so Siobhan
begins the "get up off the couch manuever". It's hard enough when
there is someone there to help but while she is "home alone" this
requires gentle twisting and turning, very slowly, getting the arm
just right, the butt positioned just so, swing the legs over, get
the drain bag just right, then slowly get up.
> >
She gets up, slowly shuffles to the door in her pink scuffy
slippers, looks out the door FIRE & SMOKE!!!!!! The woods beside
our house/driveway are in flames. It hasn't rained in forever, it's
moving FAST! and heading for our storage building full of hunting
boats, canoes, decoys, tools, equipment, gasoline, you name it.
She calls me at work, she calls 911, nobody knew what volunteer
fire district we were located within, but she gives the 911
operator directions, "SEND SOMEBODY!!". I leave work driving
90 miles an hour with the flashers on. She gets two fire
extinguishers, carries them down the driveway in the heat of the
day, fires them off to no real effect and scrambles for the garden
hose. The hose has a little plastic doo-dad for gently tinkling the
various herb garden plots around the house, not for fighting fires.
(we do have a fire fightng attachment but in the literal heat of
battle, left behind). So God bless her, there she is at the end of
the garden hose, drags it as far as she can, in her pink scuffy
slippers, medical drain/hose/bag apparatus swinging on her hip, wearing
nothing but a wrap-around moo-moo thing, tinkling at the woods
with the garden sprayer, trying to save the storage building, and
who knows, the house might be next.
The first volunteer fireman arrives in amazing time and the truck
is not far behind, he says "Lady you can put that down now and go
on inside, we got it". They barely got it, but they saved the
building, hosed the woods down, and that's when I arrived. They
decided to move on ahead of the fire and let this part burn out. The
Forestry Commission arrived with their team and bulldozer and began
bulldozing a fire lane straight through our woods 1/4 mile away
ahead of the fire, while I checked on my sweety. She was back
inside, flush and flustered but okay and beginning to cool down. I
immediately re-rigged our hoses and started putting out whatever
fire was still burning. Eventually the dozer made a big loop and
came crashing through the woods by our house. The fire was now
contained, and for the most part had burned out, however some is
still burning today way down near the swamp.
> >
We have no idea how it started. Theory #1 would be deliberately
set by someone right at the road, this has happened many times
or so say the firemen.
Theory #2 the bush hogs used by the road workers who that day had been
cutting the shoulder of the road, had set a spark off that eventually ignited.
(Neither worker smokes so we don't think it was a butt). It started
down by our road and wooshed with the wind uphill, very scary.
> >
Everyone is okay, more good oak trees downed with the dozer
(Katrina did enough with that), some trees burned up and we'll have a heck
of a water bill but we (and our hunting junk) are doing fine.
She is resting well today after her adventure, she had pulled
out one of the tubes during her firefighting but the doc was pulling
them out today anyway, so bah what's a little mishap like that matter?
She's tough I tell ya, but doesn't want to be left "home alone"
again for awhile.

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[tallulahdahling]

OK--figured out the pix:

[Sandy Eggo]

Wow! that was an adventure. I love the way he tells the story. So much admiration. You are such a warrior in his eyes. I couldn't help but chuckle at the mental image of you in your scuffy slippers.

I hate forest fires. Hopefully they'll figure out what set it and thankfully you, the dogs and the hunting equipment are all okay.

Are those the woods you mentioned taking the dogs for a walk in?

[tallulahdahling]

The very ones, dahling!

It's so interesting how nature works things out, though.  Now that the rain has come through it looks as if we have a whole lot of new growth and the mushrooms are incredibly gorgeous!  I think by the spring we may have some room for new oaks that Katrina took with her!   

[kimmi]

WOW!  What a story!  Your hubby does have a good story telling ability!  Well done!

[tallulahdahling]

Thank you, thank you.........I shall pass on the compliment