Fire On The Mountain

 Monday started off like any other day.   I got up, went to work, and started my day.  A pretty bad fire had started quite a distance from my workplace, but nowhere near our house.  Our house was in the other direction.    People in the Trabuco canyon and Rancho Santa Margarita areas were starting to be evacuated.  Still no sense of danger to us at all.   The fire grew very quickly.  More and more people in Orange County were being evacuated.  So far no one in Riverside County were, which is where we lived.  Overnight we found out that the fire had started moving up the back of the mountain, towards our house, on the East side of Ortega Highway, which we live off of. It was moving quick.  Soon we were under voluntary evacuation.   This is not our first rodeo, so I immediately called Joe and told him to start packing.  Thank God he is off on Tuesdays. With a fire that size,  moving as quickly as it was, things could change in an instant.   

And they did.

This is the view from the parking lot of the rv park where we live.   It was coming our way very quickly.

 Very soon after voluntary evacuation were given, mandatory orders were put into place.  The sheriff came around and started telling people to leave now.  Joe began quickly filling the car with the belongings he thought we might need. The things you think you might need in an emergency situation?  You probably don’t. The only things I wanted from the house were scrapbooks and photos, a few items of clothing and our animals. (And Joe of course).  Nothing else matters in that situation.  He packed as much as he could in our little car, plus three animal carriers.  The car was stuffed to the brim.   Soon he was on his way to meet me at work.  

The last photo he took as he drove down Ortega Highway to get to safety.  Terrifying   

While is was waiting for him at work(not much work was getting done), I was in search of a pet friendly hotel to bring our zoo to until it was safe to return home.   I had no luck.  All of the nearby hotels were booked solid. Too many other communities had already been evacuated and filled up all of the hotels.   I was panicking.  I extended our search for several more miles and found a  motel by the beach, about twenty five minutes from my workplace.  They did not take pets, but made an exception for us due to the evacuation.   I did not look at the reviews for this place. It was cheap, and I was just happy to have a safe place to go.   When we got there, things seemed….off. There were a ton of people loitering around, smoking and drinking.  There seemed to be a small population of homeless men hanging around on the patio too.  The small office was trippy. Psychedelic lights flashing all over the walls and ceilings.  Tye Dye decorations, with a plethora of pot leaves mixed in.  The “Manager” was playing a guitar when I entered the office.  I didn’t feel unsafe,  but the men out front made me uneasy.   I  noticed a lot of people seemed to be living there long term, and I found out later it was because they had very cheap weekly rates.  As soon as we got into the room I thought Joe was going to have a heart attack.  This room was NOT clean.  Not by any means.   I don’t even think the sheets were fresh.  Joe was like “Nope.  We’re sleeping in our cars”.  It was that bad.  I made the manager come check it out, and he went in and cleaned it himself, saying “Oops, my bad”.     “I thought it had already been cleaned”.  Dude, really?! Meanwhile two cats and a dog are in our car, freaking out.   After he “cleaned” the room, we started bringing stuff in. There were cigarette burns in the kitchen.    The curtains had stains on them.   The bedspreads had large holes in them.  Joe had me go to the store immediately and buy some Clorox wipes.   He used an entire container wiping down every single surface in that room, including the walls.  Joe can be a bit of a germaphobe, but in this case it was warranted.   Then we checked the bed for bed bugs (none, thank God). It was seven o’clock by that time, we hadn’t eaten and we were exhausted.   I ran and got some food, we ate and then fell I into bed.   Neither of us got very much sleep that night. After goggling the motel, I saw it was a two star motel.   Two stars.  Yikes! Won’t be staying there again any time soon!

On Wednesday I asked Joe to stay home from work so he could find us a better hotel and stay with the animals.  I called around and got the last room at a Staybridge hotel,  20 minutes from my work, and ten minutes from Joe’s.  We got the last  room.  The entire hotel was booked except for this one room.   Thank you God.  I was able to get off at noon to help Joe with the transfer to the new hotel.  This hotel was more like what we were expecting.  It was NICE.   It had a small kitchenette.   Body wash, shampoo and conditioner in the shower (I had forgotten all of my toiletries).  This will do.  The animals were finally let free. They hid under the bed for a whole day, but have finally ventured out and have become somewhat more comfortable.  It’s still a lot having two cats,  a dog and two adults in a small hotel room.  Just….a lot.

I called our renter’s insurance and they transferred me the money to pay for five days at the hotel.  We were so relieved.    Finally things started to feel a little more “normal”, whatever that means in this situation.   

On Thursday we both desperately had to go back to work. The hotel policy is that all  pets must be in a crate when you are not in the room with them.   Off we went to petsmart to purchase a crate    Now, I know that Lola did not do well in crates.  If fact, she hated them and hadn’t been in one since she was a baby.    I wasn’t sure how this would go.  I went off to work first, and Joe put her in the crate and went off to work about a half an hour later.  Everything seemed to be fine.  No call from the hotel telling us that she was barking.   When I pulled into the hotel parking lot on Thursday night, I could hear her from the parking lot.   She was barking and crying and making SO much noise.  LOUDLY.  I have no idea how long she was doing this.   I’m hoping she heard my car coming into the parking lot and it had started then.  I have no idea how long she was carrying on like that.   So I was stuck in the hotel room with her, because I couldn’t leave her alone.  So boring.  On Fridays Joe goes to work early, so I was the one who had to walk her and put her in her crate.  This did not go well, right from the  start. She started barking and carrying on,  crying the minute I put her in there   I rushed off to work, hoping that once I left she would be okay.  Nope.   The hotel called me 10 minutes later, letting me know that she was being too loud and I had to come and get her.  Another day of missed work.  Sigh.   The lost wages were starting to build up.  

That’s the one thing that you don’t think about when you are displaced from your home.  We are bleeding money right now   I am so grateful that the renter’s insurance paid for our hotel because if they hadn’t, we would be screwed.  It’s the take out, and groceries, and clothing that are adding up.  Joe packed me ten T-shirts and zero pairs of pants.   lol.  I had to  do a pick up order at Target for some jeans.  I have no idea if renter’s insurance will cover that.  I’m just praying that it will all work out and we will recoup some of the money we have spent.

That being said, we are blessed and lucky to have a home to go home to at all.   The town three miles up the hill from us suffered devastating loss.  Homes burned to the ground.  I can’t fathom the fear and pain those people have, and will continue to suffer in the months and years to come. Please send prayers and good thoughts to those affected in El Cariso village.  They need them.  Thank you.

 I think that about sums our week.   We are waiting until the power comes back at our place before returning home, which could be until this coming Wednesday.  Three more days in a hotel.  We may take a drive tomorrow with Lola, just to get out.   I’m going a little stir crazy here.   

Thank you for all of your support and prayers and good vibes being sent our way.   We can feel them and they are greatly appreciated.  Soon we’ll be back home and this will be a just another story we tell people of our time living in our tiny house in the mountains.   Until then, we will be thankful for our safety and a home to return to.  

Disney Cruise Day Four

 Day Four was a sea day, so we hung around the ship and relaxed all day.  We went to the spa for two and a half hours, read our books out on the verandah, took our time with breakfast and lunch. After lunch we went to a champagne tasting class that I had signed us up for. It was fun tasting all the expensive champagnes, but the class was supposed to teach us how to make champagne cocktails, and it did not do that. I'm not sure what was up with that, but I was really looking forward to it. We did enjoy the tasting though.

We did some activities like trivia and played some Bingo but did not win. It was fun playing.

This was not regular BINGO, like you have in your head where people sit in a crowded room and the caller slowly calls out each number and people are quiet because they are concentrating.  Nope!  This BINGO was nothing like that. There was singing, there was dancing, there was jumping up and down.  They know how to do BINGO!  Super fun. We were one number off two times. So close!

We found this door on our deck. I love, love, love this. Up is one of my favorite Pixar films.  I love Carl and Ellie so much!  The creativity this took is amazing. Next time I'm going to up my cruise ship door game.

Joe took this photo at sunset. 

                                         

Dinner tonight is at Tiana's Place. This was the restaurant I was looking forward to the most. It's based after The Princess and the Frog movie.  It's set in New Orleans and the theming is amazing.  Look at these plates!  So cute!  I did remember to take pictures of my food tonight.

We both started with the sausage fritters. So good.

I then had the wedge salad, which was both pretty and delicious. Joe got the Gumbo soup. He was very happy with it too.

Joe got the pork tenderloin. I got the prime rib steak. I almost never eat beef but it looked so good I made an exception. We both had the beignets with chocolate sauce and a bread pudding. I had two desserts almost every night!  So good. 

Tiana's place isn't just a restaurant, it has a show too.  While we were eating Tiana was singing

on stage with a piano player.  Halfway through dinner she started a Congo line. There was singing and dancing and clapping. We even did the limbo. The little kids loved it so much!  OK, I did too. Afterwards Tiana comes around to each and every table to say hello, and we got a photo. Such a fun dinner. Would have loved to do that one twice.

Our last towel creation: a seal.  Cute!

So we had dinner at four restaurants:

Triton's the first night, themed after The Little Mermaid.

Palo, the adults only upcharge restaurant, which was Italian themed.

Animator's Palette, where the walls came alive with animation and colors,

and Tiana's Place, which was my favorite.  

I don't have many photos for Debarkation Day, but I'll write a little bit about it tomorrow 

because some of it surprised me.

We had a great last day!

Disney Cruise Day Three

 Day Three. 

This was Cabo San Lucas, Mexico day and we were excited. They don't have a large enough port in Cabo San Lucas to dock the ship, so you have to take little boats called "tenders" and they take you to the pier.  I booked an excursion for today, so we had to meet up with the rest of our party in the theater to be taken to the boats. Our excursion didn't start until 10:15, so we didn't have to get up super early. I booked a sightseeing tour to go on a boat to see the famous rock arch, and then a bus to see the coastline. What I didn't realize is that it was going to take all day and we weren't going to have time to go exploring on our own, which Joe really wanted to do.  In fact we had only 25 minutes to shop, so we didn't get anything we had wanted. (T-shirts, magnets and such). It was still a great day of sightseeing.

View of our ship from the pier in Cabo.

The famous arch. Lover's beach is to the right. It's great for swimming and snorkeling.  On the other side they call it divorce beach (it's a joke but they do call it that).  That side the water is very choppy and dangerous so nobody goes there.

Joe in vacation mode.

After the boat ride to see the arch, we took a bus to visit a glass factory. We watched the glassblowers make some items before we took a look around the shop of items for sale.

He's making a turtle wearing a sombrero with a bottle of tequila in his hand.  No joke. I should have taken photos of the end product.

I love the colorful glassware

We bought margarita glasses just like these but in a different shape. They were so pretty. I say HAD, because I dropped them and they broke on debarkation day.  I cried.  I found them on Etsy for three times the price. I'll probably get them there.

They had a large selection of glasses and vases, as well as little animals you could purchase.  We only got the margarita glasses and a shot glass for Joe's co-worker.

After that we took bus to see the coastline. That's our boat way out there.

Dinner that night was at Animator's Palette.  I took only one photo in there. I swear this is so unlike me.  I was seriously just having so much fun I either didn't remember to take photos, or left my phone in the room. There was no cell service anyway.  I'm kind of disappointed in myself because I forgot a lot of things due to not taking any photos.  

These walls start out black and white and then turn beautiful colors as the nights go on, and the screens on the walls  have animation on them. Very nice visual effects. This restaurant was directly below our room, so again with the vibrations. 

Saw Chip and Dale on the way back from dinner. They had their tuxedos on because it was semi formal night. You'll see us in the same clothes two nights in a row because we had the nice dinner at Palo last night and semi formal night tonight.  We chose to dress up. Not everyone did.

We got pictures with Minnie Mouse in her ball gown, but of course the professionals photographers have them and are holding them hostage. I'll post them later for sure. She looked so pretty!

That was it for Day Three.  Tomorrow is our last night! (sob)

Disney Cruise Day Two

I just realized a few of those photos of us exploring the ship are from different days. Thus the outfit changes. LOL. 

                                  

After the movie we went back to our room to get ready for bed.  This was our towel creation for the night. We had no idea what it was? Anyone know?

Our room was as far aft as you can get.  (As far in the back of the ship). Like there was no room to the left of us, because our room was the very last one before hitting the back of the ship. Such a long walk from the elevators! Anyway, I had read that rooms that are in the back of the ship, you can feel "some vibrations".  I was expecting this, but Holy Cow cruise ship, "some" vibrations actually meant the bed actually MOVED from the vibrations, and they were loud! You know in old movies or tv shows where they have those machines on the bed in a hotel room where there's a switch and you can make the bed vibrate, for like a massage or something?  I have no idea if you know what I am talking about, but man did that bed vibrate!  I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to sleep, it was that bad. Thankfully I was able to sleep with some ear plugs and I got used to the motion of the vibrating.  This is something I think should definitely be disclosed to the people who purchase rooms way back there.  Turns out we didn't have a neighbor to our left and only a wall on the right, so our room was SUPER quiet. (Except for the vibrations).  It turned out not to be a big deal for us in the end, but keep in mind if you are going on a cruise and choosing your room.  Two of the restaurants are also aft of the ship and it vibrated down there too.

Today we slept in a little since we had such a late night last night.  We headed to the buffet at Cabanas again, but for breakfast, not lunch. I found the breakfast buffet to be much better than the lunch. After lunch we visited "Cove Cafe", which is an adults only coffee bar and I got this cute coffee. I love him!

We spent a good part of our first day at sea at the Spa.  I forgot to say, on the first day, right when we boarded we booked it to the spa to get passes to the "Senses Spa", because day passes sell out quick.  The pass lasted your whole trip and you could go as many times as you wanted throughout your trip.  We only went two days but spent a few hours there each time. Again, no photos because it was wet in there and I didn't want my phone to get ruined.  Not until later did I realize my phone is water proof and I could have taken it with me.  Duh!

Anyway, the spa has several different sections to it.  The first are the saunas.  There are two.  I referred to them as 1. The scorching one, and 2. The essential oils one.  In reality they are called the "mid temperature sauna", (apparently there is one in each locker room that is hotter!) and the "aromatic sauna".  

Guess which one I chose?  The mid temperature sauna was scorching hot and I couldn't stay in that one for more than five minutes.  It was so hot!  I don't know how people handle that kind of damp heat.  Not for me.  The Aromatic sauna was lovely. It was less hot, had a shower nozzle to add steam or cool off with, and smelled of lavender.  I spent all my time in that one. When you need a break you head over to one of their showers to rinse off.  The first shower was super hot, and again I couldn't handle the heat. The second one is medium hot and just right. The third one was the "cold fog" shower and I liked that one too.  After you take your shower you head over to the "heated loungers". These were her heavenly!  I don't know what it was about them, because they were simply lounge chairs with little tiles on them that heated up, but they felt so good!  Especially after the cold fog shower.  I could have spent days there! The spa was wonderful.

After the spa we went back to the room to change.  We went back up to the pool deck to grab a bite to eat. They have three quick service restaurants up there.  Daisy's Dee-Lites, Pinnochio's Pizza, and Pete's Boiler Bites.  Daisy's is salads and sandwiches, more lighter fair.  Pinnochio's was Pizza of course, but they made it right there and it was so fresh and yummy.  Pete's was burgers and hot dogs, with different types of proteins like fish, chicken or veggie in addition to beef patties. I didn't eat here at all but Joe had a really good pork sandwich there on our last day. We spent the day at the adult pool(not swimming just reading at a table in the sun).

Our first sunset at sea

The first sea day was Pirate Night. We inadvertently kind of skipped Pirate Night, as that was the night I booked us to go to the Fancy restaurant on board, which was called "Palo".  It has an extra charge and is adults only.  Well it turns out that because it was pirates night, no one wanted to eat at Palo and we were essentially alone in there! The service we got was amazing! I mean, the service would have been amazing anyway, but to have the waiter to ourselves was awesome!

I had the Salmon (again-but this one was so much better). Again, can't find any other photos I took of food here. I also had the caprese as an appetizer, and Joe had the Calamari. Both were so fresh and so good.  For dessert we shared the chocolate Soufflé.  To die for.

                                     

                          

                                             

I found some more photos of the exterior of the ship. This is the adult only pool area.  It was really nice!

Palo was so much fun.

After Palo it was time for Pirate night up on the ship deck. We went out for a little bit and it was cold and windy. The show was very high energy and loud, and we were tired. We decided to call it a night so we missed most of the show. Here's a few photos:

They had sent a message out letting guests know to keep your verandah doors closed during Fireworks and to please stay inside while the were going on.  Well, they were shooting them off right above us, so we opened the verandah door a teeny bit and took these photos. It was pretty cool!

To end the night I ordered room service for a a couple of Mickey Bars.  So cute and yummy!

Our towel (blanket) creation for  the night. A Pirate, of course!  Very clever.

I'm super bummed because we ordered a photo package that included all of the professional photographs to download. Well, the watermarks are still on them.  I called and they said I have to email them to get support, and that can take up to 20 days!  I'm super disappointed because I really wanted to include them here. I also want to start a scrapbook.  I know it's not the end of the world but I am disappointed that they can't help me sooner.   Others in our group are having the same problem.  I don't even have any iPhone pictures because I didn't have them take them with my phone because I knew I was getting the package.Hey, if that's the worst thing to happen to me today I'm doing alright.  

Day Three is Cabo San Lucas.  I'll post that later today.