A teary eyed toast to Santa Barbara and its people

[mix]

one of the greatest cities on the planet

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&start=0&num=200&msa=0&msid=117631292961056724014.00046949ab968657977c9&ll=34.465523,-119.740677&spn=0.152851,0.241013&z=12

[cbayer]

1. Tragic and terrifying. The evening winds should be starting up soon, and,

hopefully, they will not be too strong.

:(

[mix]

2. there is nothing more beautiful and refreshing as the Santa Anas

for surfing, these winds are ideal

but with fire, congested hills, and decades of accumulated natural fuel due to fire suppression--they are deadly. They arrive in the late afternoon and can continue late into the night. The next day one usually awakes to stillness.

The first 30 years of my life were spent in Santa Barbara and up and down the surrounding coast. Fire was always on everyone's mind in the summers and fall mostly, especially in the mountains and valleys behind the city.