Our Friends in CA

NinjaMom

NinjaMom

Cathlete
My heart goes out to all of you that have been affected by the fires raging through your state. I just returned a week and a half ago from a visit to San Diego. My nephew is in the Navy and based there. I was so taken with the beautiful scenery as we traveled up to LA and am so saddened by the loss and destruction of lives, homes and land. The people there were very nice and we had a wonderful time. Just wanted to let you know that you are in my thoughts and prayers. Take care.

JJ
 
One of my very dear friends lives in Riverside, and while her home is safe right now, she said she can see the smoke and flames in the distance from her back window. I cannot even imagine how horribly frightening that must be!! My thoughts and prayers are with them as well.

Carol
 
Saturday night we could see the fires 40 miles away. The next night, it was too smokey and it smelled like a campfire outside. I was just watching the news at lunch and it looked like the flames were right behind someone's home. I almost broke down and cried. While I live far enough away that our home is safe, it's still very scary and traumatic for everyone.

Beth
 
Thanks so much for your concern and prayers. I live in Rancho Cucamonga and the fires were really bad by my home on Friday thru Sunday. We were evacuated - I am so thankful to God and to all the firefighters, police officers & Forest service crews for their great work!! Our home is fine.
As we had to pack up things - after we had all the Photo albums and papers in the cars, I really considered also packing all my Cathe dvd's!! But, I figured I could always replace them if I had to.
The fires are still going strong. YIKES!!
Thanks very much for caring!!

Linda
 
Wow Linda~That had to be scary! Glad you are all fine. You're all still in our thoughts and prayers and hope it all comes to an end VERY soon.
Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif[/img] If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!
 
I, too, extend my thoughts and prayers to all of you who have been/are being affected by these raging CA fires. This is so frightening. Please keep safe!!!!!!!
 
Thank YOU, Cathe

Thanks so much for your kind thoughts, everyone.

I live in the East County of San Diego and it has been a nightmare the past four days. On Monday my DH and I were packed (yes, I grabbed my Cathe DVD's) and ready to go as we were 10 miles from a raging fire to the north and 8 miles from another one to the south. In Jan. 2001 another massive fire came right up to the back door of our brand new home and our art studio along with 25 years worth of art work (and all our possessions we had stored to be safe from fire) burned to the ground...this experience has been just like deja vu.

Thankfully for us, but not for so many others north east of us, the wind shifted and we were spared more agony (we have really not gotten over the last one, emotionally)...

Here's where I have to thank you, Cathe. As the fires were closing in, I had to hike up a small mountain next to us three times in one day so that we could get a better view of what was happening around us (devestation ...unfortunately the media was concentrating on the city damage more at that time and not the county). I kept thinking in my panic how grateful I was for my strong legs and lung power and that any other woman my age (48) might have more difficulty.

DH had a plan for saving the house (there was, at that time, Monday, very little fire support in our area at all... most were fighting fires elsewhere) which included my lifting buckets of water out of our pool and handing them to him to throw on the eves of our (wood) house to catch flying embers and my strong arms were able to hoist those buckets easily as we ran through the drill together. Again, I thought of you, Cathe and was so grateful...you have touched my life that much, sweet, sweet lady and I thank you for helping me to become strong and confident enough that I would be able to do what I would have to do ...luckly we were spared that test. In fact, tonight is the first night I able able to sleep fully and without worry since Sunday...

Thanks again to you all...

Robin

P.S. This afternoon I was able to do my first workout since Saturday...the cardio section of Power Circuit with Leaner Legs for dessert! Then DH and I hiked up the mountain again to check the fires! Gotta keep these old legs strong!
 
RE: Thank YOU, Cathe

Robin, thanks for sharing your story. I am so sorry about the tragedy you experienced in 2001. How awful!!! You will still be in our thoughts & prayers til it is over. I am so happy to hear how being strong physically helped get you thru some of this. Keep us posted and hope you can get some more rest. YOU GO GIRL! PC & LL! Woo-Hoo!
Your-Friend-In-Fitness, DebbieH http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/wavey.gif[/img] If You Get The Choice To Sit It Out Or Dance...I Hope You DANCE!!!
 
RE: Thank YOU, Cathe

Yes, our fellow CA friends, please keep safe in this very trying time for you, your family and friends. You are all in our thoughts.

Take care, Marcia :)
 
I live just east of Simi Valley. At one point I could see the flames on the mountain just north of us from my bedroom window. That fire raced down the hill and hit one home in a very exclusive gated community. The Simi fire has now back-tracked over to Santa Clarita and reaked havoc there yesterday. Much to my surprise, no homes have been lost.

On top of it, we had a small earthquake yesterday afternoon. Very nerve racking! We live 2 miles from the epicenter of the 1994 Northridge earthquake (I wasn't here then, whew!). Ironically this has been the worst fire season in 10 years and January marks 10 years since the Northridge earthquake. Let's hope and pray we don't have another one!

Thanks all for your thoughts, prayers and well wishes. It has been so sad and so hard to witness, first hand, such devastation.

All the best,
 
TO: RobinC

:D What a touching story! I am glad you, family, home and Cathe DVD's are safe! You really are fortunate to be in shape in order to climb those mountains. We are thinking of you and all the others out West during this devastating time. Stay SAFE!
 
Vickie, I have a special fondness for Simi Valley. We visited there last year to visit the Reagan Library...beautiful area! Just beautiful. My heart is just breaking for all of you right now!
 
Hi Donna! Simi is a very nice area. The library is fine. When you see the area from aerial views, it's just amazing how much land has been burned. I'm from No. CA and we are coming up that way this weekend. It'll be nice to get away.

Take care!
 
I'll bet it will be nice to get away. We (church choir) were at the library to sing...kind of a September 11 memorial.
 
RE: Thank YOU, Cathe

Robin, just a quick note to add my thoughts and prayers for you and for all of your California neighbors. What you went through in 2001 must have been devastating! I am delighted that your home seems safe now and that you've been feeling really strong (in many ways :)) throughout this crisis.

Take care, California friends!

http://e4u.deltait.com.au/sport/sport23.gif Kathy S.
 
Again, many thanks, Debbie, Marcia, "Lisa" and Donna...

Your thoughts and prayers mean so very much...this is such a great group. I have to tell you all that early in the week I got a personal email from Vickie who was concerned about me. I was so touched, because she remembered me from a Fitness Video Challenge we had taken together this past summer...We Cathe fans stick together!!!

Robin
 
I live in San Diego proper just East of La Jolla. It was really scary on Sunday. We were pretty stupid that morning. My roommate went to work out at 24-Hour Fitness and I did one of the CTX tapes while the fires were just a few miles away (I didn't know at the time that it was approx. 10 miles away and closing). By the time we were done with our workouts and showered, we noticed that it was really dark, smokey, and the air was thick with falling ash (think of those large snow flakes falling from the sky and this is kind of what it looked like). After seeing this, we packed both of our cars with our kitty carriers, litter boxes, food for humans and kitties, blankets, photo albums, etc. No, I didn't have room for my Cathe videos (even though I considered it).

Luckily, we escaped the fires. It was 4 miles from the house. We were really lucky as we live right off a canyon near where the fire was traveling. Very scary. I heard from my co-workers what it was like for those who were evacuated. Quite scary. There was one co-worker who lives in Scripps Ranch right in the middle of that community that was burned to the ground. They were one of the lucky ones as they and their neighbors (approx. 2 streets) got together recently and replaced all of their wooden shingle roofs with concrete tile roofing! They all truly believe this is why their homes survived and the neighboring ones around them were destroyed. They truly live on an island surrounded by devastation. This family was really lucky as there was NO warning of this fire. they just happened to see the fires quickly approaching their area. In fact, they called 911 and notified them of the fires. The person who was manning the phone said that it was impossible for it to be in Scripps Ranch as they they were told it was in Poway (the next town over from Scripps). My friend indicated that they didn't hear any firetrucks until after they, and their neighbors, were evacuating the area.

I am really saddened about all of the destruction and the lives lost in all of these fires.

Good news today is that rain is in the forecast!

Lorrayne
 
I, too, am praying and hoping that all of you are alright. I know now that my friends and family in the San Diego/Santee area are safe and well. There is only one family member whose home we're not sure about... we know that her "area", Crest, was affected by the fire.

All of you there, be careful and aware! And I am so sorry that this has happened to your beautiful home.

Sara

http://www.picturetrail.com/rayiisara/sblordita
 
I grew up in Eastern Washington State and remember well the forest fires with their smoky skies that bedeviled our area, seemingly every late summer. But this is something else...our thoughts and prayers are with all of you. Please be very careful!!!
 
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