16,000 acres burned and 94,000 acres in the evacuation zone?  Can that be true?  360 homes...so far...still no containment.  We don't know how it started, we don't know where it will go, we don't know when it will be contained...hot, dry, and windy out.  After the Waldo Canyon fire last year, we kinda thought we wouldn't have this to contend with so soon.   I don't know why;  conditions are ripe and smaller fires have been breaking out all week.  

But in the midst of this Black Forest tragedy, there are still some bright spots.  The Army's 52nd Engineers out of Fort Carson are on the fire line again.  Using their combat engineering skills to cut firebreaks and push dirt into the fire.  Other units are providing support for the firefighters on both of the big fires, the Black Forest and the Royal Gorge.  The Colorado Springs community has sprung into action again, amassing thousands of tons of food and water for the fireline and the displaced families...and more on the way every minute.  Volunteers are showing up at relief organizations and asking, "Where do you need me...what can I do?"  I have mentioned before that Colorado isn't my favorite place but at times like these, I am proud to be among Americans like this.

If the pictures are not photo-shopped, then it looks like the touristy stuff at the Gorge has burned down.  We lost the Flying W Ranch last year, now Buckskin Joe's gone.  We mighta beat the injuns but the fire is being very hard on the cowboys.

So when MamieLady told me this little Hazel story, I knew I had to share it with you...just to cheer things up a tad.

Me and Hazel' s buddies.  When she comes to visit, one of the first things that comes up is me making her some popcorn.  She loves it.  She watches me make it (I am old school, I pop it in a pan on the stove) and "supervises" dishing it up and getting to the TV room in time for Little Einsteins or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.  

The other day she wanted some popcorn at home.  MamieLady makes microwave corn.  Hazel watched her intently and told her Mommy that she wanted to do it.  So MamieLady talked her through it and explained it very carefully, step by step,  and Hazel was proud to pour the freshly popped corn into a bowl and dig in.  The next morning MamieLady came downstairs to find Hazel sitting in the middle of the living room with a bowl of popcorn on her lap, happily munching away.  Stepping into the kitchen, MamieLady found the microwave door open and a kitchen chair pulled up to the counter.  She'll be four years old in August.

Hazel and me is buddies.  She is the smartest kid you will ever meet.  She is witty and does not suffer fools or you fooling her;  she has a special look for those who try...a sort of "You really don't expect me to believe that, do you?" look.  Wherever she is standing, that is her jurisdiction.  Hazel is in charge.