See the video in that article.

Yesterday afternoon I sat in the backyard with my son talking about some things going on in his life: starting high school, girls, dating, etc. It was 4:30 pm. But, it was as dark as 9 pm. A huge, black cloud of ash passed overhead, completely blocking the sun. Then, pieces of black, burned wild grasses started raining down on us as we talked about things. Years of failing to manage our forestry (in spite of multiple fees charged to the citizens of California to manage the forest for a couple decades) has resulted in a literal firestorm. This morning, my pool was full of black ash. As we talked I thought back on his past. He once struggled with severe autism as a baby. At that time a movie came out that I thought really represented what it felt like to be a father of a son with autism. That movie is The Road, with Viggo Mortensen. If you haven't seen that move, see it. It is powerful with many scenes shot in actual post-apocalyptic areas of America (the Pittsburgh rust belt, post-Katrina New Orleans, Mt. Saint Hellens, etc.) The movie isn't an easy watch. It's severe. But...that's what I felt like at that time. I applied science, figured out what injured him, and we now have a son who's a marvel of modern science. He's a beautiful, functional kid - kind, handsome, loving. So...I couldn't help but think back about the darker days and when I first saw The Road. Then, it dawned on me. The landscape here in the west is now much like that in the movie. Just yesterday morning in our neighborhood (which is a nice hood) there was a hobo camping on the sidewalk of our park, much like the thief in the movie. Destruction is all around us now in California...and here I sat talking with my son in our backyard - talking about life, as a huge, dark cloud turned day into night. It was just surreal. And, I thought I'd share. Funny how art, literature, etc. can really grab us. Just today, in a conversation with a good friend about the stock market I said, "We can ignore reality. But, we can't ignore the consequences of ignoring reality." -Ayn Rand