Purple haze over Plumas County, CA

Well, maybe pink, or even salmon-colored.

When I popped my trunk this morning, ash floated around me, sliding off my car. A fire was moving in our direction, but there was no real sign of it... yet.

By the time we were packing up the bookmobile, the skies were an ominous color, thick with sooty clouds. The sky was reminiscent of an threatening tornado, or a variety of impending doom. The ash and thickening smoke also began to coat our lungs, and caused my head to ache. The fire was about 35 miles away, and according to a fire services official, there were 1000 people dedicated to fighting this fire. As we drove in the opposite direction, we continued to skirt around the growing ash clouds, and by the time we reached Nevada City, the sun was a bright pink, and the sky resembled dusk, yet the ash had subsided, as did my headache.