Nothing Much Else Happened: October 20, 1978

Today, the horror that started 3 days ago is finally over. I got back on the roof and washed all the ashes off the roof. Everything was covered with ashes, and even our house still smells a bit like smoke. The Malibu-Agoura fire was the worst of all. It destroyed about 200 homes in all, including my old english teacher, Mr. Pereira's house. In all, the 9 fires that happened over the past 3 days, took over 25o buildings.

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I remember being devastated for Mr. Pereira. If our class had worked particularly hard and done well, he would reward us by brining in his old LPs and 78s and entertain us with songs from the 1930s and 1940s (i.e., "Mairzy Doats") and old radio comedy sketches (i.e., "The Bickersons"). His entire collection went with his house in the fire. He never seemed as happy again after this. At the end of the school year, he retired.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 13.

What's this all about? This is what it's all about.

To view the next day click: October 21, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: October 19, 1978

Today the rest of our fire was extinguished. There is still another fire up around Malibu that is still out of control. The fire was responsible for 30 homes and one church being ruined. (I watched the church burn down from the tree) When we got to P.E. today, the field was covered with horse-you-know-what. (One news report said: "Paul Revere should have the greenest grass in all of California with the fertilizer they're getting.") There were still 3 or 4 horses left on the field when we got there.

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All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 13.

What's this all about? This is what it's all about.

To view the next day click: October 20, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: October 18, 1978

Today, I woke up, threw on some clothes, and ran outside to see how the fire was doing — and it was all gone! I got my first look at the hill in daylight, and it was not a pretty sight. The frames of the few houses and the church were all that was left. We had no school today because Paul Revere is an evacuation center. I spent most of last night either up on our roof watering it down or in the tree next door watching the fire. The fire's not out yet, but the danger for us is gone.

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That night watering the roof and watching the progress of the fire in the neighbor's tree (greatest climbing tree *ever*) is one of those indelible memories. Strange to be on your roof with your garden hose and look down the block and see someone on every roof doing the same. I was truly scared.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 13.

What's this all about? This is what it's all about.

To view the next day click: October 19, 1978

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Nothing Much Else Happened: October 17, 1978

Today is probably one of the most scary days of my life. At 4:19 P.M. this afternoon the first flames of a fire that had been burning since this morning appeared over the hills close to the Palisades (city). In about 45 minutes, the whole hillside for 4 miles around had been charred by the fire. Right now, we are praying and hoping that it doesn't get too close to us. It's already in the Pacific Palisades area right now, and it has burned about 19 homes. I hope to God this is not the last entry in my diary — it's moving toward us.

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I refuse to spoil whether or not I survive.

All punctuation and spelling has been retained precisely as I wrote it 32 years ago at age 13.

What's this all about? This is what it's all about.

To view the next day click: October 18, 1978

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