Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Smoky Days and Nights

Ugh. Going to bed with the windows closed and the air conditioning on, because of the smoke from the forest fires. Our eyes are red and our throats are irritated.

And it's going to keep getting worse, every summer. The annual forest fires will die away when there's nothing left to burn in the mountains. Surely there won't be many people living in the mountains, once that happens. There'll be little tourism, summer or winter. The rare heavy snows or rains will mean serious mudslides and flash flooding. Denver won't be covered by smoke from fires then, but it will be covered by dust. Extreme water rationing will mean no more lawns, and we'll all have cacti instead of trees, like Arizona.

Of course, the important question is, what will this mean for the value of our house?

2 comments:

Gary S Sloan said...

It amazes me how irresponsible some people are about water usage. Daily hygiene is important to everyone and is necessary. But hot tubs, swimming pools, gluttonous landscaping are not. Also, large wardrobes, spotless cars, washing driveways and the like are wasteful.

Fresh water is precious and shouldn't be taken for granted. The West will dry up first, sending hoards to wetter areas, only to deplete them faster.

Treat water like it's in short supply (which it is) and the lifestyle we enjoy might survive.

Unknown said...

This was a sobering post, David! I hate having to sleep with the windows closed and AC running. It feels so artificial :( Sadly, what you have to say is no doubt true. I've noticed every year it seems drier and more arid. Pretty soon, we indeed will be like Arizona. Yuck! Not that I dislike Arizona, it just isn't the climate I want to live in. If Colorado becomes like that, I may have to relocate. Which is sad. It's sad the things we have done to destroy the only planet we have to live on (as of now).

@ Gary: I agree that hot tubs and swimming pools are are gluttonous in light of our drying up water supply. A neighbor spends around $500 a month just to water their lawn. I can't imagine spending that on grass!