Had today been a normal day, the sun would have set exactly mid-span of the Golden Gate Bridge as viewed from the North Berkeley Hills. Today was not a normal day. Today—because of the fire that destroyed most of city of Paradise—Northern California has the dubious distinction of having the worst air quality in the entire world. Still, as I said in an email to family members, we’re all alive and our homes are intact.

Sun sets through the smoke from the Camp fire in Northern California. This photograph was taken from the North Berkeley Hills. ©2018 Michael Scandling