In Los Angeles, we tend to think of weather in apocalyptic terms because we’re not that used to it. One drop of rain falls, and we go into crisis mode. It’s a stereotype that I freely admit has a basis in fact. I have seen weather on the ground in Arizona, New Mexico, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Oregon, Washington, Wisconsin, Iowa, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Kansas, Hawaii, and Florida, and some of the stuff they’ve got? Wow. (Florida, if all that delicious rain is why you have flying cockroaches, I’m staying here.)

We do have weather-related winds and wildfires. And we have random earthquakes, one of which will no doubt hit us as hard as Katrina or Harvey someday. Earthquakes are not as random as we’d like to believe. But seeing Harvey…

Houston is in my prayers.

Our family was camping in the west when Katrina made landfall and because we didn’t have any media other than what we brought with us–our books, our videos, our favorite music–we were ignorant while the worst was happening and the flooding surpassed everyone’s fears. That time, we weren’t aware of anything outside our campfire light and I wonder now how I didn’t just feel the agony of it–like in Star Wars when the Death Star blows up a planet.

As Houston faces its crisis, OMG Gulf Coasters! People are doing heroic things. I am watching what you’re going through in real time and I am so sorry for the suffering and uncertainty you’re facing right now. I want do something meaningful to help, and thank heavens, through social media and community relationships everyone can…

I can’t recommend or comment or offer advice on which relief agency is best, but I trust NPR to present sources worthy of review through Charity Navigator. NPR’s page is HERE.

Meanwhile, on this coast…

There IS an excessive heat warning in Southern California as well right now. We all need to be on hyper-alert status for those vulnerable people: babies, the elderly, the sick, the homeless, and those with outdoor jobs.

It might be Monday before this heat breaks up.  Use sunscreen, stay hydrated, and take shade breaks. Being locked in cars is lethal. Don’t leave pets or kids –for even a minute–in a car. Every second counts. If you see a person or pet locked in a car it is a true emergency.

Stay Positive.

I wanted to put positivity into practice, like rain does with rainbows but…I’ve got nothing. I planned to Aphorize, but politics is crap, the weather in Houston is crap, the heat wave here is crap. So… I’m going to randomly select a page from my planner and give you the quote that I find there. Ah…

“Leadership is the expectation that you can use your voice for good. That you can make the world a better place.” Sheryl Sandberg.

Which reminds me why planners are awesome; mine reminded me not to lose all hope because:

PEOPLE ARE AWESOME!

Ordinary men and women are heroes in Houston because of who they are. They’re heroes out of necessity and courage and good will. Some are such heroes they won’t feel successful if they don’t win every battle they fight against mother nature and human frailty, so some of them are going to come away with broken hearts. Most are probably not getting anything in return but the knowledge they tried and the nameless pleasure that being decent puts in one’s heart.

People are out there making the world a better place every day.

Patience is possible. (Or so I hear.)

I am not a patient person, but over the years I have learned ways to let go of the things that I can’t change, even if it’s just for a little while, say the time it takes to read a really good book. If I don’t have the capacity for narrative, I read cookbooks. I like to find ways to help and I use these to deal with the anxiety that crops up around disasters on the news.

I use apps like calm.com for mediation and others for white noise. I listen to audio books when I can’t turn the worry off. Unstuck.com can be an awesome way to get past something that’s keeping you worrying and I’ve seen professionals with regard to work related stress and the changing world. I’m making sure to double check my health goals every day because those healthy behaviors are always the first to go, and you can’t run from zombies (or nazis) if you can’t run, amiright?

Also. Ask for Help.

I don’t always know who to ask individually. I only know that if you’re drowning in rain or sweat or anxiety or the day to day pressure of living in a world that seems a little scary right now: #NEVERGIVEUP