Don't DO that to me, my nerves can't take it!

With all the fires in central Texas the last few days, I'm jumpy. The greenbelt behind my house is a tinderbox, and I really do live in fear that someone will start a fire back there and we'll have to get the horses - and all the other animals - out very quickly.

So you might understand why I freaked out when I turned down our street today on my way home from work and saw a FIRE TRUCK PARKED IN FRONT OF MY HOUSE.

After leaping from a still-moving vehicle to see where the heck the fire was, I realized that the two firemen attending the truck were just standing there, and there were no smoke or flames to be seen. The other vehicles that were there appeared to be utility trucks... and then one gentleman told me that the utility company had been digging and broken our gas line. The firemen were there as a precaution.

Well why didn't they say so in the first place?!?! I think I just lost several years of life!

(The gas was finally reconnected at 10:30 p.m. Not having any way to cook put a certain crimp in our dinner plans, but was otherwise uneventful. I did thank the firefighters for everything they and their compatriots have been doing out in Bastrop and across the state, though. They're doing an amazing job!)