Joy To The World

Day 65: Do you ever go on the app nextdoor? It’s the neighborhood app where your crazy neighbors post crazy things. I turned off my notifications (pre-fire) when a neighbor kept posting if anyone found her cat, Buffy. Usually when Buffy goes missing in our neighborhood it’s because Wile E. Coyote got hungry. Since the fires, I’ve been browsing nextdoor more and more. The post below caught my eye. I edited it from the original:

“It’s simply not true that nothing could have been done to stop the Palisades fire. Fires like this don’t just happen out of nowhere—there were multiple opportunities to mitigate the damage and potentially prevent it from getting out of control.”

1. Pre-deploying fire trucks – Officials knew about the incoming wind event, yet fire resources weren’t strategically placed ahead of time.

2. Fire spotters – With strong winds and dry conditions, having dedicated spotters in high-risk areas could have caught the fire early.

3. Functional fire hydrants – It’s unacceptable that hydrants lacked water.

4. Alternative water sources – Once it was clear there was no water in the hydrants, additional trucks with water should have been immediately dispatched. Firefighters could have also utilized residential pools as an emergency water source.

5. Reservoir levels – The two reservoirs in the Palisades should have been full and ready for emergency use.

6. Fire breaks and brush clearance – More could have been done in advance to create defensible spaces and slow the fire’s spread.

7. Aerial fire retardant drops – Planes should have been deployed earlier to contain the fire before it grew out of control.

8. More water-dropping aircraft – There were only two available water-dropping planes, and one was taken out of service due to a drone.

9. Leadership and planning – This is not the first time we’ve faced a fire like this. The Woolsey Fire, the 2021 Palisades Fire, and the Getty Fire should have been learning experiences. Leaders should have had a well-prepared, well-practiced response plan.

— T.C.M. (Nextdoor Post)

“Jeremiah was a bullfrog. Was a good friend of mine. I never understood a single word he said. But I helped him a-drink his wine. And he always had some mighty fine wine.”

Buffy? Here Buffy? Here’s my gut reaction to T.C.M.’s post. First and foremost bush management, I mean brush management, is critical. Honestly, I agree with T.C.M. After seeing the level of destruction, no doubt Mother Nature went Linda Blair on the Palisades. However, I think the Fire Exorcist could have arrived earlier and should have been more prepared. You know the scene where The Exorcist walks in the room and Linda Blair’s head is spinning, her bed is bouncing, and she’s using a cross like a “Jeff Lowy Your House Burnt Down Gift?” (see prior post). The Palisades fire response was equivalent to the Exorcist walking into Linda’s room and saying, “Linda, please open the Calm app on your mobile device. It will help calm your nerves. Linda, come down from the ceiling now.” Buffy?

Great leaders take ownership. Shitty leaders blame others. Here are some Karen Bass quotes I found to help evaluate her level of accountability versus her level of blame. You be the judge.

"Rest assured that ...when that is done, when we are safe, when lives have been saved and homes have been saved, we will absolutely do an evaluation to look at what worked, (and) what didn't work.

"LA has to be strong, united. We will reject those who seek to divide us and seek to misinform.”

"Acting in the best interests of Los Angeles’ public safety, and for the operations of the Los Angeles Fire Department, I have removed Kristin Crowley as Fire Chief. We know that 1,000 firefighters that could have been on duty on the morning the fires broke out were instead sent home on Chief Crowley’s watch.”

Uh.. Buffy? Here Buffy. Seems to me that KB punted responsibility and blamed the Fire Chief. KB’s quotes are like The Exorcist saying, “We will do a deeper dive once Linda comes down from the ceiling. In the meantime, I’m going to fire her therapist and yoga instructor. Both should have recognized that when your daughter’s head began rotating like a merry go round, more downward dogs weren’t going to help.”

“Singin' joy to the world. All the boys and girls now. Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me.”

Do I sound angry? Probably. It’s definitely part of the grieving process. And since now I realize grief has no end, I accept anger at times. I try not to let it sit with me too long. But I know it’s there. Sometimes Often I use sarcasm and humor to deal with my emotions. It helps me mask my true feelings. My therapist would tell me that’s not the healthiest way to deal with things. But since I don’t have a therapist, fuck it. You do you. Me do me.

Over the weekend Wendy and I went to Palm Springs. Chris and Sean, Wendy’s college Peeps, were hosting (3) couples for a weekend getaway. I know Chris and Sean well. Awesome Peeps. I met Anne and Jon once. Had briefly met Gardner (Lisa). And hadn’t met her husband Blair. Blair looks like Peyton Manning. Sean looks like Steve Kerr. Jon looks like John. I look like my forehead is getting bigger and my belly button has turned into a triangle that needs cleaning. See if you agree.

All the girls are sorority sisters. The met at UC Davis. All the guys were along for the ride. I could use a ride. The weekend reminded me of the movie “The Big Chill.” The UC Davis Chill. The tagline in The Big Chill is: “In a cold world you need your friends to keep you warm.” In the movie, the friends are mourning the loss of their friend. In Palm Springs, the friends were mourning the loss of 1057. Our loss. The weekend was planned before the loss, but I could tell everyone was grieving with us. They were all warming our chill. Our weekend blanket. Everyone loves their weekend blanket. I could see why Wendy always looked forward to being with them. Totally chill. Totally Big Chill.

We had a nice Italian dinner on night 1. Steve Kerr and I even shared entrees. Chill. Day 2, we played golf and I rode with Peyton Manning. Chill. The girls had a spa day and we met them for drinks and a great “family style” dinner. Chill. The rest of the night and the next morning is what made me think of The Big Chill. The (8) of us just sat around and talked. For me, the sit around and talk thing happens mostly when I visit my cousins for Thanksgiving. Otherwise, I usually sit around and watch sports. My Father In Law has pointed out this behavior. He enjoys more chill and less sports. He makes a good point. Maybe I should Big Chill more?

I learned a lot during the UC Davis Chill. Gardner was telling stories about her Mom. Her stories sounded like her Mom had just passed away. Actually, they were stories from 30 years ago. Her Mom was obviously special to her. Her Mom’s legacy is ingrained in her because of the Mom she was. You could hear it. You could feel it. It was inspiring . It made me think about my Dad. His would have been 88th birthday was yesterday. Happy Birthday Dad. It also made me think about own legacy. How do I want to be spoken about 30 years after?

I shared the story of The Bomber Way and how Bomber taught me that we all have control over of how we act. How we respond. Even during our most difficult times. I learned that Jon also had a fraternity brother who died from ALS (like Bomber). Jon went through what I went through. We’re all at that age where everyone has experienced levels of pain. Levels of loss, struggle, and sacrifice. Gardner lost her Mom when she was young. Chris and Sean are currently coping with aging parents. In the long run, if you’re lucky, we will all experience grief. And the journey that accompany’s grief. We all have and/or will be tested. True character is how you respond. Personal growth is the silver lining of our struggles. And this weekend reinforced that a great strategy to help us conquer get through our struggles, is The Big Chill. The UC Davis Chill.

“And if I were the king of the world. Tell you what I'd do. I'd throw away the cars and the bars and the war. Make sweet love to you. Sing it now, joy to the world. All the boys and girls
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me.”

This week Julia also enjoyed The Big Chill. Her camp friend Anet came to visit. We got to chillin’ about work, friends, 1057 memories, and more. When we got back from dinner, Anet gave us a painting her Dad had been working on. Before I unwrapped it she said, “My Dad painted this specifically for The Broudy’s.” I had never met Anet’s Dad. How does he know the type of art we’d want in our new home? So, just as I’m getting ready to deliver my best fake, “Thank you. This is so nice of him,” I unwrap this…

A 2025 Moskovich special. Specially painted from the heart. WOW. No fake thank you needed. Just real tears. Real humanity. A fond and real thank you to Mr. M. And thanks Anet for The Big Chill. It meant a lot.

“You know I love the ladies. Love to have my fun. I'm a high life flyer and a rainbow rider. A straight shootin' son-of-a-gun. I said a straight shootin' son-of-a-gun.”

I know I still get angry about the fires. My triggers are 1) when I read articles or posts like the one T.C.M. published; and 2) when I visit the neighborhood. This week, Wendy and I visited the Palisades. Rachel Jeck referred a service called, Samaritan’s Purse: Helping in Jesus’ Name. Sign us up. Basically, they are volunteers who go through your ashes in search of hope. In our case, the focus was Wendy’s wedding ring. Bill and The Malboro Man found her original wedding ring. However, the lost ring was an upgrade ring. Thank you Stopwatch Entertainment Network. It was an inspirational group of (8) volunteers that sifted through ash in search of Wendy’s ring. A Needle In A Haystack: Helping in Jesus’s Name. Patty, the team leader said they do it because they like meeting people and providing some level of hope. They are “hope providers.” Wendy’s ring was on her nightstand next to the bed. We directed the team to the area we thought the ring might be. While they sifted, I reminisced. I went back and forth between anger and memories.

I played emotional ping pong as I remembered 1057. Here’s where I BBQ’d Dodger Dogs during Playoff and World Series games.

Here’s where I swam laps after a work out. The most memorable pool moment was when Chayim jumped in after the Rams beat the Bengals 23-20 to win Super Bowl LVI. Brother Markus (R.I.P.) was by my side.

And this was my favorite view of 1057. Almost every day I’d sit on the fire pit bench and just gaze out. I’d repeat, “Be grateful. Be giving. You have everything in life you will ever need.”

Today, I sat there. I closed my eyes and remembered when. I remembered when we built 1057, the fun we had, the memories we made. The Big Chills. I reminded myself how lucky we are. We get to choose how we respond. We also get to remember our favorite views.

The Samaritan’s searched and searched, but they didn’t find Wendy’s ring. However, we did find strength. Strength in knowing that no matter how divisive our world may become, there are decent people all around us. All of these volunteers were here today because they wanted to help. They wanted to give back. They poured their hearts into our ash and never lost hope. During our goodbyes, Patty gave Wendy a Bible. I’ve never read The Bible. If I couldn’t finish my goal setting book, how could I ever finish The Bible? I glanced through it. Each Samaritan signed our copy with a short note. Their messages had common themes: “We pray for you.” “We hope you find strength to move forward.” “We are grateful to share this time with you.” That was page 1. Page 2: In the beginning there was darkness and then God created 1057.

“Joy to the world. Joy to you and me. Joy to the world. All the boys and girls now
Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. Joy to you and me.”

Love and peace is all around us. Good, decent people, is what brings Joy to the World. That, and a Big Chill.

Thank you Samaritan’s Purse for searching for Wendy’s ring. It’s ok that you didn’t find it. Maybe you can help find Buffy? “Here Buffy… Here Buffy…”