Not Just Another Day in LA: Navigating an Altered Landscape.

The view from my writing desk today was one of my favorites. Computer in my lap, I sat cross-legged, resting against a gnarled oak tree. Its twisted branches jutted out over my head, shielding me like a brave warrior from the violence of today’s searing sun. Lazy turtles sunned on the lower-lying branches that grazed the water. Red dragonflies flitted around me, while drowsy ducks dozed, their beaks tucked under a wing. I sat, resting, writing, noodling in the heart of the city and in the middle of nowhere, all at once.

When it came time to go, I trudged down the dusty path to the parking area, eyeing the sunning turtles, jealous. I dreaded the return to sizzling hot concrete and melting blacktop. This heatwave has gone on too long, and I’m longing for winter.

When I reached the road, I noticed that the “two-way traffic” signs had been removed. The narrow drive around the reservoir is usually one-way, so I was baffled by the two-lane direction signs I discovered when I arrived at the park. Then I shrugged it off. Two-way versus one-way traffic is hardly cause for alarm in these most alarming times.

But the one-way driving direction seemed restored, so I followed the usual route across the dam and along the winding drive. Just tootling, I admired the venerable oaks overhead, the dappled sunlight on the road, and the stark white…