We’ve had a rough run in terms of air quality this past week. Smoke from the wildfires in California and Oregon has swept up the coast and sat on us like a cat. Gone the rosy mornings and hazy afternoons, replaced by chalky grey everywhere.

And the air quality index has gone through the roof. Not nearly as bad as Portland’s 400+, but bad enough that I’ve finally started to feel it.

I’ve mourned, a bit, the losing of our late summer days to smoke. But there is at least one silver lining: apparently thick smoke is good at shielding gardenia blossoms from sunburn.

And they still smell as lovely as ever.