Wood Fires

Fall is a season of crackling: the crackling of dry leaves beneath our feet, the crackling cooking noises of hot breakfasts returning after a summer of fresh fruit and toast, and my favorite, the crackling sound of a wood fire.

I live in Phoenix, Arizona, where we don’t have a very long season of fire-worthy weather -- or, I should say, purposeful-not-burning-down-houses-or-forest fire-worthy weather. (The latter lasts for the hottest four months of the year.) Since we have a short window of opportunity, we take every advantage.

We have a stainless steel fire bowl in our backyard that gets ample use starting right about now. Nights are spent sitting around our mini bonfire with a bottle of wine and a warm sweater -- always one that can be thrown in the washer that night, because it will smell of smoke the next day. The cat casts a wary eye towards the flames and stays far away, knowing that fluffy + sparks = no fun. We watch the flames and embers float towards a sky full of stars and enjoy each other’s company.

A carefully chosen selection of songs is piped out from the living room, usually something martini lounge-ish. Or songs we’ve learned of from the alien ambient station on iTunes radio, just loud enough so as not to cover the sound of the crackling fire. When a bottle or two of wine has been finished, we retire. That’s the nice thing about being a freelancer -- you can help finish off a bottle or two without worrying about staying awake and alert at the office the next day!

We have a gas fireplace in the living room, and we use it often in the cooler months, but it’s not the same as being outdoors with that wild wood fire. As long as I don’t have to carry any wood, that is.