Flames of History
Channel: David Rovics
Date: 2020-09-11

Greetings from Portland, which has the most toxic air of any major city on Earth today.  And other cities in Oregon have suffered far worse than bad air in the past few days.

Lyrics:

Flames of History

Play another game of Scrabble, put the kids to bed
Marvel with them at the way the sky is turning red 
Keep close tabs on the news, where the fires have arrived
Bags packed and ready, if we need to run for our lives
See the world darken in the middle of the day
Hear the stories of the people whose towns were burned away

The tens of thousands driving, obeying the mandate
To move faster than the fire and evacuate
To a parking lot in Clackamas, camping in the smoke
Wondering what remains unburnt, unbroke
If things had been unpredictable, they just got even more
As fire burns the world from the mountains to the shore

Will this place exist tomorrow, it's just a mystery
As we're living through the flames of history

Play another game of Scrabble, rallies have to wait
Even the most dedicated aren't out to demonstrate
Maybe packing their belongings or helping others do the same
Almost missing all the tear gas, before the fires came
They call this the city of bridges, but if we get the cue
To evacuate due north, there are only two

Chorus

Play another game of Scrabble, follow every tweet
Of anyone who might be vaguely related to the beat
Say sorry to the kids for always looking at my phone
Their alerts app doesn't work, no message and no tone
If you don't have a way to fly, there's nowhere much to go
Just look out at the horizon, hope not to see it glow

Chorus

Play another game of Scrabble, put the kids to bed