Last night, I saw video footage of Salem, just under an hour south of here, getting clear skies for the first time in nearly a week.
Today, Portland's smoke cover was thinner; the sun here, a little brighter. Air quality, hazardous but not as hazardous, which is progress at least.
I even got out of the house, for the first time since my brief drive Thursday. Through the neighborhood to Space Monkey Coffee to get a roast beef sandwich on a bagel and a latté to go. While waiting I closed my eyes, to minimize the irritation from smoke. Amy, one of the staffers there, mentioned a particular thing she is happy with: the café can use home-grown tomatoes. My bagel sandwich got one. Stuff still grows!
And conditions, little by little, incrementally, are improving.
Rain would be...helpful. But except for a brief drizzle around midnight last night, Portland hasn't gotten rain yet. Luckily, the Oregon Coast did get decent rain, it looks like.
Hoping for more of the better. Better is possible.