🌫️ When the Air Isn’t Clear: A Practical Guide to Wildfire Smoke

The haze we’ve been seeing around Sussex County isn’t fog, humidity, or your glasses needing a wipe. It’s wildfire smoke drifting from Canada, or Oregon.

And if you’re thinking, I don’t remember this happening when the kids were little, you’re right. These smoke events are new in how often they’re happening and how noticeable they’ve become. There are many reasons why we're seeing smoke now.

Wildfire smoke can travel astonishing distances. When big fires burn, the jet stream can carry that smoke into New Jersey. Three things are making this more common. The fires are burning bigger and longer than they used to. Forests have more dry fuel lying around, dead trees, brush, and undergrowth, and are steering smoke plumes toward the northeast more often. And weather patterns drive smoke into areas that have not experienced them before, including New Jersey.

Wildfire smoke contains tiny particles so small they can slip deep into the lungs, which is why even healthy people sometimes feel uncomfortable on smoky days. Symptoms include scratchy throat, watery eyes, headaches, and fatigue.

If you have asthma, allergies, or heart issues, you might feel it more strongly. But you can protect yourself. Check the air quality reading every day. I find it on the weather app on my iPhone. If it is not good, I limit my time outside. Close the windows, run the air conditioning on recirculate, and use a HEPA purifier if you have one. If you must be outside for extended periods wear an N95 or KN95 mask. Hydrate, and rest, because your body works harder when the air quality dips.

Even though the big fires are happening far away, local towns still have a role to play. Things like clearing dead brush in parks, maintaining hiking trails, and keeping public spaces free of dry debris help reduce the chance of smaller fires becoming bigger ones. Counties can also use early‑detection tools, like remote cameras, lightning‑strike monitors, satellite alerts to catch small fires quickly. And on the neighborhood level, simple habits like following burn rules and reporting smoke early make a real difference.

These steps don’t stop Canadian wildfires, but they do strengthen local resilience.

Do you wonder why it seems to rain more when smoke is around? Believe it or not, smoke particles can act a bit like “cloud seeds,” helping droplets form. Smoke doesn’t create storms, but it can make existing clouds more likely to produce rain. If you think the smoky conditions have led to more rain, your observations are spot‑on.

We can’t control what’s happening hundreds of miles away, but we can control how we respond. Staying informed, protecting indoor air, and adjusting outdoor plans on smoky days keeps you safe without adding stress. And if the sky looks strange, you’re not imagining it. I marveled at bright orange moon on Friday night. Then I realized it foreshadowed compromised air quality for the following day. We must take steps to protect our health, and with better forest management and a changing weather pattern, we can hope these conditions are transient and we will not experience them in the years ahead.

The Platinum Bicuspid: Hardcover

On August 3, 2026, "The Platinum Bicuspid" will publish as a hardcover, making the entire series available for library purchase. If you think your local library would like to add all three books to their collection, let them know they can be purchased through Ingram Spark. And if you must stay inside, read a book!

We can only hope that the August weather is better than July. Enjoy the first week of August, and if you haven't already, plan an adventure before the summer ends. I have put my writing ambitions on the back burner during these summer months but know there will be a long winter ahead, with plenty of time to write. If I'm motivated, I may have time to publish book four in 2026. I know what it's going to be about and can't wait! Until next time, enjoy your week. Best wishes always, Joanne