is there any more pie?

Thursday afternoon our propane fireplace was finally fixed.

Sound the trumpets.

If you remember, it stopped working right after Christmas.  It heats 3/4 of the upstairs.  We moved down to the basement and waited 25 days for the repairman from the local fireplace store and repair shop to fix it.  And then the next day, when I turned on the thermostat, there was a delay between flipping the switch and the fire lighting, resulting in a very loud bang, high flames and the alarming earthquake-like rattling of the glass and frame.

I googled the problem and diagnosed “delayed ignition”.  I would not be able to fix it myself with the help of a Youtube video.

Damn.

I timed the stove.  A five second delay meant a lovely little “poof” noise. Twelve seconds caused a significant but not scary “bang”.  The sixteen-second range was the bad one and happened at least once a day.  We called the stove repair shop and were told they would call us back.  They didn’t.

I should have raised a fit, but there are a number of people who don’t call me back.  There’s a contractor in Austin.  And one here in Rhode Island.  And an electrician.  No, two electricians.  And the guy who is going to take down the rest of The Tree.

BUT Thursday I’d had enough.  I was pissed at the world and about to kick ass (I’d successfully taken on the Austin contractor on Wednesday and was still basking in the glow of accomplishment).  I was prepared to explain that I was sending them a registered, certified letter so that if the stove exploded and took out part of the living room I could sue them.  I dialed the number and put steel in my voice.

Sadly, I didn’t get to say the letter part, but I said a few other things and a very experienced repairman showed up an hour later.  The previous repairman (who was new) had made some serious mistakes when installing new parts.

But that’s not the point of this blog.  Really, you ask?  Then what are you babbling about???

After the stove was fixed I went into the upstairs bathroom, a room that had been closed off since the stove broke, and decided to open the window and air it out (it was 52 degrees and sunny).  I raised the blinds and saw what looked like sugar on the sill.

It was glass.  The top portion of the window was cracked.  All over.  There was a screen on the outside and no dents or holes in it.

What looks like tree branches are actually cracks.

I went outside, but there wasn’t a bit of glass on the gravel.  No obvious rock, dead bird or tree branch.  Conclusion:  the window had imploded all by itself.

Huh???

Did this have something to do with the tree falling and shaking the house?  I would have to call the insurance adjustor and give him a heads up.  He always answers my calls, which is refreshing.

Last night Banjo Man came upstairs for dinner (chicken noodle soup and corn bread) and said, “You have to see this.”

This was not said in a, “There’s a Pekingese puppy who needs a home at the back door” tone.

I braced myself for trouble.

Sure enough, another window had cracked.  Facing south, not north.  Different window, installed at a later date than the bathroom window, but the same style of cracks.

What fresh hell is this????

We will be inspecting all of our windows on a daily basis from now on.  And we’re putting plywood over the broken ones until Spring.

If you have any ideas or suggestions or experience with shattered glass, please please please let me know.

Call it what you will, it’s going to dump a lot of snow on us.  Fluffy snow, thank goodness.  We rarely have the light, fluffy kind here in New England.

It has been snowing for seven hours, but the weatherman this morning said it hasn’t really begun.

Huh?

We’re in the darkest blue band, the one that predicts 24-36″ of snow.

But snow is not the problem.  It’s the 50-70 mph winds anticipated for this afternoon, right here along the coast, that could cause the most damage along with power outages.

Oh my goodness.

I was up at 4:30 this morning, partly because I was tired of listening to the wind and mostly because I wanted coffee before the power went out.

Wouldn’t you?

Daughter Nancy is working double shifts at her assisted living facility this weekend and is grabbing what sleep she can on the floor in an empty room instead of driving in the storm.  There is increasing pressure on the governor to spend some of the Federal “Covid relief money” on giving bonuses to health care workers.  They have worked so hard—and could make a larger hourly salary by working at McDonalds.

My emails to the governor and state representatives go unanswered.

Sigh.

Stay warm and safe, everyone.  We’re hoping the power stays on and, no matter what, won’t be venturing out of the house anytime soon.

We’re expecting a huge blizzard tonight and into Sunday.  Weathermen have been using the phrase “cyclone snow bomb” or some such thing.

They are also predicting up to 34″ of snow.

I know my Idaho and Montana readers are saying, “Ho hum” and wondering what the big deal is.

I know.

But this is a rough winter for us and there is only so much more I can take before throwing my hands up in the air and a “For Sale” sign in the yard.

Just kidding.   Sort of.

After 25 days a repairman came to fix our propane fireplace last week.  It seemed to be fine at first, but the next morning I turned up the thermostat and a huge BANG scared the life out of me.  From what I have googled, this is called “delayed ignition” and there is no quick fix on our part, such as adjusting the pilot, and requires a technician.

Uh, we just had a technician last Thursday.  Banjo Man called the fireplace repair place and they are going to call us back.

We optimistically thought at first that the noise would stop.  But from what I’ve read it’s dangerous and could break the fireplace, especially the glass.

The problem?  We are most likely going to lose power during this storm.  A foot or two or three of snow plus 60 mph winds.  That’s a recipe for disaster.  So with no electric heat and no propane fireplace, our living area is going to be cold.

So we’ll move back to the basement to stay warm, except for trips upstairs to heat water and soup on the gas stove.  Thank goodness we have it!!!

We’ll be fine huddled around the propane stove, at least for a day or two.  We’ll be fine.  And who knows?  Maybe the power will stay on and we’ll roll merrily along as the snow piles up outside.

Today I am making banana bread.  And potato-corn-shrimp chowder in the crock pot.

It’s good to keep busy, otherwise I’d burst into tears every five minutes.  My coping skills are nonexistent this winter, I admit it.

On the upside:  I passed my annual cancer tests this week and am good for another year.