rss
Not the day I had in mind
Well, I did say that I was going to hop back in the saddle again and start posting normally on this blog again today. Reality didn’t quite cooperate with my intentions. It snowed again. More like still snowing since Friday. The storm today, though, meant business. The snow shovel and I spent a lot of quality time together. There’s more forecast for tonight.
And then it was time to drag some wood in the house. I made a heart-drops-to-my-toes discovery. The tarp sprung a leak from the sharp ice that formed on top of it and the first three layers of the woodpile were wet and frozen solid. Damn, damn, damn. Not only did I have to chisel the woodpile apart and readjust it, I spent considerable time dragging in extra wood to start drying it out. I’ve been rotating wood on top of, beside, and behind the stove all day long. It’s going to take a few days to dry the wood out. And there’s a whole lot more outside where that came from. I simply hate (formerly dry) wet wood. It is the bane of winter.
I suppose this means I’ll have to replace the tarp. And this was a heavy-duty tarp, too.
And, meanwhile, the lad returns from Alabama tonight, I think. I was toying with the idea of going down to fetch him tonight since I have to drop my car off at the mechanic’s shop tomorrow morning. If I don’t go get him tonight, he probably won’t be back home until the weekend. He wants to come home soonest. But, as far as I know, they haven’t arrived at the airport yet. They were trying to get an earlier flight today, but there was still some thought that they might not be able to get in until eleven o’clock-ish (providing nothing is canceled or delayed)....just about the time the next snow is supposed to start vigorously falling. I don’t really want to drive in a snowstorm. So that whole situation is still up in the air. Much just...depends.
Well, since I will be grounded beyond where my two legs and feet can carry me for the next couple of days, I’ll probably be around here a whole lot more. Keep your fingers crossed that things sort themselves out tonight before I go bonkers from pacing and that my car doesn’t cost the earth to repair. I don’t know what’s wrong with it...nothing seems to be overtly wrong...but the engine light won’t go off and I just know that a simple little thing like that will devolve into a costly saga all of its own. It’s totally inevitable.
The engine light could be as simple as a stupid rocker switch which has malfunctioned, thus leaving a sensor open. That’s my problem with my printer. Problem is, the sensor is under the scanner glass and not easily accessible with only two hands, so I’m about to resort to knocking on neighbors’ doors.
Oh, and maybe an industrial-strength hair dryer would work on frozen woodpiles.
From your lips to God’s ears. I want my car back SOON and I want it to be a simple and inexpensive repair!!
Re: woodpile. I discovered that taking a log and smashing it repeatedly against the woodpile, using all of my pent up frustration, worked really well. At least the wood came unstuck easily. Drying them out is a tedious process that can’t be rushed. Unfortunately.
When the lad gets home (he was in O’Hare around 7:30ish), I’ll have him drag yet more wood inside to get a head start on drying. If I have a two week supply in here, I should have some good dry wood by the end of the first week and I’ll have to stay on top of it henceforth. I’ll limp along in the meantime with the dry logs from the middle of the woodpile. Don’t want to use them all up. I’m sure I’ll need them later in the winter, too.
What I need, obviously, is a wood shed.
How awful! And you are going to need all the wood you can get by Friday as the forecast is for the day to start with temps around 2°--however, by a week from today, they are supposed to be averaging 58°--good old NE weather.
You should check out Bldg 19 to see what, if anything they might have in sheds for cheap you could use for your wood. Or something that could go over it and protect better than a tarp. That has to be so frustrating for you.
On a happier note, I think you might be done with snow. We are supposed to be down here and only ended up with 2-3” for the entire day of snow. So not so bad, I was just outside and it felt wonderful........course I did not stay out long!
Good luck with the wood. Wish I could come up with an easier solution for you…
The lad was going to build me a wood shed last summer, but he had to depart a month earlier than anticipated, so we never got around to it. This summer, that will be first on the list. Doesn’t need to be elegant, just protected. And behind the house. I’m tired of stacking wood where it is visible from the street, too.
I’m desperately trying to dry enough wood to get us through this next cold snap. It’s going to be bitter cold. Fortunately, it’s not that cold today, so I don’t need a roaring fire. Just enough to keep the stove warm so it can dry wood. Doesn’t really take much heat to do it. Wood stove heat is very dry and, of course, my hair is crackling today, it’s so dry in here. I’ll use the January thaw to dry it out at a slightly more leisurely pace. Another day like this and I’ll be ready for the padded rubber room.
I noticed the radar maps show the storm moving north and out to sea. I went out for a while to stock up on a few things and found a couple of stars in the sky and the roads quite driveable. Just wet, mostly. Looks like I won’t have to contend with snow on the drive down tonight to pick the lad up. His flight should be getting in around 10:30.
Kind of an off-hand observation, but every time the lad shows up on my doorstep the snow stops. When he leaves, it snows. What’s up with that?
Re the lad’s arrival/departure and snowfall: I’m sure it’s a sign coincidental. 
Check engine lights, more often than not, show some sort of problem with the emission system, but it could be something as simple as a loose gas cap. I’ve had that happen before on my Toyota and when I tightened the cap the check engine light reset itself in a couple of days. Now I always make sure the cap is tight when I get gas.
If you’re lucky it will only be an oxygen sensor or something like that!
I hope you have a trustworthy mechanic! My Toyota dealer is lousy and is always trying to push things I don’t need on me at exorbitant rates.
Linkmeister, you know what I think? I think the snow gods find it far more entertaining when I shovel snow than when the lad does. They’re not nice people.
Fred, yes, I do trust my mechanic. I don’t take my car to the Toyota place if I can possibly help it because they do try to replace everything. My mechanic has always been square with me and explains everything and even chides me for waiting until the last minute to do some jobs because I’d have saved myself money if I’d had it done before a small job became a larger job. He also knows that I know just enough about cars that he’s not going to get away with much. I don’t know that he’d try, though. He depends on repeat business. He’s a good guy. My car is reaching middle age where some things are going to start needing replacement. I’m keeping my fingers tightly crossed today.
reaching middle age where some things are going to start needing replacement
Hey!
