15° this morning after 10° yesterday morning. Put a small propane heater in the little geenhouse along with the electric....been staying around 60°. The sun keeps it toasty during the day with out any help from the heaters. Really looking forward to the "spring weather" this week. Maybe we won't need that fire :)
Blustery days ahead... let's stay warm by this fire!
Dennist ~ I want to come stay in your GH!
Off to walk with the dogs ~ Brrrr!
It was 12 here yesterday and ( just up the road two miles, I do not know this morning, I'm not going out to check. I will go out after it warms up enough to thaw out some peoples pipes so I can fix their problems, if there are any. I was in the AC business in 1983 and was just setting down to Christmas dinner with my family , on Christmas eve, when I got a call to check on a customer's leaking pipes. The customer was a corp. lawyer and quite wealthy . I was greeted at the door by a very lovely young lady in beautiful evening dress and she said you must be the plumber. I said no but I am here to fix you pipes. She showed me to the kitchen where their Ruby, ( their maid ) showed me to the basement. It was in two feet of water and I worked most of the night.
I came up to use the phone to try to fine a pump and get back up, got the pump but no back up. After I used the phone I walked past the den, where the young lady and here sister were singing Christmas carols by a piano, that was being played by someone I thought was very good. The young lady came over and apologized for calling me a plumber and offered me some cookies she had baked herself. As I was eating her cookie, I looked at the pianist and said, " he's pretty good". She replied, " he's Van Cliburn ". I must of had a puzzled look because she asked if I knew who that was. No I replied. She said, he is considered on of the best pianist of our time and asked if I would like to meet him. The only thing I remember about him was very soft hands and a not so manly grip. What I will never forget, was that lovely lady who was so gracious to someone who give up their Christmas dinner to help them with their problem. We all need help sometimes and it is so nice to be appreciated by others. I say this as I am heading out to crawl under someone home to check their pipes and make sure their problems are over.
Bless You Ken, it is heroic people like you that make it possible for chickens like us to cope with the difficulties of life.
We need more people like you.
Josephine.
I feel at the height of my own stupidity. I have faithfully turned off the water supply to the house and drained the pipes each time we have temps predicted to be in the 20's. Night before last, I did the same routine, made sure all exposed supply pipes were wrapped and being the dumb a*!#s I am, I forgot to open the supply line valve to the pool fill line. Of course it froze and at 6:39 a.m. yesterday morning I heard it pop. Luckily, it was where the pvc pipe connected to galvanized, just above the valve, so I had a threaded pipe end to work with. I found a cap at Home Depot and closed that off so I had water through the day yesterday and it made it fine last night. I have plumbers already scheduled for Monday, so they can fix that busted line while they're here. I've been battling no water at the kitchen sink for over two weeks and now the hot water line to the master bath is off too. All that's from the sediment/rust in the pipe. I'll be so glad when this is all fixed and done with. My poor husband's chemo is a drug that makes him sensitive to cold. He can't even touch a cool glass without the bad pins and needles in his fingers. That's made him unable to do any of the outside water on/off, walk the dog, or do anything outdoors. The timing for the cold sensitivity drug was really tough with our coldest temps in decades. Ah, well, at least the drug has helped with his pain, so it's well worth the sensitivity. Hope all of you haven't had any busted pipes.
Oh! I am so sorry, bless you, with all the illness then problems this other things too. You were very well prepared but with all the problems and difficulties you forgot the pool, that is very understandable and not stupid at all.
I hope it all gets fixed for you soon.
Josephine.
Josephine, you have to be one of the kindest people I've ever known. You are always the first to say something pleasant and offer encouragement to everyone. Thank you.
Thanks to all of the rest of you too. I do appreciate my garden buddies and all the sympathy and encouragement I'm given while dealing with DH's cancer.
Crow
Ya know, reading these posts made me think "this is a really wonderful group of people" and I am glad to get to have this contact with such fine people!
Hopefully this year I will get to meet some of you in person! I'm sure the Swaps are going to be interesting. With all this unusual weather, who knows what plants everyone will come up with...... I'm thinking some really nice surprises are in store ~ in spite of some disappointing casualties!
Crow, you have so much going on dealing with your DH's treatments, probably taking care of all the household responsibilities, as well as trying to save all your plants and things. It's no wonder you forgot something. Nothing stupid about that; you're probably under an enormous load of stress. Thankfully you were able to do a quick fix on the busted pipe and the plumbers will be there tomorrow to fix it for you and get you all squared away.
Praying for your DH's treatments and overall health to stay good so the treatments can continue as scheduled. Praying for God's peace and comfort to surround you as you take care of him and all the household chores.
Crow, I suggest you also post a line on the prayer forum. When we lost our grandson last April I posted. The response has been overwhelming and truly has kept me from loosing my mind. Sincere prayer every single day. This site is populated by the very best of the best. I'm so sorry for your trials. This is not meant as a trite statement as I have experienced it for myself and am still in the middle of it, "what doesn't kill us, makes us stronger". The support of DG will give strength like none other, even my Sunday School class. I continue to pray for your husband's healing and the strength for you to carry through.
Christi
Those are sincere words from one who knows profound sorrow.
Picture of ducks near the open water of a frozen pond
Cool photo Bananna ~ they look like I feel... all hunkered down and frosty.
Putting another log on this fire!
I cleaned out my closet today and found the container I had stashed my long johns in. I told DH cold weather was officially over now that I could wear them. He smugly reminded me I said something similar when I put the flannel sheets on the bed earlier this winter. Wrong again!
Crowelli ~ no busted pipes here but I am impressed! I will certainly call you if I do. LOL There is some satisfaction in knowing we are capable of handling lifes' little aggravations that come our way! Good going and good luck with your plumbers!
Heated up a tub of homemade chili and roasted some Zummos on a long handled fork over this very fire. Warm and yummy! Stay warm all.
Pod, great minds think alike! I made chili yesterday, but I didn't make a big enough pot since it's all already gone! I think it's time for a big pot of soup next.
My hands are still cold. I had to go out this afternoon to break off and remove 2" of ice that had formed on the surface of a 9' stock tank. I had to turn the water off 3 other tanks and they are empty, but I'll turn the water back on tomorrow when are due for a break and above freezing temperature. The weird thing is that the 6' tank in this pasture did not freeze.
I had intended to pick up a shovel from the barn on my way out to drop garbage bags into the cans by the front gate before going to check on the tank, but forgot. Once I was out there, I really didn't want to have to come back so I improvise and used a big rock. It worked, but I had to dip my hands into that ice water to get the chunks out. I had to quite when my hands were so cold they hurt, but I got most of the ice out. That tank is the only source of water in that pasture and I had to move the cattle into it. That fire is so warm.
Pod..I had to 'Google' Zummos....I thought it was some kind of filled thing, like a Twinkie! Curious how you'd roast 'em, but I was ready to try. I never heard of Zummos....but will now have to find them.
Took #8 to the farm this afternoon. Picked up DGS so he could see the big "release." Squirrel ran across the road and high-tailed it up a hill. GS's only comment was, "He didn't even look both ways....." This is getting to be old hat, I'm afraid.
Going to be a balmy 50 tomorrow.
Crow...keep posting here and let us know how the plumbers work out. And please take some vitamins if you don't already. You won't be much help to husband if you get run down too.
Ken..loved the Van Cliburn story. Hope they made it worth your while, missing your Xmas Eve dinner with your family.
bananna--love the little duck pic...so cute.
Ken--How nice that you are still remembering the appreciation you felt then. I always feel it's not so important if others appreciate us....but it is everything that we appreciate them. And it makes you feel so good.....even years later. I Loved the story.
Crow--hang in there with as much humor as you can. My sister has been through that...and humor made it all bearable.
bubbles--are we losing squirrels in Austin? I had to google Zummo too.....is it a sausage?
Zummos, yes, a spicy sausage ~ rather unhealthy but we gotta splurge once a week. We were wondering if that name came from the skin bursting while roasting and the grease making that kind of noise in the fire. LOL If you don't like "hot" spicy they may not be to your liking.
BettyDee ~ you have gotten frostbit. I still pay that price for growing up in MN. Now when it gets cold, I look like a wuss. I bundle up with thinsulate mittens and ear bags and parkas. As a result of old frostbite damage, when my fingers get cold, I get splits on the fingertips that are pain and agony. Doctoring on them right now.
If no one minds, I'm going to add fuel to this fire over here. My phone line has constricted from the cold and it takes too long to feed all this intelligence thru it. Please bring your cocoa. I have plenty of rockers and firewood. http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1068477/
Bubbles ~ how far away is the farm? You are doing your neighborhood a service to trap and relocate. They can really be trouble.