As last winter stumbled to a reluctant halt, bringing frost into late May and leaving us kind of shell shocked from weather miseries, everyone said, "The first person to complain about the heat is going to get......"
Fill in your own nasty fate. I heard a lot of them.
Instead, here it is the middle of August, the Dog Days.
We should be whining about the heat, and stressing the grid with excess air conditioner use. We should be threatening to bash the first person who complains about the cold, when winter finally brings relief from the summer furnace.
Instead, last night, I asked the boss to go down in the cellar and turn on the valve that diverts hot water from the outdoor wood stove, into the furnace plenum.
Yeah, we have it going as we have used it to heat water most of the summer, but the furnace part is always shut off, as, if hot water goes through it, even with the furnace fans all shut off, passive warm air seeps upstairs.
And, you know what? It feels good.
He'll probably have to go back down in a day or two and divert it back to its usual path, but for now the house is not damp.
It is not dank. It is not chilly and shiverish and too darned cold for a little baby.
I'm trying not to wander into dire predictions for the coming winter. I'm sitting here on my front porch wearing my winter coat.
ReplyDeleteDang. (And the sun . . . it's coming up too far south over my neighbors's roof:(
I'm given to understand that this cool summer is the result of the fact that the Great Lakes were SO frozen last winter, and stayed covered with ice so late.
ReplyDeleteI can believe it.
But that doesn't make me any happier about it, and makes me worry about the winter. If the Lakes never warmed up right then they'll be more susceptible to freezing over again right? Which might be a good thing from the snow accumulation side of things (the more the Lakes freeze the less lake effect snow we get), but another winter with weather like the last one is going be horrid.....
Good one, Marriane. I was one of those threatening to bash anyone who complained of the heat. Now I'd like some of that warmth. Yesterday (August 15th for crying out loud!) it never got above 65 and even that was on the sunlit porch very late in the afternoon.
ReplyDeleteIt feels like fall here also. WAY early. Leaves are changing and the birds are leaving. I so dread winter and it promises to be a long one.
ReplyDeleteLinda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Cathy, the only upside I can find in this weird weather situation is that I am finding a decent amount of energy to get things ready for winter. Which is not terribly positive, is it?
ReplyDeleteRuth, makes perfect sense to me.I am so eager for tomatoes and there are so many on the vines, just not ripe ones.
Joated, yep, it is ridiculous
Linda, I just saw an indigo bunting, so maybe there is hope for at least a little more summer...I hope.