Furnace Trouble

First, the good news.

We've deployed heaters in occupied rooms of the house, and my wife's called the repair tech.

Now, the not-so-good news.

Our furnace is on the fritz. Again.

It stopped working the night of December 29, during below-zero weather. That's hardly unusual: the weather, not our furnace failing.

The repair tech came, spotted the problem, made some calls: and arranged for the special fan motor to be driven up to our place. By the evening of December 30, we had central heat again.

The furnace is something like 20 years old. At the time, we thought having a high-efficiency furnace was a good idea. Just one problem: the thing uses a special fan motor — that's not at all easy to find these days. We're definitely going to keep that in mind when we replace the furnace: whenever that will be.

The repair tech was here yesterday, and fixed some sort of blockage issue in the furnace. Obviously, there's something else going on, too, since it got down to about 57 degrees at my desk last night: with a space heater less than 20 feet away.

Finally, more good news.

We're getting another opportunity to practice patience, while the latest furnace problem gets solved. I am, anyway.

Getting the Furnace Fixed

Our furnace is getting repaired. That's very good news, since it's about 19 below zero, Fahrenheit, outside. The wind chill is about minus 30. That's cold, even for central Minnesota in January.

We noticed that the furnace was getting temperamental on Friday. The house was alternately warmer and cooler than expected. Sure enough, a particular sequence of indicator lights was flashing on the furnace and there was a pool of water around it.

Today was the earliest a technician could come: we're probably not the only folks with balky systems. Happily, we've got procedures for dealing with this sort of thing. Even so, a circuit breaker tripped - I think that was Friday night. That was an easy fix, and now #3 daughter knows how to check and re-set the circuit breaker panel.

The obvious problem with the furnace is gunk that's collected in one of the pipes involved in the humidifying machinery. That's easy to deal with, I gather, but the tech is still here.

Related posts:

• "Cold Weather: Lots of It"
  Sauk Centre Journal Blog (January 6, 2014)
• "Break Time"
  (January 5, 2014)
• "Just Touching Base"
  (January 4, 2014)
• "Cold Weather and Me"
  Sauk Centre Journal Blog (January 5, 2014)

Break Time

It's still cold outside. My wife told me to stay put today, instead of going to church. I think that was a good idea, considering the shape my left shin is in.

On a happier note, I've been enjoying a Christmas present. Several, actually, but the one I had in mind was a book on one of my favorite topics: useless information.



A little more seriously, I've been writing posts for A Catholic Citizen in America and Apathetic Lemming of the North, and making progress on a few of my old 'back burner' projects.



It's after supper as I write this. I've got a little more 'break time' left, and then it's back to work.

Related posts:

• "Just Touching Base"
  (January 4, 2014)
• "Spilled Coffee, Reality, and a Wind Chill Advisory"
  (December 9, 2013)
• " 'Creative:' I Like That"
  (May 21, 2013)
• "My Desk: It Works for Me"
  (May 18, 2012)

Just Touching Base

A few hours after getting an automated call from the Sauk Centre Public Schools, I learned that all Minnesota public schools were closing. The Governor said they should. I'm glad that someone showed good sense. It's going to be - brisk.

I've seen a doctor about my left shin: again. The good news is that the two new open spots aren't infected. The bad news is that even when these heal over, I can expect more of the same. It's an incentive to keep my diabetes under control, and lose weight. Lots of incentive.

It's also frustrating: but I've had lots of practice dealing with "frustrating." I think having substandard hip joints helped me learn, from infancy up, to deal with limitations: not quietly, or calmly; but to deal with them.

On a happier note, there was a big family get-together today over at my father-in-law's place. A really big one. I stayed here, partly because I'm just about the exact opposite of a 'party person,' partly because I'm having more than the currently normal trouble with my legs, and partly because I had a post to get ready for tomorrow.

My wife, son, son-in-law, and daughters # 2 and 3 were there. I gather that they had a good time. For that, I am very glad.

Related post:

• "Spilled Coffee, Reality, and a Wind Chill Advisory"
  (December 9, 2013)

Spilled Coffee, Reality, and a Wind Chill Advisory

Musing after spilling coffee on my lap, this thought crossed my mind: I didn't design reality; my job is accepting reality as it is, and making small modifications.

My son and I are about where we should be in recovering from appendicitis and an unpleasant infection. More good news: over a week has not passed with no medical emergencies in the family.

Today's wind chill advisory was extended to 6:00 p.m. - probably not by popular demand. It got almost up to zero Fahrenheit today, which made this winter scene much easier to enjoy from inside my house:



Half-past noon. October 20, 2013.

Vaguely-related posts:

• "Back from the Hospital"
  (December 1, 2013)
• "Appendicitis and All That"
  (November 30, 2013)
• "Good News, Bad News, and an Antibiotic-Resistant Infection"
  (November 22, 2013)
• "First Snowfall"
  (October 20, 2013)
• "I Got What I Asked For"
  (September 29, 2013)

First Snowfall

Snowfall 8:59 a.m. October 20, 2013.


Snowfall 9:15 a.m. October 20, 2013.

It's very slightly heavier now, compared to a quarter-hour ago: but it's still "light snow." It's also the first snowfall of the season, here in Sauk Centre, anyway.

The pictures are reduced-size frames from the webcam looking our my north window.

Related posts:

• "Springtime in Minnesota"
  (April 2, 2013)
• "School's Out All Day"
  (March 15, 2013)
• "Rain, Snow: Held Over - - - By Popular Demand?"
  (December 15, 2012)
• "Thanksgiving, 2012: Macy's Parade; Wind Advisory; Relaxing"
  (November 22, 2012)
• "Home, at Last! - of a Winter Storm, Interstate Traffic, and Utility Trucks"
  (February 8, 2010)

The Furnace is Fixed: a Day Early

'The furnace guy' had a break in his schedule, we had already received the needed parts, and so he came today: a day early.

Our furnace is now safe to operate, which makes me a happy camper.

A warmer one, too.

Related post:

• "The Furnace Broke: But It Could Be Worse"
  (October 14, 2013)

The Furnace Broke: But It Could Be Worse

It's a gray, damp, chilly, drizzling day.

My cold, or whatever has been ailing me, isn't doing well at all: but I'm feeling much better. I suppose someone could work up an ethical concern over massive casualties in the rhinovirus population, but I won't bother.

Oddly enough, I can't remember any protests as smallpox was heartlessly driven to extinction: and that's another topic.

I've been getting some work done, more of which won't happen if I keep writing this post.

We've had someone look at the furnace/heating system. Good news: the situation showed up in our yearly maintenance check of machinery that keeps the house warm during winter. Not-so-good news: there isn't just one malfunction. A whole mess of parts either aren't working, or aren't working properly. Sort-of-good news: we found out before the serious heating season started; and the parts can be replaced. More precisely, the parts can be replaced: once they arrive. There's a fair-sized order being, I hope, processed correctly.

Meanwhile, our main heating system is offline, and the household is setting up space heaters to keep conditions inside somewhat comfortable.

One of the benefits of higher energy costs, compared to what householders paid in my youth, is that it's been decades since the start of heating season was punctuated by news reports of exploding houses. In some sorts of stories, it would have been a funny situation. The reality wasn't amusing. Folks whose furnaces failed catastrophically didn't always survive.

Considering some of the alternatives, spending money on this year's repairs doesn't seem like such a bad thing, after all.

Vaguely-related posts:

• "Fogbound Streets of my Mind"
  (October 3, 2013)
• "I Got What I Asked For"
  (September 29, 2013)
• "Minnesota Winter, and the Furnace is Fixed!"
  (January 5, 2009)
• "I'm Sick, the Furnace is Kaput, There's a Storm Coming: but Other Than That, Things are Fine!"
  (December 29, 2008)
• "Thursday: Furnace, Glasses, and a Violin Bow"
  (January 25, 2008)

School's Out All Day

We got a call early this morning, from the automated Sauk Centre schools system. The message said something about freezing rain: and that school was closed today. All day.

I'm impressed. It takes very serious weather to get a two-hour delay: closed for the day is quite unusual.

I see that Interstate 94 was closed from Alexandria to Fergus Falls. That's west of us: more like west by northwest, actually. Part of the Interstate is open again, but I'm glad that travel isn't in my plans today:

• "Slick Roads, I-94 Reopens Near Alexandria"
  Cassie Hart, KSTP.com (March 15, 2013 6:49 a.m., updated 9:25 a.m.)

An updated report on Minnesota driving conditions boils down to "difficult:"

• Minnesota Road Traveler Information Service
  Minnesota Department of Transportation

Rain, Snow: Held Over - - - By Popular Demand?

We've got a winter weather advisory going until midnight. It used to be until 3:00 p.m., but apparently was so popular that the weather service extended it.

The opening act was rain, more or less. "Drizzle" would be more accurate.

That turned by degrees into tiny damp bits of snow: which is what we've still got, a few minutes before four.

My webcam (Small Town America: Central Minnesota) looks at the northeast part of Ash Street and South 9th, here in Sauk Centre.

The window is next to my desk, but I'm more likely to 'look' outside through the webcam: and that's another topic.

Thanksgiving, 2012: Macy's Parade; Wind Advisory; Relaxing

Mid-afternoon in Sauk Centre: Thanksgiving Day. November 22, 2012.

Thanksgiving Day came 'early' this year. It's the third Thursday in November, so it can fall anywhere between the 22nd and the 28th. I think I got that right.

I watched part of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on television: a regular, if minor, celebration for me. A new (to me) wrinkle was the Fred Hill Briefcase Drill Team. I am not making that up.

Fred Hill Briefcase Drill Team

chillwisc, YouTube (December 3, 2008)
Video, 2:55

We're having a very low-key holiday here in Sauk Centre. I spent most of the day relaxing, and looking through some reports from Spiral Light Candle: and then relaxing some more.

Wind, followed by a little snow, made Christmas decorations some neighbors set up earlier look more seasonal.

The weather forecast promises more of the same: wind advisory, snow flurries, heavy overcast. Days like this help me appreciate insulated windows and central heating.

More-or-less-related posts:

• "Thanksgiving Day, 2012: Desperate Times..."
  Apathetic Lemming of the North (November 22, 2012)
• "Going from Guy Lombardo to Justin Bieber: Happy New Year, 2012!"
  (December 31, 2011)
• "Christmas, 2011"
  (December 25, 2011)
• "Release the Chickens!"
  (May 9, 2011)
• "I Almost Don't Have a Cold: Just in Time for Memorial Day Weekend"
  (May 27, 2010)

Wintry Weather and a Balky Furnace

We woke up this morning - always a good way to start a day. It was a little above freezing outside, and significantly warmer inside.

On the down side, the furnace had quit during the night.

It's about 12:20 now, someone's been here to see what the furnace trouble was: and fixed our pilot light. The house is warming up to winter-normal now.

The situation could have been a lot worse. Quite a few folks in this part of the state lost power yesterday.

And, I see, St. Cloud set a new record for rainfall:

"Wind Storm downs powerlines, trees"
Jim Maurice, WJON WJON Local News (October 27, 2010)

"High winds and heavy rain moved through the area yesterday (Tuesday). The National Weather Service is reporting our highest wind gust at 58 miles an hour last night.

"The strong winds caused many people throughout central Minnesota to lose power. East Central Energy is reporting as many as 2,600 customers without power during the overnight. They say they still have 900 customers without electricity. Xcel Energy says they had over 9,000 customers in greater Minnesota without power at one time, but they are down to 3700 customers now....

"...If you have a tennis match scheduled at Gold's Gym in Sartell today (Wednesday), you're going to have to reschedule. The manager says their inflatable dome has a 30-40 foot tear in it, due to the strong winds last night, causing it to deflate. He says they're hoping to get it fixed and back up by the end of the day.

"We also set a rainfall record for the second day in a row. We officially had 1.44 inches at the St. Cloud Regional Airport. Breaking the old record of 1.33 set in 1941. We've now collected over 2 1/2 inches of rain since Sunday. And, after being dry for most of the month, we're actually .62" above normal now for October....

There was a powdering of snow on the ground in the morning, but it doesn't look like we'll get the one or two inches forecast. Can't say I'd be disappointed to miss that. For the sake of trick-or-treaters, if nothing else.

I took some photos yesterday afternoon. The folks across the street from us lost a branch that's maybe three or four inches in diameter.


Mid-afternoon on South 9th. October 26, 2010.


A closer look at that downed branch. October 26, 2010.


About 4:20 in the afternoon: brisk weather for a walk. October 26, 2010.

Information Technology, Birthdays, and Dusty Humor

I went to Alex today, partly to get a new router. This may resolve some of the issues we've had with using the Internet. Or, not. It was a good day for driving: overcast, so glare wasn't an issue. And the sky looked like rain, or something, was coming. Rain, as it turns out.

I got home a little before supper. While we were eating, my son left the room. Then returned. He'd swapped out routers, installing the new one.

Knocking my webcam offline in the process - temporarily. He explained that the service I use is very good at reestablishing connections. I checked - and sure enough, the webcam was back in service. With a notation in the log that it hadn't been able to get a signal out for a while. I'll be able to get the full report late tomorrow. If I'm interested: which I'm not, terribly.

I thanked him for doing the job. And told him that I want to be told when he does something like that. Before he does it.

We set the clocks forward Saturday night, in compliance with Daylight Saving time. Which may have made sense around 1920. Make that March 19, 1918: I did a little checking, and that's when this country jumped on the bandwagon.

It was all the rage in Europe: so dragging our schedules may have seemed like a very sophisticated idea at the time. I've gotten the impression that this country didn't really get over being a former colony until sometime around 1900. And car commercials were still talking about "European styling" recently. 'Recently' by my standards - say within the last decade or so. I'm getting off-topic.

There may, again at the time, have been some practical reason. I harangued about this in another blog. ("I'm Blaming Daylight Saving Time: or, Not," Drifting at the Edge of Time and Space (March 17, 2010))

Whether or not the time change had anything to do with it, I was in a fog, mentally, from about Sunday to yesterday. I'll be catching up for a week. Or, deciding that some of the tasks can be dropped entirely for those days.

#1 daughter is up in the Red River Valley of the North now, visiting #2 daughter and my son-in-law. Also checking out a house or two, I understand. She's graduating this spring (assuming all goes well), and plans to move up there. Again, so I understand.

And, we celebrated #1 daughter's birthday while she was here on spring break. My wife got a candleholder/candle with a music chip in it. Twist it to the "on" position, and it plays "Happy Birthday to You." Over and over and over. #1 daughter, after about a dozen repetitions - maybe fewer - noted that it was getting monotonous.

My son will be turning 14 soon. I found a small pile of information technology trade magazines on the stairs a day or so ago. They didn't look familiar, so I checked the address block. I thought they might have been something my father had subscribed to: I got my taste for - eclectic? - unfocused? - knowledge from him. (For some online communities I'm in, where it says 'interests' I've said that I'm only interested in three things: What exists within the universe, what exists beyond, and what might exist.)

The magazines were addressed to my son. I'll want to ask him about them some time. Mostly to see if I may read them. Not to check up on him - those things are serious, business-oriented trade magazines. Yeah: he's that sharp. He's also 14, so I wouldn't count on his ability to make business decisions. Yet. No reflection on his abilities: at 13 going on 14, who is?

Something that doesn't happen very often: my father-in-law thought something I said was funny. He likes me just fine, but my humor tends to be dry. Dusty.

This time, my wife had told him about a discussion she and I had, about an extension of the garage. She received an inheritance, and bless her heart: she's spending in on (long overdue) replacement of the decades-old plumbing in the bathrooms. Also a patio (we've wanted it for over 2 decades - this time she has the money for it). Her choice.

Anyway, we were talking about adding to the garage so we could get two vehicles inside.

She was explaining the need to keep both vehicles inside, all good, practical, logical reasons. Then she added that it would also give her more room to practice tennis.

Then I said something like, 'Ah! The real reason.'

Rain, Snow, and Thunder: Springtime in Minnesota

Thunder, in the late morning. Rain. Snow on the ground: maybe a foot deep outside the window.

It's springtime in Minnesota.

Snow's melted off part of the yard, across the street. My desk's on the north side of the house, so the yard outside is in the shade. We'll probably have a small drift of snow there, when the neighbors mow their lawn for the first time this year.

Home, at Last! - of a Winter Storm, Interstate Traffic, and Utility Trucks

My wife, #3 daughter, and son got back from an unexpectedly long visit at #2 daughter's household, up in the Red River Valley of the north. My son-in-law's, too, of course.

Winter storm warnings are still up - and I'm duly grateful to be back at home.

I was getting a little tired, after a few hours driving on the Interstate, when I noticed a truck up ahead. We'd already passed a line of something like a dozen utility trucks - cherry pickers and all - which had all stopped on the shoulder where one (1) truck-size vehicle had keeled over on its right side.

No idea why so many utility trucks were apparently responding to an accident.

Anyway, back to that truck: it was one of those that looks like a box on wheels from the back. Nothing unusual. I was going along at about 50 miles an hour, which was close to average for traffic there.

And, as I said, after a few hours of driving, I was getting a bit tired. We'd stopped off in Fergus Falls for supper (Debbie's Home Style Kitchen, first stoplight east of the 210 / Lincoln Avenue Interstate exit - highly recommended), but like I said: I was getting a bit tired.

So there we were, after dark, on the Interstate, about six seconds behind this truck, going about 50, when a semi passes us. Nothing unusual about that: the semi was going maybe 55, and I was thinking about picking up the pace a little.

Then I noticed two things:

1. Beautiful dancing strands of snowy fog were
   • Writhing away from the back of the semi
   • Hiding
     • The road
     • The back of the semi
     • And just about everything else
2. The red taillights of that truck (not the now-invisible semi)
   • They were getting bigger
     • FAST

I couldn't jam on the brakes. Well, I could - but I've lived in this are long enough to know that you don't do that in road conditions like this.

As gently as I could, given the speed with which that truck's rear end was rushing toward me and my family, I eased back on the gas and slid (bad choice of words - make that merged) into the passing lane, behind the mass of writhing ephemeral tendrils which presumably still concealed the back of a semi.

I think we were going about 45 miles an hour when we rushed by that truck.

My attention was focused on cutting speed as fast as I could, safely, to keep out of the thickest part of whatever the semi was kicking up: while retaining control of our van, staying on the road, and not hitting the other truck.

As the now-crawling truck's headlights receded in the rear-view mirror, the snow tendrils disappeared. The semi was well ahead of us by then. I eased back into the right lane. My wife remarked, casually, "you'd think a driver for [familiar company name omitted] would drive faster."

I wasn't tired any more.

Of the Super Bowl, Snow, and the Red River Valley of the North

It's been quite a weekend. I went with part of the family to the Red River Valley of the North, to visit #2 daughter and my son-in-law. Also to watch the Super Bowl with them.

Two firsts in football history: The New Orleans Saints won their way to the Super Bowl - and won.

And, while we were here, a winter storm dropped a two-foot layer of snow at the end of the driveway. With more on the way. We'll be staying at least through tomorrow.

Well, the young couple know about this part of the world, so they've got plenty of food in the house. We'll be fine until we get dug out.

Christmas Day, 2009

Merry Christmas!

There's more to this day than snow, mistletoe, and "Jingle Bell Rock" More in:

• "Christmas? Yeah, it's a Pretty Big Deal"
  A Catholic Citizen in America (December 24, 2009)

There's quite a bit of snow, though. And more coming down.

We've heard from #2 daughter and her husband. He says my wife is his favorite mother-in-law. She insisted that those two get a snowmobile.

They live in the Red River Valley of the North, on the North Dakota side. Some towns are closed down up there, riding out the storm.

The church in town, near their home, wasn't one of the ones that had canceled Christmas Eve Mass - and they made it in, thanks to the snowmobile. They went into the ditch a few times, I understand, and had to get off and walk the snowmobile at least once - but apart from that, the trip was uneventful.

Where roads were parallel with the wind, the going was smooth. Roads at right angles to the wind were drifted in. I'm told that riding over those was a bit like racing over a very choppy lake.

Nothing that exciting happened here. We live in town, so the plow crew has been by - several times - keeping the streets open. My son's cleared the driveway and, I think, sidewalk. At the rate the snow's coming, a plow will probably be by at least once more. Which will put another rampart at the end of the driveway.

Oh, well.

Heat's Back!

As of a few minutes ago, the furnace is up and running again. I understand that a filter was too dirty - well, it's been a hectic summer and fall. I'm just glad it's working again.

October's Dull Gray Weather; Winter Preparations; and a Fine Son

I like my daughters, too: but you'll see why I put a spotlight on my son in the headline, later.

"October's bright blue weather" is gone, again: replaced with shifting patterns of gray on gray overhead. Hardly surprising: Minnesota's weather is notoriously varied. The forecast for Friday's changed, too. Now we're supposed to expect sunshine and clouds - just like Thursday's forecast shifted from a promise of overcast and rain to "partly cloudy."

This household's getting ready for winter. My wife and kids lifted the air conditioner out of the window where it spend the summer. It's resting on the floor behind my chair at the moment. That was, if memory serves, yesterday.

My wife also put up the curtains we have at the bottom of the stairs leading to the second floor, and between the sort of micro-hall at the bottom of the stairs and the living room. They help control drafts, and let us keep the ground floor at comfortable temperatures, while letting the second floor run a bit cooler.

I was going to accomplish things today, including getting to the Harvest Graces Mass this morning.

You May Not Want to Read This Part

Then, as I was getting ready to take that Knights of Columbus bulletin to the post office, I didn't quite get to the bathroom in time. By the time my son noticed the smell, I'd cleaned the worst of it off the floor, and washed myself in the shower - and giving the clothes I'd been wearing a first-rinse while I was there.

Disgusting. Rather.

That's My Boy!

Then my wife called. She'd come back, with #3 daughter, from driving my father-in-law to Alex for a medical procedure. The operation went well, I'm told. I also learned that she wanted me to pick her up.

No problem. I'd stay in the van, the ladies would come out, and then would carry the bulletin and paperwork into the post office building.

By the time I was walking toward the garage, I saw my son with a bucket of soapy water, heading for the bathroom. Unbidden, without prompting, and quite on his own, he'd decided to clean up what was left of the mess.

"That's my boy!"

My Father's Death, Funeral Arrangements, the Furnace and a Headlight

We're making arrangements for my father's funeral - he died at about 1:40 this morning. I've signed documents authorizing his cremation, read the will, and talked with my children and wife about this transition.

I've also noticed that the family van's right headlight is burned out; researched and wrote a post for another blog; checked the calendar to see when I need to get the next Knights of Columbus council bulletin out; and realized that I didn't mention the furnace technician who came yesterday morning.

Yes, my father's death this morning is a pretty big deal: and I've teared up a few times since hearing about it. But everything else keeps happening, too.

As if to match my mood, the sky's been cloudy and it's been raining most of the day.

About the furnace: That was a routine, annual, once-over to make sure that it was in good working order for the heating season. And we're good to go for winter. So far.

Without trying to, I've had memories of my father popping up as I work: 'pictures' of our playing Frisbee; times in my childhood when we'd spend a quiet time together - I'd be reading in an old overstuffed chair while he was at his desk in the basement, generally reading something too; talking with him.

Like we say: 'Eternal rest grant unto him O Lord, and let perpetual help shine upon him.'