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.

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)

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)

I Got What I Asked For

"It could be worse," as the old Minnesota saying goes.

A few days ago I expressed the wish that my body make up its mind: either be sick, or not feel slightly 'off.'

I got what I asked for. The next day I had a sincere cough, a wholeheartedly stuffed nose, headache from coughing so much: the whole package.

This morning, my wife told me I wasn't going to church. I had no problem with the idea. I've been spending the day being quite: aside from the semi-regular cough.

Outside we've got a beautiful picture-postcard early autumn day: bright sunshine; blue sky; just enough cirrus cloud to make it interesting.


About 4:50 this afternoon. September 29, 2013.

Another Week: Photos and Fuzzy Eyes

My wife gave my hair an arguably-overdue trim yesterday, we had sunlight for a few minutes this weekend, and my eyes still feel fuzzy. There's something extra in the air that doesn't play well with eyes, noses, and - in my case - throat.

Happily, #1 daughter got photos of last Sunday's Corpus Christi procession. (Sauk Centre Journal Blog (June 9, 2013))

None of that's particularly astounding, astonishing, or amazing. But it's some of what happened this week.

Living in Central Minnesota with Central Air

We got central air conditioning installed late last week. My wife set it to keep temperatures inside at 74 degrees Fahrenheit or less. That's a little warmish: but we like seasonal variations, and it's fun to wear summer clothing in summer.

Then came storms, and highs in the 50s. A few minutes ago the heating part of the system kicked in.

I like living in Minnesota: the weather isn't boring.

Related post:

• "Central Air: After Only Three Decades!"
  (May 17, 2013)
• "Sin, Death, Tornadoes, and Getting a Grip"
  A Catholic Citizen in America (May 21, 2013)

Springtime in Minnesota

The view through my webcam, reduced to fit this blog's format.
April 2, 2013, 9:10 a.m.

Tuesday morning: There's still about a foot of snow around the bird bath, and I probably won't have the hummingbird feeder out for another month. The snowman in our neighbor's yard, across the street, has melted down to a small pile, and their yard has turned a hopeful shade of brownish tan with a vague suggestion of green.

It's springtime in Minnesota.

The fingers of my left hand don't complain overly much when I type: as long as I sit very straight, and don't use them for very long. It's been over a week since that's been an issue. Adjusting my posture is helping, along with exercises involving my shoulder blades.

The issue isn't going away entirely, however, and I may have to see a chiropractor about sorting out some of my joints. I've already had surgical modifications made, to deal with carpal tunnel issues.

I'm not complaining, though. As we say here in Minnesota, 'it could be worse.'

And, in my case, has been.

Related posts:

• "Easter Morning"
  (March 31, 2013)
• "Fasting, Penance: and Infinite Depths of Joy"
  A Catholic Citizen in America (June 3, 2012)
  Particularly
  • God, Rain, and Me

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.

More Snow, Less Wind, and a Long Weekend

More snow, less wind, than last night. November 23, 2012.

It sounded like winter last night, with wind rushing a little snow around the house. I stayed up later than I might have, since weather reports kept adding 'one more thing' to the forecast: but kept insisting that the excitement would be over at 6:00 this morning. As it turns out, they were right.

Staying inside makes sense in that sort of weather, but for some folks staying put isn't an option.

"Warm weather gives way to snowy, cold Thanksgiving"
Ryan Johnson, INFORUM (November 22, 2012, 9:26 p.m.)

"The unseasonably warm weather of recent days came to an abrupt end Thanksgiving afternoon...

"...Meteorologist Brad Hopkins said Fargo started its Thanksgiving at about 39 degrees, but the temperature dropped to about 20 by the evening as strong winds and 1 to 2 inches of snow swept across most of the Red River Valley and parts of Minnesota.

"...Pembina County in northeastern North Dakota issued a no-travel advisory at 6 p.m. because of black ice and poor conditions.

"Gusts of more than 30 mph also reduced visibility and contributed to accidents along Interstate 94 near Fergus Falls, Minn...."

Now I'm going to get back to having a relaxed Thanksgiving Day weekend.

Somewhat-related posts:

• "Thanksgiving, 2012: Macy's Parade; Wind Advisory; Relaxing"
  (November 22, 2012)
• "Thanksgiving Day, 2012: Desperate Times..."
  Apathetic Lemming of the North (November 22, 2012)
• "Christmas, 2011"
  (December 25, 2011)
• "Wintry Weather and a Balky Furnace"
  (October 27, 2010)
• "October's Dull Gray Weather; Winter Preparations; and a Fine Son"
  (October 20, 2009)

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)

Weekend Grilling: Finally!

I went out to grill burgers on Saturday. Two major home-improvement projects and a minor health issue or three had kept me away from the grill since - good grief. Last summer.

Here's what was happening to the grill:


'You know it's been a long time when - - -.' (July 14, 2012)

It could have been worse. I suspect the dry summer we've had kept more vines from discovering the grill. I've moved it off the bricks, partly to put me in a slightly breezier spot, mostly to keep grease from spattering on the deck./patio/whatever.

I'm looking forward to more weekend grilling now.

Not-entirely-unrelated posts:

• "It's Good to be Back: Or, the Grill and the Vine"
  Easy Griller (July 16, 2012)
• "New Office"
  (March 28, 2012)
• "Memorial Day Weekend"
  (May 28, 2011)
• "Grilling and Spring Thaw"
  (April 3, 2011)
• "About a Trip, Age, and Burying the Cable"
  (June 14, 2010)

First Robin(s) of Spring, Or Summer, Or Whatever

Part of our back yard looks like freshly-ploughed earth: which it is, sort of. That's where the skid loaders and trucks drove and parked while the garage went up.

This morning I saw my first robin of the year. Two of them, actually. Also two quite small birds that chased each other too fast for me to make out any details. They might have been really small sparrows.

Eventually that churned-up soil will get replanted and look more like a lawn. Meanwhile, judging from what the robins were doing, it's a great place for birds to hunt worms and other small critters.

Maundering on About Exercise - Also Air Conditioning

I had a sore neck last week - which was good news, in a way.

I changed the way I eat and exercise last month - May 17. It involves adding five minutes a day to time I spend on a number of Wii Fit 2 exercises each week, until I'm up to an hour a day. I hit the 25-minute mark yesterday.

The first week was not encouraging. Between a determinedly sensible set of meals each day, plus exercise, I was feeling awful. I don't think pollen in the air, or spending hours outside one afternoon helped. I'd cracked that "if this is what being healthy feels like: you can have it." I kept going, and I'm feeling not-awful now. Which is an improvement.

Last week, I started doing an exercise that works my arms and shoulders. Over-doing would be more accurate. I had a slightly stiff neck by the time I went to sleep that day, and by morning it ached and was really, sincerely, emphatically stiff.

So I started turning my head left as far as I could comfortably, turning a bit more after that, holding, and repeating with looking rightwards. Stretching muscles 101 stuff.

That stiff neck was really good news: I knew that I'd started using muscles that hadn't been attended to in a long time. I also realized that being able to do something a quarter-century ago didn't mean I could jump right back and do it again now.

There. That's quite enough of some dude who's pushing 60 writing about the state of his neck.

My wife, son, and #3 daughter set up the window air conditioner - just behind my desk chair. This is now the coolest, driest, and almost the breeziest spot in the house. #3 daughter set up a line of box fans from here to the other end of the ground floor, in an effort to get some of the 'cool' down there.

It's almost 100 Fahrenheit outside - also windy. Summer is definitely here.

Signs of Spring, or Summer, or Something

A day or so ago I saw two birds, about sparrow-size, at the bird bath. I hadn't filled it, but between snow and rain it was full. I'm not sure what sort they were - the tops of their heads were reddish - and that's about as much as I know at this point.

I spent a few minutes on the front porch/stoop/whatever yesterday afternoon, enjoying the bench, the sun, and fresh air.

This morning, noticing that my feet were over-warm in the winter slippers I've been wearing, I switched to flip-flops.

It's definitely spring. Or summer. Or something.

Whatever this time of year should be called: It's warmer, and I like it.

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.

Having a Cold isn't Fun

The family here has had a cold for - it feels like forever, but my wife tells me it's no more than a couple weeks. She's usually right about that sort of thing.

I've been coughing and sneezing a bit less this week: which is fine by me.

Other than that, a few things have changed.

I got the hummingbird feeder out - and had a few hummers drink it dry after the first day. So far, after refilling it: I've seen none. Wait a minute: One just zipped in - and out again.

My wife and #3 daughter got the window air conditioner set up - another sign that summer is here. Or coming.

We made some calls with the gas utility: apparently they're still recovering from that alternatively-competent supervisor. We'd been told that the meter would be moved in about two weeks. When a month had passed, I decided to see what happened.

We're expecting a crew to come out and reposition the meter this Friday. There's a white line marked in the grass, with a flag and everything. I hope they show up. The state-mandated markings they made, earlier this year, are disappearing as the grass grows.

#1 daughter decided she'd be better off, relaxing at her own place. She's got the same bug we do - and I think she made the right decision. There's a lot to be said for being where you can utterly relax. We got a call from her, a few minutes ago. She wanted advice from "Dr. Mom."

Which brings me up to date, more or less.

First Robin of the Year

I saw my first robin a few minutes ago, scooting along the yard near the 9th Street curb. That's a nice way to start a day.