Burning Down the House

Okay, so we aren't quite ready to do that just yet, but my instincts are telling me that the flu has holes in it, and that we are going to come close--not my idea of fun.

We are, however, cleaning the stove and getting it ready for another burning season today. It's a lot of work, and takes a bit of tear down, vacuuming and cleaning to get things ready. I know that if hubby goes first (he seems to think so, I'm not so sure), I won't be able to deal with that stove by myself, and even though the house has boiler heat as well, I understand so little about it--and the cost is pretty prohibitive for me on my salary alone.

So you see, I have to "go" first. There's just no getting around it.

I've been working on Scrappy Do most of the weekend, and it's finally of sufficient size that I can use it for a lap cover to keep the tops of my legs warm. It hasn't been freezing in the house yet, but the chill from outdoors seems to seep right through the walls. I told hubby that this blanket would be heavy and warm, to which he said

"Good."

A man of few words, I suppose.

And so for the last two hours we've been working on the stove and the fittings. We need a new cap for the pipe on top of the roof. The old one has pretty well rusted right away. I suppose that corn creosote is more corrosive than wood creosote, though I have no idea what the difference might be. Hubby says according to his research on our stove, we not only heat more efficiently, we also are more environmentally friendly.

Well, right now, the stupid thing is growing meal-worms and sending little millers (small meal-worm moths) into the living room. The cleaning out business is mostly for dust and rust and creosote--oh my! But slowly, things are coming to. Hubby says we'll start her up November 1. I'm told we're to have snow before Halloween. Whichever actually is the case, I'm sure there will be heat in the house when he gets cold enough to turn it on...because that's how it works, and until then, I cower under my knitting.