hrj: (Default)
hrj ([personal profile] hrj) wrote2005-11-30 09:56 pm

The Cold (at least what we know of it in California) Arrives

No, not that head-cold I was fighting off -- that one seems to have been dodged for good.

Last night I lit the first fire of the season in the wood-burning stove. Just one of the little Duraflame logs that I use as starters, since I haven't brought a load in from the woodshed yet (and didn't need more than a couple hours of heat). That means it really is time to vacuum out the upstairs heater and light the pilot. There are two other more long-term heating-related projects. (One of these days I'll post a full project list.) I need to make new curtains for the living room, including a thermal curtain for the opening to the stairs, so that all the living room heat doesn't just dash for the second story. And I want to install ceiling fans in the living room, office, and main bedroom to circulate the heat better. It isn't so critical in the living room, but when the wall heater is going in the office, I've noticed that the top one foot of the room is sweltering when ground level is still cool. I don't know how much effect it will have in the bedroom with its 11-foot ceiling and no native heat source. Mostly I just depend on pre-heating the bed with the electric mattress pad and then relying on my down comforter for the rest of the night.

I nearly got stuck in the Atlanta airport overnight coming home from Darkovercon. We were a couple hours delayed from BWI to Atlanta due to weather, then delayed a couple more hours in Atlanta waiting for that plane to arrive. And then after boarding we sat on the runway for an hour and a half waiting for permission to take off because the weather heading west was a bit dodgy. To keep us quiet they started the movie while we were waiting: March of the Penguins. I hadn't seen it before -- it was nice, but maybe it needs the big screen effect to be worth the hype. Then just about when we figured they were going to turn us around and start a mad hotel scramble, we heard a plane taking off in the next runway and they told us we were queued to go. The delays meant I didn't get home until 2am.

I'm still playing catch-up from the trip. Monday's housework will -- as permitted by The Program -- be skipped without penalty. (Well, except for doing the laundry.)

[identity profile] talonvaki.livejournal.com 2005-12-01 06:28 am (UTC)(link)
I hate Atlanta's aeroport. Hate.

Is there a word that's stronger than hate?

(Anonymous) 2005-12-01 06:37 am (UTC)(link)
This is only my second trip that involved Atlanta -- don't really have an opinion of it yet. They have a cool little train between the different terminals. And it was the one airport on this trip where I could snag an electrical outlet while waiting. Airports need way more passenger-accessible electrical outlets these days.

I'm not sure there are any airports I hate, although there are some I find more ... amusing ... than others. (Augusta ME has some interesting features, like having the counter staff double as flight check crew, and getting your bags hand-searched in front of all your fellow passengers.)

[identity profile] hrj.livejournal.com 2005-12-01 06:37 am (UTC)(link)
whoops, didn't mean to post that anonymously

[identity profile] talonvaki.livejournal.com 2005-12-01 12:15 pm (UTC)(link)
Hahahaha...I had no idea who I was talking to!

[identity profile] talonvaki.livejournal.com 2005-12-01 12:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, lots of aeroports have those little trams. SFO (San Francisco) and Tampa both have them. O'Hare has this very cool walkway...not the same thing, but nifty nonetheless.

I've never had a problem finding an outlet...and I've been traveling with a cell phone and charger since 1999. The best place for outlets, though, is the US Airways terminal at La Guardia in NYC. They have a lot of little desks and tables with plenty of plug ins.

I hate Hartsfield. I also hate Washington Dulles.
I love Pittsburgh, Schilpol in Amsterdam, and actually, Logan.

[identity profile] albionwood.livejournal.com 2005-12-01 06:59 pm (UTC)(link)
We've been running the wood stove more or less continuously for the past couple of weeks. Before that, we ran it in the mornings, until the sun hit the windows on the south side of the house. Even in August we sometimes had to light a fire to take the chill off...

The point at which it is officially Winter is when it gets so cold overnight that we have to run the central heating to warm the house up in the morning. That happened for the first time three days ago, when we awoke to see patches of frost on the meadow.

I hate forced-air heat, so we only turn it on when we need a quick warm-up. The little Jotul does a fine job of keeping the place warm, and firewood is practically free here.