Fun times for children ~ Ham Pie Sandwiches

15 December 2014

Fun times for children


Ok, you guys. I have to tell you something, and that something is that our furnace has been out since December 6th.

Don't panic! We do live in California, so no one is freezing. Our pipes are not freezing. Our landlord is being very good about everything too. But the furnace is not fixed yet. Do you know why it's not fixed yet? Because we have a 70-year-old furnace, and when you have a furnace that old, it's not just an issue to find parts. No. Furnace companies actually won't repair your out-of-date equipment because it doesn't meet modern safety requirements and is thus a liability for them to touch.

So we are getting an entirely new furnace system. In January.

In the meantime, we've been burning a lot of candles, wearing wooly sweaters, and generally reacclimatizing to a vaguely midwestern level of low-grade chilliness.

I've been doing a lot of baking. I made Love and Olive Oil's Molasses Snickerdoodles, which were excellent and vanished in short order. I made Cookie and Kate's Orange Poppyseed Pound Cake for the fourth? fifth? time and it was as delicious as always. I made a vat of kale and olive minestrone, which is always delightful and warming, and I'm pretty sure I should make some sort of huge stew in the next week or so.

On the bright side, if this furnace lasted 70 years, you know it has done its time and is well deserving of a commemorative plaque. That would be hilarious. Maybe I'll do that.

7 comments:

Michelle said...

I vote for the plaque. Hilarious. It would be extra funny for whoever lives in the house after you.

I bookmarked those same cookies! I just need to get around to baking them someday.

Were you guys subject to the crazy storm amidst losing your furnace? That would be doubly awful.

Eileen said...

Yes, the storm was a few days later! It wasn't that bad for us (it just rained persistently for over a full day) but the temps dropped more than they would have otherwise. Fun fact: we had a roof leak immediately beforehand too. That's patched for the time being, though. The new roof isn't happening until after rainy season. Yay?

foodfeud said...

molasses snickerdoodles sound great!! And I love citrusy poundcakes too. Good way to deal with the chill, definitely.
Do you have hot water at least??

MxH said...

Eileen! I'm glad you are okay and live in a place that allows for broken furnaces. It's one of those unseen bonuses of a temperate climate.

Comedian Kumail Nanjiani tells a story tells a story about a plunger that "went out a hero." So . . . yeah. Same thing. Kind of.

Eileen said...

Yes, our hot water heater is separate (and pretty new), so that's not a problem, at least. And yes, living in a climate that doesn't freeze is definitely a benefit! On the other hand, if we didn't live in California, I doubt anyone would have let a furnace stick around for 70 years. OH WELL.

Joanne said...

Thank goodness you live in Cali or I suspect there'd be a lot more hell to raise. Stay warm!

Sippity Sup said...

A hikes. They won't fix it? I have an 85 yo furnace that (thankfully) I just turned on for the first time this year and it fired up fine. But they (I have 2) will be a nightmare to replace I suppose some day. Someday very far away I hope. Happy Holidays. GREG