Saturday, January 10, 2009

The Pipes, The Pipes Are Freezing

The temperatures are expected to get into the single digits at night this week, which means it's time for the Annual Furnace Break-Down in my building. This time, it sends up heat for five minutes every five hours, and the cold water shuts down indiscriminately, or when you're in the shower and/or getting ready for work.

The Super keeps saying that he called "the man." The man claims never to have been called. Perhaps the super was simply, like Lou Reed, "Waiting For the Man."

Meanwhile, I gave in and bought an electric space heater. We never had them when I was a kid because my parents deemed them "too dangerous." My only experience with one was when I was first out of school and sharing an apartment. My roommate was spending the night at her boyfriend's and let me borrow her space heater. As I got dressed the next morning, I had this brilliant idea that I'd stay really, really warm if I draped my underwear over the heater before I put it on. My favorite brassiere disintegrated instantaneously.

This time, I got the little contraption pictured above, which comes with a little safety booklet that I read obediently before I turned the thing on. Within five minutes, it made the room toasty warm and comfortable for the first time in days. That, and the big pot of stew I put on the stove.

So here I sit, huddled by the fire: Primitive Woman. And when my Con Ed bill comes in, I'm sending it to The Man.

Comments:
The electric ones work well, especially if they have a timer so you can keep warm until you fall asleep and then it clicks off until you wake up. My cats loved the heater--they had special spots on the bed where they were right in the heat stream. It's the kerosene heaters that are so dangerous. I'd never have one of those in the house.
 
Thanks, Kerry. I didn't even know there were still any kerosene heaters around!
 
I second the timer to make sure the heater turns off at night.

When my Mr. was a boy his dad actually gave him a space heater for his 13th birthday. It seems kind of strange- but he says it was one of his greatest presents.

I think tomorrow our high will be 4(in MI) so I feel your pain- stay warm!
 
Lorijo:

Yeah, it seems kind of strange that a space heater should be a gift for a teenaged boy. But then, it depends on how cold his room was!

I looked at the space heater as an indulgence, since they usually send up too much heat. Which is probably why the furnace keeps breaking when it's needed the most.
 
I also champion the space heaters with timers and with temperature gauges. Then they turn off once they hit the desired temperature and click back on only when necessary. Mine even has a remote control so I can turn it on in the middle of the night without even getting up.
 
Yeah, I think you bought the next model up from mine, with the remote.

However, my apartment is so small...

"How small is it, Melinda?"

It's so small that it would be like having a remote on my iPod.

Thank you, you've been great.
 
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