ready for the storm!

i don't know what it is,
but fixing things around the house with the guys is just such fun!

with the snow storm due in,
and our pellets running low for our pellet stove,
we figured maybe it was time to actually go drain the water
from our oil tank so we could actually use the furnace!

our furnace man had come out last week.
i love this man.
he reminds me of an old friend of mine,
and he makes me laugh.
but he didn't fix my darn heating problem!

i was sitting at my kitchen table working on my laptop while
he was here. the furnace is right next to my desk, and i figured
he could use a little space to work.

so i sat there doin' my thing when he came up the three steps
to the kitchen.

'ohhhh you're in trouble' he said with big eyes.

now, that's never a good thing to hear from a furnace man.

but with this guy, i just never know if he's teasing me or if i'm really in
trouble.

'real trouble? trouble trouble? or just trouble? i asked him very sincerely.

'real trouble.' he answered, eyes still big.

gulp.

he proceeded to tell me we had a whole lotta water in our tank.

as i slipped on my shoes to go follow him outside, i asked him
'is this something your oil company gladly fixes for free?'

he laughed.
'oh they'll come out all right. but they'll charge you to drain that thing!'

i stood there next to him in the dark watching as he shone his flashlight
all around and mumbled.

trying to follow what on earth he was saying, i asked him -
'so what does all that mean that you just said??'

when he explained it all to me i asked him 'is this something we can fix
ourselves?'

sure enough, it was.
and he explained to me how to do it.

he had remembered that we put the tank in ourselves.
we both laughed over the memories of that and all the questions i had
asked him. i laughed and said 'that's when i learned what a 'lentil' is
remember?!' and yeah, he remembered.

(lentil? lintel? it's the concrete thing you put under an oil tank....
not the stuff you make soup out of!)

by the time he left, he had teased me a bunch, scared me a little,
and made me tickled to give this a go.

my sons assured me it was no big deal.

when i mentioned it to my guy, he suggested jacking up the tank.

uh oh.

'piece o' cake' he had said.
as i glanced down at his bandaged up thumb that he had recently
mangled in one of his famous mangling moments he manages at a fairly
decent rate.

hmmmmmm......


when i suggested it to the guys, they got quiet.

uh oh.


we did end up bringing the jack out, but we all looked at that tank.
and then each other. and then the tank.

we decided to use a pump.

and oh wow! it was so darn easy!
and so darn exciting!
in all the things we ever fixed, this was the easiest.
but it was so exciting to me!

the guys explained siphons and pumps to me.
i never really did understand them.
there they were, patiently explaining them.

you'd never know i ever taught them school.
they teach me everything now.

the air was cold, the job was easy, the learning was fun,
and we knew we were gonna get heat outta the deal.

i hadn't felt so good in days.
just what i needed!

who knew when the furnace guy said 'you're in trouble' that
fixing that problem would be one of the highlights of my week.

man, there's something to keep in mind!

and in preparation for the big snow storm coming in and possible
power outs, i will post this tonite!

stay warm, toss snowballs, and enjoy the last gust of winter!
oh yeah.....turn up the furnace!