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Janice's strategy for keeping pipes from freezing: We don't get freezes all that often, so we don't have elaborate means of protecting pipes. Those of you from up north would be amused at Southern homes. Ours is raised about two feet off the ground with nothing but free-flowing air underneath (click my old-house link for a picture). When we do get a freeze, we put faucets dripping to keep them from bursting, but that won't keep them from freezing on a really cold night. The only thing that keeps them from freezing is having periodic high water flow. When a hard freeze is predicted, Janice waits until bedtime to put on a load of laundry. This gets water flowing without wasting any. But that only helps early in the night. To protect the pipes later into the morning, she sets the dishwasher on a time delay (a built-in feature on our machine), so it will start washing several hours after we go to bed. We never have frozen pipes. * Wednesday, January 02, 2002
For the first time in a few years, it snowed in Lafayette. When I left my house in New Iberia this morning, there was no snow to be seen. The local weather said that the temperature was 34F, so I really didn't expect to see snow. By the time I got half way to Lafayette, the snow was everywhere. It was patchy, and you could see the grass through it, but it was snow. I don't look at snow with the wonder that I once did. Honestly, it was the last thing I wanted to see. We don't have much in the South, but we do have warm winters as a rule, and I'm very happy about that. As I age, I become less and less tolerant of cold weather. I get chilled to the bone when temps drop below 40. This weekend I set up a table and chair in front of a fireplace and spent long hours drawing. I'm trying to keep up my art skills, and keep warm at the same time. We had been invited to Shane's for New Years' Eve celebrations. He had a pile of wood for a bon fire, but I was expecting to freeze to death. But with the fire, the long underwear, and the hot buttered rum, I was actually very comfortable. Shane had been collecting wooden pallets wherever he could find them. They make a good fire because the flames spread over the entire width of the pallet and air circulates around all the pieces. The down side is that each pallet disappears quickly and the fire must be fed constantly. Shane and his brothers-in-law pitched in to buy a box of fireworks. They bought the really nice ones and put on quite a show. We sat by the fire until around two in the morning, then headed home to set the alarm for eight A.M. to go to Janice's parents house for their annual New Year's meal. That's the tradition in their family. They don't try to compete with in-laws for Christmas Eve. There's always a packed house for New Year's Day. The weather is predicted to drop to the lower 20s in the next day or two, so I'll be spending a lot of time by the fire with my sketch pad. Sailing will be a distant dream, it seems. Sometimes January is an excellent time for sailing in Louisiana. Dag nabbit! I can't wait for Spring. * Archives |