The low for last night was forecast to be -25C, before starting to warm up.
We are supposed to be well into the “starting to warm up” part by now.
Almost 8am, and we are at -30C?? We are supposed to be closer to -23C by now.
That’s off by quite a bit!
I just checked the critter cam. There are surprisingly few cats in the sun room. I’m glad that heat lamp came in yesterday, though!
Hopefully, things will warm up a fair bit over the next few hours, since plugging the truck in, is not an option. At least it’s closed up in the garage!
I do wish we didn’t have to go out in this, for my husband’s eye appointment, but it wasn’t supposed to get this cold.
Well, time to bundle up and feed the outside cats!
I just got back from the post office and brought this home. The heat lamp for the sun room. It’s assembled and ready to hang up. I’m going to let it all come to room temperature before I try to hang it up and turn it on.
This is much better than what we used before, which was never intended to be used for anything other than keeping the pipes under the kitchen sink from freezing. This is a brooder lamp, so it’s meant to keep critters warm, safely. The bulb guard being particularly appreciated. Sure, a cat could still stick it’s head in, though I’ll be sure to hang it where that is not likely to happen. More likely is an accidental brushing. Between the bulb guard and the depth of the reflective shade, that is no longer a concern.
There is the option to hang it from a hook, or using a clamp. I expect to be using the clamp, but it’s good to have choices.
We are not expected to have daytime highs below -20C for a while yet, but overnight lows have already dropped to that point. The city we lived in last is expecting to drop colder than -30C, so we don’t have much to complain about.
In other news, I got a voice mail on my cell phone. It never rang, but at least it took a message.
It was the computer repair place, letting me know my machine is ready to pick up.
!!!
I had thought it was a lost cause, but no. He got it going. It takes about 5 minutes to boot up (it was taking that long for a while, now), but it’s working again. The total bill, including saving and backing up my data, is almost $300. Much cheaper than a new computer!
I do still need a new computer. The hardware is giving out and it’s not worth replacing it all, but it does give us time to figure out getting the funds for a new machine. Or even a refurbished one.
I don’t know when we’ll be going into the city next, to pick it up. That gives us time to scrape the money together to pay for it.
Then there is the cost of replacing the valve stems on the truck.
Then there is getting my mother’s car in to see what the damage is, and how much it will cost to fix.
My husband has an eye appointment coming up and will need new glasses. The last time he got glasses, it cost over $1500, most of it for his special lenses, some 15 or so years ago. His insurance currently covers only about $400.
Then there is…
Then there is…
Then there is…
It just doesn’t end, does it?
However, the kitties will be nice and warm. I think the lamp is ready to hang up, now!
Well, I tried using my cell phone to call 611, the general number for service and repair.
Yes, I made sure wi-fi calling was on. It’s even set to “wi-fi preferred.”
When I got through to a human, he could barely hear me. After several attempts at speaking, he asked for my number so he could try calling back. He double-checked to make sure he heard right, then we hung up.
When my phone rang, I heard nothing. At all. I repeated that I could not hear and asking if he could hear, but nothing, until he hung up at his end. He called again, and it was the same. Since it was possible he could hear me, even if I couldn’t hear him, I said we would try again from a different cell phone and hung up.
My husband’s phone handles calls better than mine for some reason. He called 611, but got different automated options than I did, with the system finally saying to call back from a local number.
Of course.
My husband’s phone still has his number from before the move. I’m the only one with a local number, and that’s because we switched SIM cards. When it was time to renew the contract, he got a local number, and they were able to find one almost identical to the land line. The number for the landline is my childhood phone number, so he gave it to my phone.
So he tried logging in to find a service number, but he’s only made an account for cell service (same parent company). I’m the one with the landline account, but I’ve only ever logged in using my desktop.
I no longer have a desktop.
I was able to use my phone to go into an old emailed bill, all of which I keep, and followed a “view my bill” link. Thankfully, I remembered my password.
Among the numbers to call, it says to use 611 for repairs, which we couldn’t do. There’s an 800 number, but only for calls from out of province. So we had to call a non-toll free number.
We did get through, though. We had trouble hearing her, but she could hear us, so it worked.
Describing the problem was a bit difficult. It seems she’d never encountered something quite like what we have happening. Especially the part about it suddenly working again, then not. She did ask if we tried unplugging and plugging in the phone line, of course, and I told her all the stuff we tried.
So we now have a ticket started, under my husband’s cell phone number. They will first check the line remotely, then call us. We let her know we are in a cell phone dead zone, so there may be difficulties getting through, even with Wi-Fi calling. She included that information in the notes.
Wednesday next week, someone should come by to check outside the house. For that, we let her know about the locked gate and to call ahead – or honk real loud!
She got a laugh out of that.
She did include that in the notes, too though!
If all goes well, they will find the problem with the remote check.
If they don’t, they will hopefully find the problem outside the house.
If that doesn’t work, the tech will have to check the lines inside the house.
Unless that remote check finds the problem, our landline may be down for at least another 5 days, including today.
Thankfully, we still have satellite internet for communication!
At some point, I do want to get a new corded phone. If the power goes out, hands-free phones are useless. A corded phone usually still works. We will keep the two corded phones I found in storage, though. Emergency backups.
I finally got through to my mother. While we were talking on the phone, it started to crackle loudly. We had to cut the call short.
Now it’s back to “home line busy.”
*sigh*
I don’t know why I’m so hesitant to call the phone company. I just am really loathing the idea. I guess there’s always this thought in the back of my head that they’ll decide it’s a customer problem, and we’ll end up with a massive repair bill. Given how things have been for the last couple of years, that would not surprise me at all.
I’ve mentioned before that our landlines is out. On the base, the “hold” light was blinking, and the display read “home line busy” all the time. When I picked up, I could hear a slight crackling. Basically, our phone was acting as if it were on hold, a feature we’ve never had to use, and coyodnt hang up.
Not my phone. 😆
We suspected a cat may have sprayed on a phone jack somewhere. The one in my husband’s room being a prime suspect. At the suggestion of my brother, I traced that line in the basement to the hub, and unhooked it.
No change.
The next day, I decided to find and trace the line from the upstairs jack, which we have never used. I did that, yesterday evening.
I also tried moving the base and hooking it up in the living room. That jack has a device hooked up with a voice that announces the number that is calling. Unfortunately, before we were able to barricade the living room, the cats knocked it over, and now it speaks Spanish. I don’t see how to change it!
The jack, however, fits two phone lines, and is well above the floor, so it’s easy to reach. Unlike the jack in my room, which requires crawling under a table.
After unhooking the upstairs jack, there was some change. Sometimes, the display would read “no line,” and the hold light stopped blinking. When activating the phone, however, I heard the same crackling.
Then it would switch back to “home line busy” and the hold light would start blinking again.
After a while, I got tired of crawling under my table, so I set the base up in the living room again, and left it there. It’s very visible right now.
Then, after going to the post office this afternoon (alas; the heat lamp did not come in, yet), I went into the living room, walked past the phone, and did a double take.
The hold light was no longer blinking.
The display screen was inactive. No message showing.
I picked up, and there was a dial tone!
I test called my cell phone, and my pocket started ringing.
Our land line is working again!
So now I’m thinking that it may have been an external problem, and something got fixed somewhere. That’s just a guess, though.
So very strange!
I’m glad it’s working again, though! Even if I have no idea why!
Okay, I have to admit, I was expecting this. I was hoping to avoid it, but I knew it was coming.
I just got off the phone with the computer repair shop.
Good news is, all my data has been saved. No loss there.
The bad news…
My computer isn’t worth fixing.
He did manage to get it started, but right off the hop, I need a new hard drive.
And a new power supply.
Plus, other things are starting to go.
I’ve been hearing that from my machine for quite some time. Honestly, I’m amazed it didn’t die earlier.
It’s just old. He could fix the main things, but I would be on borrowed time. Plus, Windows 11 is coming, and my machine is not going to handle that well. It’s simply not worth the cost of repair.
So when I’m in the city again, I’ll get my data and a new external hard drive to store it on, since there is not enough space left on the external hard drive I have at home. I’ve been looking at new PCs, but they are all insanely beyond our budget, to get a system that meets my needs.
However, we might be able to swing a refurbished machine. I don’t know. When I pick up my data, we can talk shop.
Who knew wanting to do a fondue for New Years would be so difficult? Or that I would be doing so much running around this year!
After searching online, I decided to go to the nearest Canadian Tire, as the website said they had the gel fuel I needed in stock.
Of course, I walked right past the display and missed it, until an employee told me exactly where it was.
I was confused by the website description saying the fuel I got was a liquid gel fuel suitable for the burners we have, so when I got home, I double checked.
*sigh*
Another reason I hate using my phone as a computer. I so look forward to having my desktop again!
It turned out the three images in the listing were not three different views of the same product, as is typical. It was three different versions of the same product. The liquid fuel I bought, the liquid gel fuel, and the gel fuel.
The photo on the website for the gel fuel did not have the big blue box on the label, like in the above photo.
So I was reading a different description for products with almost identical labels.
Apparently, the one I got is suitable for cheese or chocolate fondue.
The prices were all the same, though, so it was a straight exchange. That part went smoothly.
After that, I still needed the dry white wine, but the liquor store I knew about was next to a Safeway, so I went there to look at their cheese selection.
Yes, I did find Swiss cheese.
I also had a slight heart attack over the price! The smallest block was still over $17!
Then I noticed the display above.
There was ready-made cheese fondue sauce.
For only $12.
The ingredients differ from our recipe slightly. We don’t have potato starch, but the recipe calls for either flour or cornstarch as a thickener. I have never seen kirsch in my life, so that would have been skipped, but it is an optional ingredient in our recipe. “Spices” is vague, but we would use whatever we have in our cupboard. Sodium phosphate is not in the recipe, of course, but it’s just a salt compound used as an emulsifier.
I had actually been trying to find this in all my shopping, and never did until today. If I’d found it before, I would have bought three, and we would have saved quite a bit of money!
I just got the one, though, as a back up.
I hadn’t had breakfast yet, so I also got a little thing of hot chicken strips with potato wedges, and a drink. Plus, I found some stir fry pork that I also got for the oil fondue.
My next stop was the liquor store. After going through the first set of doors, I was confused when the second set wouldn’t open. Then I realized there was a woman’s voice calling to me.
She was seated behind a plexiglass barrier. I had to slide my photo ID through a slot for her to scan before she let me in. I’ve never had to do this before, so I had to ask. Turns out, they had a major problem with theft, so now they don’t let anyone in without scanning ID first!
People really suck, sometimes.
But not here! She was really nice. Once inside, I started looking at the wine section for the Canadian wines. An employee saw me and offered to help. I told him I was looking for a dry white wine, and he asked if it was for drinking or for cooking. I told him it was for a fondue. He got quite happy and recommended a dry riesling, which is what he always uses for fondue. I was quite tickled to find someone that actually does fondue; not a lot of people do, anymore.
He then led me right to the Canadian wine section and to his preferred riesling.
The price was right, so I got two!
Of course, I looked around as I made my way to pay for it. There are so many interesting drinks I’d like to try. One display caught my attention, though. It was a beer display, and the cans had a bison on it. I half saw the name, which immediately made me think of a particular Polish vodka I haven’t seen in years, Zubrowka, that uses bison grass.
The beer turned out to be called Zubr, which means bison, and yes, it is from Poland. I just looked it up. Turns out it’s a lager that has been brewed, under a different name, since 1768!
As I waited in line, the guy who helped me earlier came over to open another till, so he rang me through. As we chatted, I told him I don’t care for beer, myself, but my daughters like beer, so I got it for them to try. He said it was quite good. I hope they do like it. I can’t remember if they like lagers. I do know they don’t care for IPAs, but that’s all I can remember.
So that went well enough.
I remembered that my husband needed distilled water for his CPAP humidifier. Since it was on the way, I decided to stop at the Walmart.
Out of curiosity, I also looked for the gel fuel, since I was pretty sure I saw it at this location before, but found nothing.
Nor did I find distilled water! All I could find was spring water, which can’t be used in the humidifier.
After a while, I snagged an employee with a pallet jack. I figured he might have at least seen the display, or even filled it.
He didn’t know, but after parking his pallet, he went looking for me. Then he found another employee with a phone and tried looking it up. They spoke for a while, though not in English, so I had no idea what they were saying. Their final conclusion, though, was to check the pharmacy section. I mentioned I did check there, but I may have missed it.
The guy then went with me to the pharmacy section and found another employee there to ask. This guy came over and explained why I wasn’t finding it.
The distilled water was under recall. !!! Something about the plastic. They had a whole pallet in the back they weren’t allowed to sell.
Well, now!
Of course, I’d found a couple of things we needed while looking for the water, so I paid for those. I decided to take a different route home, to hit the town near us, and try the grocery store there, which carries a different brand, then gas up and go home.
Once at the store, I went straight to where they have their distilled water and…
The shelves were empty, except for a couple jugs of spring water.
I snagged an employee. He went to check in the back and came out with a jug.
With all the trouble I’ve been having, I asked if there was more available. He asked how many I wanted, and I asked for 3 more. He went back, then returned with a case of four for me! The one he brought first went straight onto shelf. Lol
Finally! All done!
Of course, I got something extra, too. There were Christmas chocolates at half price, so I got three boxes. Most of the sales on Christmas stock has been things like only 50 cents off.
With all that driving around, I burned quite a bit of gas. I’d chosen where I went in the city so I could fill up at Costco. If I’d known then, how much trouble – and how expensive! – everything would be, I would have gone to the nearer city and found everything I needed, burned less gas, and saved money in the long run.
Ah, well.
At least we’ll know better, for the next time we do fondue!
The Re-Farmer
[Edited for autocorrect typos. I hate blogging on my phone!]
I was just talking to my daughter about our fondue plans. As we were talking, she took a look at the box with the spare burner I got.
The one that was on the shelf right next to the burner fuel that I got.
Unlike me, she turned the box around to read the side.
Oops.
It’s compatible with gel fuel only.
So I went and brought down the oil fondue set and checked the burner.
They’re the same.
I’m going to have to try and find gel fuel, after all.
Looks like I might be going further afield than originally planned, tomorrow. I will try a specific hardware store in town, first. If they don’t have it, I’ll have to drive to the nearer Walmart, where I’m sure I saw some in stock before.
What I can’t understand is why the Canadian Tire had only liquid fuel with only gel fuel burners. It’s not like there were spaces on the self for gel fuel or liquid fuel burners. They are even the same brand.
As for the liquid fuel, unless I can find the right burners for them, I’ll return them.
Danity. I never expected this to be a hard thing to find! But then, fondue aren’t as popular as they used to be, and oil fondue even less so.
Depending on how things go, I wonder if we would be able to use the hot plate as a heat source, instead?
The Re-Farmer 