Heating Emergency!

Yesterday I noticed that it was a bit cold in the house! Not unusual because the kitchen is always cold (I have to have the whole kitchen insultated). But then I noticed that it was cold throughout the entire house. The upstairs is usually warmer than the downstairs but not yesterday!

It felt like there was a window or door open somewhere (the temps are in the 30's to low 40's range) so I'm checking doors and windows - even the ones in the basement. They were all closed and secure. Okay so the next thing was to check the thermostat - which is set to 69 degrees. The temperature of the house was 65 degrees. So I'm thinking to myself that maybe it just hadn't "kicked" in yet to warm up to 69 degrees. So I go upstairs for the night.

I notice that it is getting colder. The air feels cold and everything - like the furniture is cold to the touch. (Do you know how it feels to have to sit on a cold toilet seat - LOL!) I thought maybe the problem could be with the radiators so I decided to "bleed" one - a lot of air did come out but after that nothing because it remained cold to the touch.

I look at the thermostate (actually its a thermoter-like thing that's shaped like a clock) and it says 60 degrees!

So now I go down into the basement to check the boiler. It looks alright to me. I thought that it could be a simple case of the pilot light being out - but the pilot light wasn't out.

Since by then it was around 9:30 at night I couldn't call the people that installed the boiler (which I was able to get with a grant and didn't have to pay a thing for them to come out and look at it) so I had to wait for the next day. (Note here: I am so grateful that this occured on a weekday instead of the weekend!)

I called the people up and they sent a guy out that looked at it.

Guess what the problem was?

It seemed that the guys that installed the heater put a mismatched connector to one of the lines! The new guy replaced the connecter and now the house is slowly but surely warming up!

Thank Goodness!

The Big Switch To Digital TV!

I have to remind myself about this!

Before it kicks in February 2009 I will want to be ready!

First some background information:

One February 17, 2009, all full-power television stations in the United States will stop broadcasting in analog and switch to 100 percent digital broadcasting.

Of course I hate that we have to switch at all! I like things the way they are however if I want to watch TV then I am going to have to comply!

Now if you have cable tv or satellite tv then the change won't affect you.

If you don't have the above then you are either going to have to get a new tv or you are going to have to get a converter box for your analog tv. The government is offering coupons off the full price of the converters.

Now here is the situation in my own particular case!

My tvs have satellite / Direct TV - so it shouldn't be a problem for me. (Although I have to say that I want the converter boxes as a backup!)

I do have a TV in one room that's not hooked up to Direct TV so that's one discounted coupon that I can use.

I can use the other discounted coupon (every household is allowed 2 coupons) for the very, very old tv that's in the basement. That TV is so old but it still works!

So I hope that your household is ready for the big analog to digital changeover.

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I should also mention that you shouldn't be confused by the terms "high definition" and digital tv. You don't have to have high definition tv but you will have to have a digital tv (or digital converter box) before the digital tv kicks in February of 2009!

On My Wish List - Bose Radio

Odd as it may seem I don't have a stero in the livingroom. There is a big screen tv and beside it a bookcase-like shelf to hold my VCR tapes. I have a small radio plugged into the outlet but I would like to have something more permanent and I was thinking about getting a Bose radio.

They do seem kind of pricey but I still think that I want one. I have been watching them on QVC and the sound that they emit is supposed to be very good!

However other than the picture that you see above I would perfer mine in black because that goes more with the color of the livingroom.

If you have a Bose radio I would love to hear your comments about them and whether or not you are happy with your Bose radio.

Dish TV

I love being able to have Dish TV! It is an added expense and another bill to pay but I love it! Because I don't keep "normal" hours I don't have normal TV watching hours - plus I tape a lot of things and watch them at a later date.

One of my neighbors has both satellite TV and regular cable TV - wow! I aspire to that one myself!

Having all those channels has really spoiled me to the point that I just can't see myself not having it!

There is a big battle going on between cable and Dish TV - they both want your business and they don't mind saying bad things about each other. I even had one guy from my local cable company knock on my door and talking to me about getting cable again. It seems the company wants people to subscrible so badly that they are sending their people door to door!

I also know that a lot of people can't afford to have it and I am so grateful that I do have it. Mind you there are still some things that I watch on my local TV channels but its nice having the choice of what I want to view!

So Dish TV goes on my list of expenses that I want to enjoy!