Baby it's Cold Outside!

We had a deepfreeze this past weekend. Normally not that troubling unless you live in a trailer in the mountains like we do. Saturday night saw temps below zero and caused us some major water problems the next day.

I've discovered something about leaving the water dripping, especially when it's enough to fill the tub. Ok. So it didn't fill it. And the trickle alone probably didn't cause the problem. Still, it's something to think about. I think the first trouble happened when I ran water in the tub, to make sure it was still working. What I failed to notice was the standing water that remained. No, there was no plug in the drain.

You know what's coming, don't you.

Unprotected (discovered the next day) traps in sub-zero temperatures make a wonderful spot for an ice tray. An ice plug, anyway. But that was only the beginning. The result? About a quarter inch of ice in the tub the next morning and a drain frozen solid. Would have been more, probably, but the dripping stopped sometime in the middle of the night.

So, I get up the next morning an there's nothing coming out of the tub faucet and the sink is quiet as well. Sinks. The one in the kitchen stopped too. I'm finally getting a small drip from it this morning.

I'm thinking -- "great. I suppose the cold was too much for the heat tape on the hose too." Yes. At least that was done. I got it wrapped up last month when it first started getting colder. And a 100 watt light was on the pipes in the back. Still froze. I checked the hose and though stiff, it didn't seem frozen. Oh. I also had problems with the toilet. It has a foot valve that opens a ball valve and a water valve at the same time. Wouldn't budge. Before I went out I turned the space heater on that valve and when I got inside, was able to flush the toilet. Hey! Running water too. Ok so the supply was fine, now it was just a matter of thawing the pipes inside (which were protected to some degree) to get the rest of the water going. That finally happened late in the afternoon. The drain? Ha! No chance. I started looking for the problem there and discovered that not only was the trap not wrapped in any way but there was a nice cutout in the aluminum missing right under it. It was then that I remembered it was there. I had noticed it last summer when I did some work on the bathroom and had not had time to cover it. Big help now, eh? So I put the droplight on it for a while and the plug finally thawed. It's been covered now and I moved the droplight to a more direct place on the water pipes so things are better this morning.

An old trailer in very cold weather can be no fun at all. Last night I heard sounds of things falling. At least, that's what I thought was happening. The dog heard it too and stopped to sniff a one of the cabinets. Uh-oh. So I open it up and knowing that it's bloody cold at the floor level, start there looking for problems. I found it. We had stored a number of pop cans there and the ones closest to the outside wall had started bursting. Snow everywhere. Well... that's sorta what it looked like. One can had the lid blown completely off. Who needs a freezer? We'll just put it down here and it should keep for a long time. So much fun...

We're looking forward to a nice family Thanksgiving Day feast at my parents house. We're planning to head there sometime tomorrow. It will be nice to get together again. Some of my fondest memories are from the Turkey day feasts we had as kids. Most often, relatives from my Dad's side of the family -- and there were quite a few around Wiley, where we lived -- would haul in loads of delicious food. So many things to choose from. I always ate too much. Each year someone would host the bash and it was a time of joy, happiness, and fulfillment. I have missed those days. It's a part of my past that I hold fondly in my heart and will never forget. I cherish my family more than words can ever express and it's so good to be near most of them this time to enjoy these holiday seasons. It to me expresses what a family is all about. We're all going to miss Russ very much. He still lives in Oregon and because he works in a grocery store in the meat shop, it's one of the busiest times of the year for him. Not at all easy to get away. Still, I know that he, Marie, and the girls will have their own feast. We'll miss you, Bro.

May everyone remember this holiday season how fortunate this country is to be able to celebrate such freedom in this way. There are many this week, away from their families and my heart goes out to them all. I've been there. I know how hard it can be. We especially think of those serving this country in a foriegn land and I am reminded of how fortunate we truly are. May God's blessings fall richly on everyone.