It’s never boring around here. Well, it can be, but not during the past 48 hours or so.
Since we were waiting for the oil delivery and the temperatures were frigid (that’s an understatement) we turned down the thermostat and wore layers of clothing, all to conserve the remaining oil we had. Our friends told us that the delivery would be in the afternoon but it might take longer than that because the country roads around here were in bad shape after the storm resulting in slow deliveries.
Then, at one point when Don was going to try to run an errand, his car slid off our driveway onto the lawn and got stuck. There we were, trying to dig out the car in the midst of wind chill warnings. I had on my flannel pajamas, a down jacket, a hat and gloves, and muck boots because I ran outside as soon as I realized he was stuck. It took us forever to get the car out of there and back on the driveway because every bit of snow is covered in ice. At the last minute, a good samaritan stopped by and helped Don push the car while I steered it. We were so grateful for his help.
Needless to say, at that point Don had lost the desire to run errands.
Back inside to wait for the oil. Along about 9 pm, it still hadn’t arrived, and I went into the kitchen to do the dishes. I smelled gas. When I tried to turn on the burners, it became clear that none of the pilot lights were working. We’d run out of propane. I turned to Don and said “What else can go wrong?”
(Note to all of you who have asked if we are on auto delivery. We are on auto delivery – every two months – for propane. When we ran out, I looked for our last bill. I realized that they hadn’t delivered at the two month mark, which was January 9th, and were two weeks late. Now, add to this what happened to our neighbors yesterday. They love to ski and have a house up in the mountains, where they are on auto delivery for oil. They went there for the weekend and woke up yesterday morning to frozen and burst pipes because the oil company had missed a delivery. Auto delivery is a far cry from foolproof.)
So, the fact that our stove had run out of propane was not our fault, but you can bet I’m going to keep tabs on it from now on. I’ve already concocted a system to check on the oil and make sure the propane is delivered when promised. All of this happened right before the oil truck pulled in the driveway at 9:30, so the guys were able to make sure the propane was turned off and, even though I knew we hadn’t run out of oil, they checked the furnace as well. Our efforts to conserve the oil worked. We never ran out, though we were awfully close. The most important thing was keeping some level of heat going so our pipes wouldn’t freeze. And we did it. Plus, we ran a drip all day long.
Our oil/propane company said that they have been swamped. Those guys had been delivering all day yesterday and they still had five more stops to go after they were at our house. Propane is running behind as well. I do know that they have many more clients than they did when we first started working with them. They’ll have to figure all of that out. But they are true blue and have been there for us when our furnace died, when the sump pump stopped working, when we had problems with our old furnace – and many times Gino (the owner) didn’t charge us for coming to our house to check something out. He is as honest as the day is long.
Today we will be waiting on the propane, but we have an electric pot that we use to heat water for coffee, so we’re fine until dinner time.
Tomorrow, I head into the city to check in on Anastasia. It’s supposed to be much warmer tomorrow, with rain.
I’ll take it.
All is well.
Happy Tuesday.
ugh. sorry you had to go through all that.
hope your back didn’t hurt worse for getting the car un-stuck and that don feels alright, too.
and that today is better for you and tomorrow is better still … we’re another day closer to spring!
kathy in iowa
Thanks, Kathy!
I really feel badly for all the people who are trying to work outside in the last couple days. The guys delivering oil until 9:30 in this frigid weather deserve a big thumbs up!
We’re up to 20F from 3 yesterday in NW CT.
Stay cozy with a good book!
P.S. Auto delivery is not all that it’s cracked up to be. They estimate how much oil and propane you will use and then deliver based on the estimate. All good if you under use not so great if you over use. I know this from personal experience! :)
Exactly! I think there are two many ways it can go wrong!
I love seeing people’s bookshelves. I also love seeing that you have Wallace Nutting’s bio and Laurette Taylor (I used to have that one but it was lost in a move, I think.) And is that John Gielgud directing Richard Burton in Hamlet next to it? We share that one, too!
So glad your oil FINALLY arrived before it was too late and you have electric, so bring on the instant oatmeal, coffee and tea and have you a crock pot? Hope so — and that the propane arrives soon.
Hope all muscles and bones are working for both of you today after unearthing the car in the chill. Hang in there…
I agree with Jeannie about the crockpot! Not only will you get a couple of hot meals out of it, but the smell of soup or veggie stew cooking will be wonderful!
We just didn’t have the ingredients on hand to make something today.
Yes, that is John Gielgud directing Richard Burton – I’ve had that book since high school! Thanks, Jeanie.
The oil men came through! Thankfully, you had your pipes dripping away. I want to peruse your book shelf also but I need to bustle out of here . My husband’s medication needs to be topped off. Enjoy your day.
You too, Mary!
You’ve had quite the last several days that’s for sure. Happy to hear that the oil finally got there….surprised they still had 5 deliveries after yours though. And then…with Don’s car sliding off the driveway and no propane for Stella? It’s just too much! Hopefully, that’s the end of it for you.
Safe travels tomorrow! ;)
Too much. We’re tired! Still waiting on the propane.
Sorry for the mishaps on your oil and propane. Weather can be such an enemy or such an ally, the former in this case. I agree that huge kudos go out to those delivery people, working in horrid conditions, trucking oil and propane (!) in hazardous road conditions to ensure people have fuel. Glad Don was not hurt when the car slid, and thanks goodness for kind generous people willing to lend a hand. Both of you take care today to ensure that the car misadventure hasn’t made any muscleaches come to the fore.
Those delivery guys must be exhausted. We still don’t have propane, but we can get by if it doesn’t get here until late.
HI Claudia, In the area of the Western U.S. which I live, it is very common for people to use all natural gas.or Electricity /and Natural gas.Could you please explain the difference between Propane,and oil,and what their respective uses are. Thank-You.
Please forgive my ignorance. Judy A
You can only get natural gas if you’re living in an urban area where the provider provides natural gas and where there are gas lines available. If you live in the country, it’s much less likely to be available. It really doesn’t have anything to do with where you live in the USA, in terms of geographical city, etc., it has everything to do with how accessible your home and property are. There is no way to put in natural gas lines here in the sticks. So everyone who wants to use gas must have propane tanks – I’m sure you’ve seen them in your travels – with lines running from the tank to your home. In our case, we only use propane for the stove. Rick and Doug have it for their furnace and their stoves. We had to have Stella converted from gas to propane.
So happy you got your heating oil. You can survive with coffee at least. Hugs!
Linda, I haven’t had time to read your email yet, but I will today. I set it aside to give it time. Much love to you.
Glad you got the oil delivery. Hope the propane arrives soon.
Marilyn
Propane came at 7:30. Thanks, Marilyn!
are oil and propane that your talking about, the same thing?
No. Heating oil is oil. Propane is gas – just a heavier version of natural gas.
Im freezing cold thinking of you in pajama pants boots , trying to help your hubby out. So glad you did not run out of propane. There is a lot to be said for customer loyalty. Especially when a company has been so good to you. Here’s hoping the rest of your week improves
They have been very good to us. I think they need to find a way to deal with their expanding customer base, but they will. Thanks, Kathy.
Holy cows, you sure had a bad day going there. But the superhero oil delivery men made it in time, so a happy ending. Our current snowstorm in SE WI has now been changed from 3-5 to 8-10 inches overnight. I sure hope they’re wrong.
Oh no! I hope they’re wrong, too!
I hope that your propane arrived…I’m happy that you could still have your coffee or you two might have turned into a couple of grumpy bears with all that was happening..lol
We would definitely have turned grumpy. I need my coffee!