Word Salad II

People keeping suspiciously close tabs on the state of our home might remember that a year and a half ago our fireplace cleaning and inspection got our fireplace condemned with a note that literally any fire had in the past 95 years could plausibly have burned the house down. The question was what to do about it. We finally resolved to having the fireplace converted, with a small wood-burning stove squeezed into the space where it would be adequately insulated and ventilated. Also to actually be effective in heating the house, since our open-hearth fireplace was kind of not good for anything but having the lovely sight of a fire and warming up people who were within three feet of its opening.

After finally committing to the stove installation last winter, the fireplace people finally had the time to come out and put it in. This involved getting here terribly early in the morning and using the neighbor's driveway to fuss with the chimney some. Fortunately the neighbor, who's there on some AirBnB-style lease, didn't mind as they haven't been using the driveway (we're not even sure they have a car), and to make some fuss inside the living room. But by the middle of last month, there we were: with a cute black stove poking just a couple inches out the front of our fireplace.

This was not the end of things, though. First, they would need to cut an arched metal plate to go around the stove, so as to fit the arch of the fireplace this was filling up. Second, and a bit more distressing, the stove's new front was not parallel with the edge of the fireplace. It was enough off to be obvious if you stood nearby. Third also was that the city had to inspect it to be satisfied that it was installed correctly, but that would come in time.

This past week the city finally had the time to send an inspector, who gave us a pass for a ``rough inspection'', because the fireplace was not exactly as it would be when finished. Exactly would include having a blower fan at the base, which was not installed in the first place because (our best explanation is) they forgot to order it, and having the faceplate put on.

That faceplate would be put on this week while I was in the office. It's got a nice arch that matches the circle of our original bricks, and for reasons it's poked out an inch or so from the brick so we can still see the whole original. The fan's tucked in where it should be with a cord we need to, like, triple-protect as long as Athena is in her ``chew everything'' phase. And they straightened out the stove while installing the faceplate so that it's near enough parallel the wall for any reasonable person's needs.

Now we need just the final inspection and for it not to be the middle of summer and we're good to go.

Meanwhile! Have we seen enough of Cedar Point's petting zoo rabbits yet? I don't think we have.

I know this is just the brown rabbit asking the white for head-pettings, but white rabbit looks ready to do an Incredible Hulk transformation and start ripping the place apart.

I believe this is actually the white rabbit grooming themself with the brown trying to horn in on the process.

But the white rabbit gradually accepted the invitation to groom the brown, and the brown rabbit looks so confident that has gone exactly as desired.

Aw yeah, that's the good head-licking.

On to the rest of the amusement park. This is the water mill that, up until this visit, was usually left open. We haven't seen it open t the public since.

Here's a little, easily overlooked, patch of water and green space next to the water mill. It's just enough off the main Frontier Trail that you might never know it was there.

Trivia: Soyuz 19 astronauts Alexei Leonov and Valery Kubasov had a nearly ten-hour rest period before the reentry the 21st of July, 1975. Source: The Partnership: A History of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, NASA SP-4209.

Currently Reading: Beyond Measure: The Hidden History of Measurement From Cubits to Quantum Constants, James Vincent.

And now, while I build up strength for the next big reporting project, a bit of news around the home. Last time I talked about our bathroom lights I mentioned how I'd found the nonfunctioning bulbs above the mirror were actually just burned out, and I replaced them with LED bulbs that are bright, cool, and look fine.

So we had a new light problem break out. bunnyhugger turned the light on, it flickered a moment, and then the main light, not over the mirror, stayed on, incapable of being turned off. The other switches on the same switch plate --- the ceiling fan and the heater --- worked fine, but not the light. So, oven mitt in hand, I unscrewed the compact fluorescent that hasn't given up the ghost yet, and we called yet again on the electricians.

You know, I thought we were probably being rooked when we signed up for that service contract with the plumber/electricians but we've now saved a bunch of service visit calls. Maybe our house should be falling apart more slowly.

So the problem was that the physical switch had at last burned out. Not a difficult fix --- the electrician didn't even bother turning off the circuit breaker --- and the only catch was finding a replacement faceplate to cover the three switches and the two electric sockets next to it. He found one but had to go four places for it. Once he had that, though? I can't say it was but the work of a moment, but it was pretty quick to do. And now we have a new and shiny white switchplate.

Sadly, this replaces the switch's old faceplate, a battered metal NuTone thing that was our only clue what model ceiling fan we had (and that was itself cut partway down to make room for the faceplate around the electric sockets). It also replaces the toggle switches with rocker switches that I'm still getting used to. They did a similar replacement of a toggle with a rocker switch when they changed our kitchen ceiling light. I don't know why. I can see sources claiming rocker switches are more durable because it's harder for contaminants to get in, but they also say it's only a little better. Maybe it's just the electricians' house style.

When he asked if there were anything else I did mention how nice it'd be if there were more outlets in the bathroom. Right now we just have the one next to the light switch, plus a socket coming off the mirror's lights that's only good for the electric toothbrush. He outlined the intimidating pile of things we'd need to do to get a new socket put in, and yeah, won't be doing that, however much it would make everything better. Too bad.

Anyway, light is working and we should probably make a note somewhere of what our ceiling fan model is since we can't use the faceplate to tell us anymore.

Back now to pictures of Cedar Point, and something everyone would really like to see.

Hey, what's that over in the petting zoo?

Aw hey, a fluffy white rabbit all set to be petted and have all kinds of attention pushed on her, that's great, right?

And here's another rabbit sinking in their dewlap.

I wonder if the white bunny is waiting around for someone to touch them!

Only thing to do is respect the rabbits' desire for petting by dangling your kid way over the fence with them.

Tragedy! Bunny is confused about which way to turn to get a person to touch them all over.

Trivia: On the 19th of July, 1975, NASA played ``Tenderness'', sung by the Soviet artist Maya Kristalinskaya, as wake-up music for the Apollo crew, but they slept through it. The 20th of July NASA tried again and this time woke for it. Source: The Partnership: A History of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, NASA SP-4209. Mind, the wake-up time was 3:13 am the 19th, but then it was 1:54 am the 20th. Also I am genuinely embarrassed that I forgot this was the 50th anniversary of Apollo-Soyuz.

Currently Reading: Lost Popeye Zine, Volume 66: Uranium Hunter or the Living Geiger Counter, Ralph Stein, Bill Zaboly. Editor Stephanie Noelle.