Mistake after Mistake

Originally Posted Monday, November 3, 2014

So. . . I'm a goof.  I've been living without heat needlessly.  At brunch today, I was telling my buddy about the a.c. 

"The outside unit makes a noise, but the fan doesn't turn."

"Hmm. . . that could be bad.  It could just be the fan, but it might be the compressor.  It will cost anywhere from $150 to $1,500.  You might be lucky.  It might just be the fan." 

"I don't feel lucky." 

I told him about the miserable morning I had and about turning on the oven and opening the door. 

"I don't think you need the outside unit for heat," he said.

"Really?  I was afraid to try it.  I have gas heat.  I didn't want to burn the place down. 

"I don't want to tell you wrong, but I don't think the compressor runs when you are using heat." 

I made a beef soup/stew today, so the house was warm with the cooking and the space heaters, but after dark when the stove was off, the cold started to creep in.  It was not a real cold, you know, but the damp cool kind the fucks with my imagination.  I turned on the heat, and by god. . . it worked.  It is too warm in here now. 

The glory today, though, was in the eating.  Brunch was a wahoo eggs benedict.  Sounds weird, maybe, but what a treat.  The combination of flavors was shocking.  This chef has truly got a good sense about him. 

Then tonight I had the stew that had been simmering all day.  My oh my oh my. 

Heat and a happy belly.  And its only 8:30.  My fear now (I need fears, I guess) is that I will fall asleep too early.  It has been dark now for ever so long. 

Here is a hideous picture of Cousin It.  The picture of Red and this picture were taken at the same moment.  If nothing else, it goes to show, at the least, that I do not have a bald spot on the top of my head.  Big fun in the Ritzy Tropics. 

*     *      *     

The rest of the evening did not go as planned.  Now I face a busy week of work and surgeries. O.K.  One surgery.  I will give the key to my studio to a friend and give him instructions on what to do with everything if I die from the anesthesia.  I can't leave it to my mother since she doesn't know I have it.  I have about (by my estimations of what one of my big prints should sell for) about $600,000 worth of art there.  I will sell it in mass for $100,000 if there are any takers.  Where should the money go?  I don't know where any of my stuff will go.  I'll be dead and done, I guess, everything eventually moved to a dumpster.  But I will not die in surgery, probably, but will be required to suffer through the rest of my life like many before me.  Not that any of them have been required to suffer through my life, but you know what I mean. 

I am nervous about the a.c.  I have not heard from the repairmen and don't know if they are truly coming this morning.  The weather will change by tomorrow and a.c. will be required to stay comfortable once again.  I need it fixed before the surgery, of course, but by tomorrow, truly.  I have more than a week's work to do in three days at the factory.  My life is a mess like the hair in the picture.  Everything requires tending.