The Aftermath...

God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say "thank you?" ~William A. Ward

First off... thanks to everyone for your comments from Tuesday. The hugs were awesome and appreciated!

Charity... I have high hopes as to what you're sending (I hope, I hope).

Darcy (who is not Charity, no matter what Blogger thinks!): Sorry I stressed you out!

Groovy: I still think the ER response was a bit of overkill (we ended up with four engines, 3 Fire SUVs and 4 cop cars from two towns). We're a little town and I honestly think there really isn't that much excitement going on, so when something happens, it's a bit like a party.

To the rest of you: MWAH! I'm WAY behind on my blog reading... but I'll get back to it soon.

Here's a little bit of what's been going on.

First off, when making cookies as a gift -- do NOT use a new, untried recipe. I did, and ended up with a terrible mess. I ended up going to the store bakery and buying some because I was so demoralized.

Second, it's amazing at the difference between contractors. We've been getting estimates for repair the past two days and WOW! From a guy who didn't even look at stuff, just wrote it up for what "probably" needed doing, to a guy who took an hour peering up the chimney, climbing around on the roof, and answering the gazillion questions my husband peppered him with.

Third, dogs like to eat creosote. Blech. The fireman had dumped the contents of the wood stove and all the gunk that had fallen out of the chimney onto a pile of snow in the lawn. Dakota decided that it was all for her to play in. So, yesterday, I shoveled it all up and dumped it WAY back in the woods in a pile of branches. Hopefully, no other critters get into it. My thought is that wild animals are too busy surviving to play in the mess. And, one good rainstorm, and it'll be gone.

Fourth, it's ABSOLUTELY AMAZING how quickly a chimney catches on fire. In only a few seconds, the entire thing was aflame. WOW. But we apparently have one of the best built chimneys the fire department (and the contractors) have ever seen, and had it not been so well built, the house probably would have gone up. Evidently, the original contractor not only did everything within code, but actually went a few steps further to make it even more safe. We're actually trying to find out who it was and thank him as well. People so seldom get thanked for doing their jobs (humans are more likely to complain than to thank, IMHO), so we want to do what we can.

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You Are an Acai Berry

You are an intense, fascinating person with a very strong personality. You don't shy away from controversy, and you're incredibly independent. You are cultured, knowledgeable, and worldly. You have a deep understanding of things. You are lively and healthy. You believe your body is a temple, and you treat it as such.

What Tropical Fruit Are You?

Cultured? No... and I do have the occasional french fry, but try to eat well. Otherwise, okay, maybe.

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