July 29 and the world is on fire

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I do not have to tell you about the heatwave currently being universally suffered right across the northern hemisphere. If you don’t follow the news, you likely live here and can feel it for yourself.  It’s hot, it’s getting hotter and they say it is only going to get worse year after year.

I am going to buy an air conditioner.

I am going to buy a single 12,000 btu mini-split knowing it is half of what I need to be cool.  That will be about $1500 and I have to install it myself.  I am being frugal.  And that’s because a 12K unit is still 120 volts and a 24K is 220 volts.  And so far, I am living reasonably well with nothing.  Not even a fan.  Half what they say we need might be sufficient.  For awhile, anyway.  We insulated well.  When the temp overwhelms my soon-to-be-added 12K, I will add a second one.

This is not usually an interesting topic – and it still may NOT be – but I mention this because of all the appliances out there, a/c is the only one I can readily indulge in because most appliances are too big of an electrical draw to meet our low power draw standard.  BUT a/c is needed when the sun shines and when the sun shines, I have power to spare.  We can’t power hair dryers, electric fridges, stoves or big microwaves but we can power up ac’s in the day time like they don’t matter.

This summer is weird again….it looms like the summer a few years back when forest fires were everywhere.  We don’t have one burning right now.  But we did.  It was touch and go there for awhile but we are back to normal now.  But it feels otherwise.  There is haze.  No wind.  It feels like a forest fire is ready to hit.  It’s weird to have that fear.  Never had that one before.  But I do now.  Moreover, the kayaking public has invaded our area this year and, although mostly very good, some kayakers seem ignorant of fire conditions and surprised that people live out here.  They have campfires.  Locals go nuts.  Tensions flare.  It all adds to the feeling.

Very few whales, too.  Fewer animals all around.  Even fewer squirrels.  It’s hot.  It’s quiet and there’s an odd vibe in the air.

So, rather than dwell on the weird and the heat, I thought I’d just share some images taken by my talented daughter – the one who did the covers for our books.

 

 

 

 

 

 

11 thoughts on “July 29 and the world is on fire”

  1. Always love seeing pictures of your place. It’s worse in town where we are right now on hot days. We’ve had four events back to back since Thursday, the last the evening. It’ll be cooler when we get home to the cabin. If it gets much hotter we will set up a tent on the deck to sleep outdoors. Always cooler there. And dips in the lake as needed are refreshing. Sometimes life off the grid can be better than town life. I hear the Unique DC fridges are pretty efficient. If we can’t get new gaskets for our propane fridge we may consider that. A friend has been using one for a year now and can even leave it running in winter when he’s gone for a few days. We’ll see. – Margy

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    • I think they are, too. Our dorky Danby freezer from Costco is a nothing draw on the system but we only open it once every two days. I’ve also read that 10.0 cubic feet is about the most efficient due to compressor size and all that. If you get an old, well insulated 10-12 cu ft chest freezer and have a different thermostat put in it (from a fridge) it acts like a top loading fridge and is also very efficient. We are all used to the closet style but every door opening dumps the cold air out so just being a chest style makes it better.

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  2. Great photographs! AC is a great option. You have a great heat sink in the salt chuck. Can you make use of all that water with a heat pump?

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  5. Love those photos of your place by the very talented Emily, Sally’s extremely beautiful artistic quilt, and hearing your perspectives. You can even make AC interesting. (Judy)

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