Heat

    Ahhhh, Life.  All I can say is that I am truly grateful that I can come home to my husband and pugs.  It has been interesting lately.  Until two days ago- we didn't have heat.  This experience was tough, not only because it got colder, but because our landlord is in Japan and we had to wait around for approvals (to call heater techs).  We had to bother our neighbor (the 'handi man') to come and check this out.  Of course the first time it started right away (then it dies), the second, he didn't have the tools (or know how to replace a part).  I felt bad to keep bugging the guy when we knew he didn't know how to fix it, but the landlord he had to make sure it was a cheap fix.  Finally, when the days REALLY started to get cold, he gave us approval to get a professional.  Thinking we found a great guy, we paid a 39 service fee for him to come out and find the problem.  He found the problem..and wanted to charge $707.  Baca had told the guy to wait so we could get approval from the landlord (by email).  At the time I was having another mini-breakdown and begging Baca to just do it!  Thankfully, he didn't.  Our landlord replied with a 'no way' because of the pricing.  I calmed myself down and realized he was right, the pricing was ridiculous.  We got another approval to go buy a space heater on him. We already bought a cheap one from Costco that sucked (and sucked the power).  Desperate, I called my plumber friend (from my last job) and asked him to call about parts.  He called later to tell me they no longer made the parts.  We called another place that our landlord recommended and it was a $75 service fee and $70 an hour!  I was ready to just give up and wait for him to come back and fix it himself.  A quick email came back with- 'just do it.'  The guy came the next day and we finally had heat.  The bill was only around $350.  Until I came home and Baca said it did the same when it started- the pilot light blew out.  I'm so pooped!  Baca will try to fix it (he thinks its something simple) .  We don't even like to look at our bank account, our savings is drained, our CC is charged up, BUT- after all this charging our rent will only be around $100 bucks (due to us charging everything) so it makes us feel a little better...just a little lol.

*Side story*  Speaking of space heaters-I had just arrived home and was already sitting on the couch with the laptop keeping my lap warm (before the heat got fixed). Baca was packing up the recently purchased space heater (that sucked) and we were making plans to go to ACE Hardware to get a better one. Baca put the smaller space heater (that we borrowed from Wesly last night...or more like he OFFERED it to us). Bruce and I were minding my own business sitting on the couch with the little heater facing towards us. Now realize- yes, the heater was sitting on the couch and I had a feeling this would come back and bite me later. I just didn't know it would be so soon. Not even 2 min later Baca was getting up to go to the bathroom (- Side note- all day the breaker kept tripping because there were too many things plugged in and the place is lord knows how old) and he flips the lightswitch and BAM. I let out a scream of " OH SH**" (The people who know me know I don't cuss really at all...but, I have to admit in my scary and suprising situations, this phrase is my first reaction) There it was..death...looking me in the face and blazing out of a small space heater. Sparks flew and my mind only thought of the aftermath of me trying to put out flames on the couch. After a couple of seconds of me trying to hold back tears and laugh off my tragic experience, I spaced that my Bruce had been closer to the spectacle than I was. I look around to find Baca is laughing. I thought he was laughing at me ( I guess I was still laughing, I don't know). He got to see the whole thing and he saw how Bruce lept from the couch in a form only known as 'the butt scoot'. This form is when the pugs are in super fast mode and let their tails uncurl, hunch their backs, and get the ego of a race horse. Baca explained how he was pulling this off in mid air...I found Bruce was under the table unharmed but just as shaken as I was. Baca's quick response to unplug the heater saved our little lives. Bruce fears the small white space heater (or devil) and I called Wes shortly after to tell him we have to buy him a new one. He didn't think it was funny so I am assuming his plan to 'get rid' of us didn't go the way he wished. That's right Wes, this is why I married a man who may look like a lumber jack most of the time..but can move like a ninja.**