While most of my complaints may indeed be little more than space-filling whines, here is a legitimate story for y'all to chuckle over:

I went to bed at about 12:30 last night. I sleep in the uninsulated basement, next to the furnace room. (Meaning there is a wall of bricks and nothing more between me and the outdoors). Shortly after I fell asleep, strange noises began emanating from the furnace room...what could it be? A murderer? A foghorn? But I was too sleepy to investigate further. (By the way, these were LOUD...through the vent system and whatnot you could hear them clearly on the 2nd floor of the house.) They began to come at regular intervals, just under every 10 minutes, and would last about 30 seconds each time. This gave me just enough time to fall ALMOST asleep again, only to be jolted awake 9 1/2 minutes later. By 5 am I was completely awake...yet for some reason I still did not investigate until 6:15, when I stomped up the stairs to find better sleeping grounds.

Unfortunately the couch was taken by R who fell asleep preparing for her med school interviews (she left for them this morning) and when I went to take her bed it was covered in clothes...including her freshly ironed etc interview outfit. (Had it been anything else I would have slept on top of it. She is still, after living here for over 5 months, beginning to unpack. I believe she has slept in her bed twice.) I figured B might have left already, being so late in the day and whatnot, but she was up doing work and not leaving for another hour (although she offered me her bed, with the condition that the light would remain on. No go.)

I stomped back downstairs ("You were really pissed off," B reports helpfully) to count down the number of foghorns to when she would leave for class so I could steal her bed. The moment arrived and I ran back upstairs -- she wasn't gone but at that point I didn't care. (And for some reason still didn't think loud noises from the furnace room warranted further exploration, just sleep.) So I got her bed, and eventually she left and turned the light off, and I slept nicely for a couple hours...when I woke up I thought, huh, usually it's about 90 degrees in B's room, kinda chilly. Went downstairs, thought, hmm, must be really cold outside today, the living room's not doing so hot. (I'm a quick thinker.) Finally I put it together that OUR HEAT IS OUT!! It's 20 degrees outside and I live in an uninsulated room and I have no heat!!

Yay.

Facilities came over when I called and emerged from the basement carrying a large metal ...thing... saying the motor was broken and they would return it later. I have my doubts.

But now the temperature equilibrium in the house can finally be reached. And you can all laugh at me. Cause really, it is kinda amusing, I think. And will encourage me to get back to MN ASAP. (Although I really don't want to go into that basement NOW and finish packing.)