Life at Gray Gables: Turn down for W H A T ?

There comes a time in your life when things change...

There is a moment when time stands still. I know that at least one of you have felt it. As if the earth has shifted off of its axis, only, just in your world. It sounds crazy to actually write it, to think it, to admit it- but it happens from time to time. For me, it was just recently. Things changed. I don't know what or how and I don't really even know how to explain it fully, but I know it has happened, some major event that made me just a little bit older.

I, personally, think it is this intense back-pain that will not let up. It haunts me morning to night and is so bothersome that I just want to lay down and never get up again...but I can't. But, only I know that the back pain is just a cover for what is really going on. You all know where I am going, don't you? To that six letter word that I despise!

Ugh...I don't even want to mutter those words out loud, but I know that is what the root of all my problems, my shift is stemming from. (like it or not) What is the stress over? Well, that is easy, life choices.

We live in a house, in the country. I am not joking. I mean, sure, Walmart and Meijer's are about 2 miles down the road, but directly a crossed from our house is a corn field. We have neighbors, so we are not totally desolate, but from being a city girl to being a country girl has had both ups and downs! Our newest hurdle, we are propane customers. Remember that post from last year, right around Christmas time when we literally ran out of Propane and had to use heaters to heat our 3,000 square foot house. It was freezing as we were in the heart of frigid temps and more snow that we had seen in a long time. Yea, so needless to say- We suck at propane! Knowing when to fill or how much we use, if we are running efficiently, (obviously that was NOT the case last winter!) and what temps to keep our house - we were clueless!

So, about two months ago we had high hopes when the Columbia Gas lady came and said that a petition to get Gas Lines to our end of the street was in the works. She came in and mapped out where the inlet would be and flagged our property for hook up. Great, right? Um, no. Seriously, have not heard or seen a thing since and we are already dropping into the low 40's at night. So, needless to say, the propane has been tapped into once again. EEK!

I can not express how terrible the bills were with propane or how bad the customers were (us) for not filling it before we ran out (oops!). So, we were looking into our options. We had heard that we were sitting on an old gas well. OK, cool, right! I mean we had tunnels from our house to our old carriage house and tons of pipes running in the carriage house- so maybe we could...oh wait a second...no one in our neck of the woods drills for natural gas pockets and it would be big $$$ to get someone to come up and drill and then what if we are tapped out...we just wasted money for nothing... We both thought our risk was more than our gain in that case...

NEXT..

Ok, onto a Wood Boiler... We drove up to Michigan a few weeks ago to look at one, a used one...it was nice and BIG- big enough to do what we needed it for- our house and the big pole barn (I mean, Hubby has to have a heated garage, right?). Well, something was just not right with it because Hubby let it go. Now what...(my thoughts)

I guess it was a good thing that we did not J U M P before doing our research because our Town wants us to have a SPEC sheet to submit to them for our permit. This used model was not coming with such Spec Sheet- PROBLEM! And it just so happens that one night I...yes, me...was doing some research on Wood Boilers and trying to lessen my Hubby's stress...and found a few names that I then started searching. I called him in for one brand that was interesting (I really don't know much about these units) and it just so happens that he was looking at the same brand. Well, this caused him to look on Craigslist and lone behold...he found a new model that was priced right and jumped. It is crazy how this stuff happens to us- like it is supposed to, you know!

Well, that was over the last Sunday...He met the guy and gave him a "deposit" and we drove to Bluffton on Saturday (Thanks Mom and Dad for watching our kiddos so that they did not have to ride in the car for 6 hours) and picked up our NEW wood boiler! Guess that is why we have a wood pile that lines a half acre of our property? (seriously)

It was a LONG ride home- slow and steady- but I got some great pics and schooled on how all this Wood Boiler stuff works! Free heat (well this year at least!) and this unit will also be heating our water. I mean, how much more country can we get...but I love it!