The Only Warmth Is The Warmth I Buy

An old episode of The Simpsons featured a misprinted calendar that cursed the fictional town of Springfield with an extra month of winter called Smarch. In West Bend, we can relate. Spring began on Sunday, March 20 … technically. But this Sunday we had 4° wind chill at 8 a.m. and now, 48 hours later, we’re still below the freezing mark and we might need another 24 hours to break the spell. Wednesday is supposed to be 50-something by mid-afternoon, but wet. On Thursday we’ll be back into the 30s and we might see a little snow.

At least my house is warm again. After years of threats, my furnace finally (and loudly) died at 8 p.m. last Friday. Heading into such a cold weekend, the timing could not have been much worse. Cheapskate that I am, I wasn’t about to pay emergency labor rates. I bundled up for the weekend and called for service on Monday morning. The upper level of my home dropped from 70° to only 57° in the meantime. Fortunately, the lower level has electric baseboard heaters, so my home office stayed relatively comfortable. Installed in September 1995, the old furnace was the oldest system/appliance in my home. I watched for its demise since about 2013 and, more recently, I stockpiled cash for this eventuality. So, I can afford the replacement and now there’s peace-of-mind instead of anxiety.

Purchased in June 2001 when I moved into my current home, the refrigerator is now my oldest system/appliance. At 21 years old, it is past its life expectancy. But unlike the furnace, it has never shown any signs of stress, and it wouldn’t cost me thousands of dollars to replace. I hope it runs forever, even if it doesn’t match the newer appliances in my kitchen.

I watched every stage of the Absa Cape Epic last week and I was more than a little jealous of the mountain bikers who got to enjoy the warmth and bright sunshine of South Africa. Wisconsin’s road racing season will begin next Sunday, April 3, with a criterium in Kenosha, where 45° will be the afternoon high. Have fun with that. I’m not even tempted to ride right now, much less race. I’m going to finish the first quarter of 2022 with only 4 outdoor bike rides for a total of 104 miles. Those are my lowest first quarter totals since 2006. My cycling season is off to an awful start.