Friday
afternoon, Mike sauntered into the living room and inserted a new log into the
little wood stove to keep the fire burning. Ordinarily we would expect no
problem with that. We were getting ready to leave the house for a walk, but I
was busy and we were delayed in leaving. It was a good thing, too, because the
little stove commenced to smoke. A sudden windstorm was sending gusts hurtling
down the chimney, and the resulting downdraft caused the fire to smolder. Smoke
curled slowly but steadily through any crack it could find. 
What
to do, what to do?? First we yelled instructions at one another and then we
propped open both the front and back doors. The little stove continued to belch
smoke while the wind gusted wildly and . . . well, I digress to remind you that
I’m not a good housekeeper, but that doesn’t mean that I wanted all this dirt
in my house. Papers flew off the kitchen counter onto the floor while dirt and
leaves hurtled across the floor. 
“Can’t
we put some paper in the stove and get the fire to burn?” I suggested.
“We
could but I’m afraid to open the stove door,” Mike replied. “It will just put
more smoke into the house.”
Really,
at that point I couldn’t see that more smoke would matter. We already had
plenty. About that time, the smoke alarm in the dining area went off, adding to
the sense of urgency I was feeling.
Mike
grabbed the ladder and climbed to the roof to see if he could shield the
chimney and cause the stove to draw. That worked – and so I tossed some wadded
newspaper into the stove to encourage the fire to burn and also added a small
stick of wood. We were successful in our efforts to reverse the downdraft, and
it was safe enough for Mike to come off the roof, but the wind had blown the
ladder over, stranding him up there. I managed to replace it – difficult because
of the wind.
4 comments:
Oh my goodness!! What a day! Did you get all your papers gathered up and the smoke smell out of the house? (And I can't imagine trying to get a big ladder back up in the wind to rescue Mike. I hope you got dinner out!)
I do not normally take satisfaction in the trials of others, but at this time in my life it is a comfort knowing that unexpected excitement occurs for other people, too.
The temp was fairly mild that night, so when we went to bed we left windows open. The next afternoon was pleasant, so again, I aired the house. But surfaces are coated with dust.
I think most homeowners experience excitement of one sort or another from time to time. I guess you don't even have to own your abode to have the occasional debacle.
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