Radiant floor has been economical for us. Except in one area. In floor heating also heats up the objects in the room. That is great for a couch. It is not so wonderful for A $35,000 baby grand piano for whom no amount of humidity can compensate so now the pin block is dried out and needs to be replaced. A $3500 repair or worse depending on the condition of the sound board. So far we have not heard evidence of a cracked sound board, but my climate control runs none stop and needs water so often that I have to wonder just how gutted the piano is going to end up being!

The Saturday, Sunday, Monday covid count for Michigan is 21,034 and 95 new deaths. Genessee County, the only county anywhere close to me with a mask mandate for schools, is rescinding the mask mandate on Dec. 22. I have thoughts about the above information, none of which are fit for print here.

Nice fireplace. Great look! I would venture a guess that it is strictly ambience and puts put no appreciable heat. But without manufacturer specs, I can't be certain and yes, the tech has changed a lot in the past ten years.

We don't have it here for a variety of reasons so have an exterior wood boiler with a back up propane boiler for our radiant floor heating. But we have had it in a different house. The up front cost is very expensive, however, over the life of the heating system, it is the most economical and of course is super environmentally friendly. We have friends that have it, and their average heat bill is literally the electricity to run the pump. It has never cost them more than $70 a month to heat their house to 68 degrees in the dead of Michigan weather with subzero temps. They do have a very, very well insulated home, and that is the first place to begin when considering heating a building, with windows next, and weather stripping the doors. Nothing compensates well for drafts and heat leak. They also save money on home owner's insurance because the fire hazard is reduced. Closed loop systems are preferred. They are more expensive, but end up requiring less maintenance. Open loop have a lower up front cost. But in general, we are talking something like $10,000 and a forced air natural gas furnace would be maybe $3500. Is just that not only is geothermal better for the environment, 20 years later you have paid $200-400 a month for years on end to heat your home which you have not paid with the geothermal, and saved a lot of fossil fuel. But much also depends on size of home, local climate, etc. I would think that any geothermal contractor would be willing to write a free estimate.

💔

I will report back tomorrow. Mother in law who had JnJ in April went for a Pfizer at lunch. For a former nursing professor, she sure is a whiner!! Whined about the first shot and had zero side effects, whined about needing another one, whined about the flu shot, whined whined whined, and yet as ZERO patience for parents that feel badly about getting children immunized. Then she sports a "Suck it up buttercup, your kids need it, and you should be role modeling a good attitude" motto. 🙄🙄🙄 So I can only imagine what I will be reporting!

My morning included a phone call from my mom who was crying really hard. One of her closest friends in this whole world, someone who has been a huge support for her but whom she has not been able to see since March 2020 because they adopted the "liberals are making it up" covid is a hoax stance and refuse to mask, distance, vaccinate, meet outside, was put on a ventilator this morning. She and her husband got it at their very large, anti-precautions church in Grand Rapids who is having its third wave outbreak and still refuses to cancel services or do anything. Husband was quite sick, but came through with oxygen and breathing treatments at home. She went down the tubes rapidly. The doctors have told the family she has a less than 5% chance of coming off the vent. One of their children called my mom to let her know. Mom is heartbroken, just bereft. There is nothing I can do to console her. These folks are honorary aunt and uncle to my sister who is much younger than me. When my dad was dying of cancer, they came here numerous times to help, and then after he died, helped us get the business ready for sale and auction of contents. I feel very numb one second, raging angry the next, and then profoundly sad immediately after in thr this vicious cycle. It is not even remotely safe for us to go to Grand Rapids, hold their kids close, and cry together. She is going to die alone in that hospital with her kids and husband saying goodbye on a zoom call. Her husband is beside himself, weak as sheep and in despair that they didn't believe it was real and could happen to them. My sister is inconsolable and cannot come home from France to at least be here with mom and I. I have cried buckets today. More than I cried for my own grandparents or father. All of the covid deniers who keep running off their damn mouths and prattling effing conspiracy theories can go to hell today! I am just beyond done. The husband has expressed his desire to die now too. I don't know if he will hurt himself or not, but if dying of a broken heart is a thing, then I suspect that is in the near future for him. My only consolation is dh got his Pfizer booster the other day, my mom had her Moderna booster last week, ds3 and I have our boosters this coming Saturday, Dd and hubby have their boosters, and thank the universe, our five year old grandson got his Pfizer this morning and my mother in law on team JnJ got a Pfizer at lunch. The other two adult sons have another month before they qualify for a booster, and that leaves our two year old grandson. Everyone is doing a hunker down beginning Dec. 10 when all the bachelor college uncles (1 undergrad in dorms, 2 grad school but living alone) come here to form a pod so we can all spend Christmas together in Alabama at the new house. Together. Today that word means more to me than any other. This day sucks to the utter limit.

You don't just want a fireplace store. Call and actually heating business, one that deals in fireplaces, stoves, furnaces, maybe even geothermal heat. There are lots of "fireplace shops" that sell product but do not install. So your questions would be answered by someone who does not know the fire codes for your area, nor understands anything about energy efficiency for your home. Much of what you need literally depends on your specific situation. Not all electric or gas log fireplaces are created equal. And that said, they really are not meant to provide much heat, and generally exist for ambience. But there are some like soapstones, that are meant to he a secondary source of heat, and then heat the stone around it so that it radiates heat for quite a while even after being turned down. Again though, what you can actually have safely is dependent upon where you want it installed, building codes for your area, and how much secondary heat you want to produce along with your local climate conditions. There are some nice formulas they can use to calculate that and point you it the right set up, but only if these are licensed installers who have been trained in it, and not just someone trying to sell an "off the shelf" fireplace that they expect you to figure out how to get installed and working. Building contractors usually have a heating business they work with locally so if you knows someone in the building business, this may be a good place to start. When my dad was alive, he owned a heating and air conditioning business. He did everything, even wood boilers and waste oil furnaces as well as wood stoves, wood fireplaces, electric, and gas. The only thing he did not specialize in was geothermal heat.

I taught my kids that the original pilgrim harvest feast was a day of thanks for those settlers who made it through the year and were able to put food away for the next winter, a major feat in a land that was new to them, a celebration of survival. But it is a day of sorrow also because it very much marked the beginning of colonialism that would cause great harm to other peoples for whom this land was already their home. Then when they were mature enough, we talked about genocide. For our family, we have kept the holiday only as a time when everyone is off work and able to be together. We have not always done a traditional Thanksgiving meal. We are also people who despise Columbus Day, and instead believe in Indigenous People's Day which should be celebrated by learning more, listening, and doing better. I would be fine with the disappearance of Thanksgiving if there was ever a federal will for it. But, we can imbue it with a lot of other meaning. As for the pilgrim/indian trope dressup/skit/etc. it is just disturbing to me that people continue to perpetuate it. Hopefully my children's generation can make that go the way of the dodo.

Still anxiously waiting to hear from our dear friends there. Hoping no news is good news!

I would be comfortable outside because you are vaxed and he is vaxed. Though I would like to avoid covid forever and actually am more worried about long covid and the impact it will have on my life with two grandsons I want to be able to chase, play, and generally enjoy, I also know that I cannot live life entirely hunkered down forever. Quality of life is an important thing not just quantity. That said, cases are absolutely exploding in Michigan and soon it will be too cold to do outside. So we will remain aloof and distant until spring and then do more again outside with people. We don't want to take it to our unvaxed two year old grandson if we can help it.

Propet makes a cute black walking bootie in wide with zipper on the side but laces up. I bought a pair and wore them today with super fluffy, thick fleece socks. My bad ankle (not rebuilt) but I have bad soft tissue damage so ever present, significant swelling. I was very comfortable and my feet were warm. It was about 38 degrees and I was outside for a good bit. They looked really cute with my jeans. I don't think my feet would have been warm for that long if standing in snow, and temps below 30. But, they served their purpose today and I like them. ETA: I have bunions as well. The proper toe box is wide enough for those if I order a wide or extra wide.

So it is even worse than I imagined because the buildings are not just dark and depressing for lack of sunlight, but also lacing in other types of ventilation and crappily built so they leak. Sigh.

Yes, all the time. I live in an area that is still known for having a lot of smoking.

And in more brain bleeding news, tonight was the last of three performances of "Chicago and All That Jazz" put on by the music and theater departments of the local high school. They sold 600 tickets, 200 per night for a venue that has seating for 250. No mask mandate. The school had more than 50 students out with covid in the high school building which is about 10% of the student body. One singer reportedly performed with a face shield (no mask) because she is still getting over covid. I know the gal who was the pianist. She signed the contract to do it back in August when cases were low and felt obligated to stick with it for the sake of the kids. She called to tell me that she could count the number of audience members with masks on her fingers. I figure 5-7 days from now, the town is going to be very sick. Mayo has the county listed as a hotspot at 67.1 cases per 100,000 daily. Probable cases here doubled in just two days. And Mayo is wrong. It is worse than that. 52,000 people in this county, 149 new cases in two days, and the county EMS director says most people are not testing so they are catching only the cases that come into urgent care, ER, or work jobs that require testing. But here is what is breaking my heart the most. The director of Dispatch announced he is done. He no longer wants to serve in a community in which no one seems to care about this, in which the county commissioners are evil to anyone who stands up about it, and where there is so little respect for EMS. 1/3 of the staff walked off the job with him. He literally resigned with no notice. Just done, exhausted, and at his rope's end. They will all be able to get jobs in other counties, but now we operate with a skeleton crew and no director. People will call 911, and they aren't going to get an answer because the call volume is going to bizarrely exceed the staffing to handle it. They waited until the end of shift, and then bam. The two local supermarkets discontinued curbside pick up. I am driving outside my county, about 45 minutes one way, to get groceries. I was supposed to go get my eyes checked, and I desperately need new contacts and glasses. But, I canceled my Dec. 1st appointment because by then this is going to be a dog eat dog, Dark Ages, effing plague of epic proportions and far worse than any previous outbreaks. I just can't imagine my mask and Moderna being able to overcome this, and I am so looking forward to Christmas. I am not willing to keep the appointment and then end up really sick or worse. And I am really struggling with how much I hate the general public at this point. One small good thing, very small. People are getting a bit nervous, and 1st dose vaccination rate went up from 39%-48.4% in just 10 days. It isn't enough to shake a stick at. But I just hold out the last measure of hope I can find today that this wave of running to get vaxed will continue until we get some good numbers. However that is probably folly.

I was finally able to score an appointment for the 20th for myself and our son who lives in college dorms. Moderna for me, Pfizer for him. So I will let you know. But, my report for hubby is he had a full dose of Pfizer on Thursday after having JnJ in April. He had a mildly sore arm, mild fever, a migraine, and some dizziness/disorientation from the migraine. He is fine today.

I am so sorry about your friend's sister. I don't know how to get people care.

So Michigan decided to tell every single state struggling with covid numbers, "Hold My Beer!" 15,800 new cases since Wednesday. I.am.so.tired.

😂😂😂😂😂 Not wrong Rosie!!

I am so sorry for what you have goner through and know how hard this can be. I just want to encourage you about moving. The very best thing dh and I did in our marriage was to move 2400 miles from his father. That distance and a time of no contact forced fil to accept boundaries and as a result dh was eventually able to see his dad before he died. If you are able to put that distance between you, it will take a load off, a huge burden lifted. I can totally relate to shopping out of zone to avoid the toxic relative. Today was a victory for you. But it doesn't feel like it necessarily. Be kind to yourself.

It's maddening, isn't it! I am so weary. But yet, I know I have to keep my guard up. Dh had his booster today, a full single dose of Pfizer. He had JnJ last April and never felt a thing. He is now hunkered down on the bed with me with a terrible headache and a sore arm. He suddenly feels strong compassion for me - the reactor - who spent three days in bed each time I had my Moderna doses...103 temp, migraine, arm so sore I could hardly move without severe pain. I so happy he got it though.

I should also state that Michigan, for most regions had bad time last year from mid-Nov to end of Feb. I expect that again this year because vaccination rates are too low to stop it. However, some few spots did okay. Lots of natural, social distancing and hunkering down in the winter in the U.P., and a few spots do have high vax rates and a higher percentage of mask volunteers. The two big ten schools are going to have a Dickens of a time though. They don't seem to have the will to really crack down on their wilder elements, and it is going through the sports teams again. MSU had that stupid riot of students (criminals really) after the Spartans beat the Wolverines and word on the street is that a bunch of the revelers have it. Sigh....

Hilarious! I love it!

Mark made a mantle shelf for the new house. It is mounted to the brick wall behind the woodstove. We really do not want the woodstove, and when we take over the house from Dd and family, he is going to put in a fireplace with a full fireplace front and mantle. Dd needs to put a few more screws in before she can decorate. So it will be a while before I have a picture. Currently she just has some greens and white pumpkin garland on it that is lightweight. But for Christmas, put lambs ears leaves around six, white pillar candles, and tied each on up with silver ribbon. We have six battery operated candles to put up there ad well, and some silver and white garland along with pinecones and purple ornaments. There are several, brazen bronzed wrought iron hooks from which stockings will be hung. So I hope it is going to look great despite the ugly, unused woodstove that needs to be yanked out.

If men had periods, they would have either laid down and died or by now, come up with major treatment plans that work. Seriously, except for breast cancer research, women's health issues have lagged, lagged, lagged, and we still have thyroid and other treatments based exclusively on the average male body. So ya, I figure if dh had had to deal with this since he was 11, he would have been begging for his ovaries to be taken out by the time he was 12, and the medical community would have listened because we just can't have men suffering like that! Too much misogyny in medicine.