my little champion

Last night it was pretty cold. Well, comparatively cold. Our temperatures dropped dramatically, and the torso has yet to adjust to the new regime. Today I have three layers of (summer) clothing and am too hot. Yesterday two were barely enough to keep warm. It is time to hunt out the winter clothes.

But in the meantime I decided to heat the kitchen with the gas heater. I was given two some time ago when the owners no longer wanted them. One has always performed well, the other rather erratically. At the end of last winter I was down to using one, not wanting to mess about with gas. Two weeks ago the oven bombola ran out of gas, so I stole the partly used one from a heater. Yes, of course, Murphy saw to it that I stole from the good heater.

Last night I lit the "other" heater, not knowing which it was. I could smell gas, but the flame seemed to be fine. The connections checked out OK. I pushed the heater near the "natural ventilation" of the old door with holes in it, and I opened the window a fraction. I figured I was safe enough if I tried it for a short while. Zacchi, a gas heater magnet, came in. He loves the gas heater so much he has even woken me on a cold night asking to have it put on. It is his favourite spot, between the heater and the computer, for the winter.

He looked worried. Well, more worried than usual. He wouldn't sit in front of the heater. He went from side to side, around the back, sniffing, not settling, then looking at me, trying to tell me something. I assured him that I had checked the fittings, all was OK, it was just the gas from start-up. He wasn't convinced. He went to the oven and sniffed all around that bombola, looking at me as if to say "Listen to me! This is what it should be like." He did the whole ritual of sniffing around the heater, then over to the other bombola, twice more. When I still didn't move he gave little short barks.

I got up and turned it off. I removed the bombola and attached it to the other heater. I wrote "Bad Heater" in the dust on the ummm... bad heater. By then I was well and truly warm, no heater required.

Tonight I will try the other heater, with my little champion beside me.

Today I am grateful for my faithful companion.