winter – TheMcKeeSpot.

A cold spell. Has Mother Nature snapped? Have I snapped?

A cold front has transcended the United States this week. Cold, wind and snow in some places, below zero temperatures in others. Here it has been very cold and windy. I think winter has finally arrived, almost in full force. Except for the lack of snow.

The climate doomsayers constantly remind us about various days as being the warmest the earth has experienced. Never do they talk about or trend the coldest days. Or they frequently discuss the warmest year on record. They also talk about how weather phenomena continue to drive bad conditions. It is worse this year than in previous years. The situation continues to get worse year after year. People attribute the magnitude of destruction from the California fires to the Santa Ana winds. And all of the destruction that we see is because of climate change. I am certain the Santa Ana winds have been around for much longer than either you or me.

Suffice it to say, the fires are bad because of the lack of poor land management. There is a lack of reducing fuel on land. Additionally, there is insufficient investment in infrastructure because the land becomes overpopulated. Mother nature has not snapped.

The intensity of storms or winds may have increased compared to what was experienced in the past. We all likely agree on this to some extent. And I think we would all acknowledge that the human race has had some impact on those changes. However, we will all disagree on the specific conditions of the change. Increased CO2 from the emissions of cars, petroleum products, burning coal for electricity? Decreased forestation, where less trees cover the planet. Changes in water and air conditions (pollution). More buildings, roads and parking lots. We differ on where humans have played a role in changing the climate. And I am sure that we differ on how to fix it, if it even can be fixed?

Quite simply, there are too many people on this planet.

Climate and weather is Chemistry and Physics. I am reminded of Le Chatelier’s Principle. When a reaction at equilibrium is disturbed by a change in conditions, the system will respond. It will act in a way that counteracts the disturbance. Then it will re-establish a new equilibrium. Or is it the simplification of Newton’s Third law, that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction?

Some interrelation mathematical dance tied to a myriad of hydrodynamics codes. Whether it is the weather, nuclear weapons design, investing in the stock market, who knows (or cares). Perhaps I have snapped!

My coworker and I were talking about this the other day. Not the have I snapped part. A conversation separates the normal workflow of the day. Schedules, reports, review reports or data, technical presentations to prepare, meetings to attend (and accomplish nothing). The status of our activities. Earned value management? She was getting things wrapped up work wise before venturing off onto another photography trip. This time it’s to British Columbia and Alberta to visit among other things, some lake that has frozen methane spheres. And if nature and conditions cooperate, animals will be photographed in their natural habitat. Hopefully, the northern lights will also make an appearance.

You can read all about the methane bubbles here: https://www.abrahamlake.com/Frozen-Methane-Bubbles-at-Abraham-Lake.html

As for the scientist in me, I wonder if you can burn the methane ice bubbles like cow dung. Or will they just explode?

She travels the world whenever time permits, which is another way of saying when vacation hours accumulate. She has photographed penguins in Antarctica, twice. She has captured pictures of volcanoes in Iceland. Stayed in an ice hotel in Scandinavia as part of a trip to see the Northern Lights. Castles in Scotland. She has documented (on film) animals in Africa. She has taken photographs of wildfires. She has photographed the crews working to contain them. She has also captured images of polar bears here in America. And of my daughter’s horse Ruby…

Our conversation was about melting glaciers and their impact on global warming. We also talked about the salinity of the water (Le Chatelier’s Principle in action). Why does one use salt to melt ice? Lastly, we discussed ideal beachfront investments for the future, as I have to trivialize everything. Does melting ice actually flood the planet and change the coastline in the future?

Her vacation travels make me think about my need to travel across this country, and elsewhere. Especially as I ponder retirement. Unfortunately, I accumulate too many vacation hours and hardly use them. OK, I occasionally travel for concerts. Early May is already set with a planned concert. A few other trips are in the planning stages. As for work, our paid time off, or PTO, combines vacation hours and sick hours. I seldom use all of it and so it accumulates and then I just take days off. As I seldom get sick, those hours also just accumulate. I might suggest that is because I take good care of myself, but we know that isn’t entirely true. However, my last physical indicated that I was in good health. There are a few things I need to work on as I get older. I will address those issues this year.

Next week, many people will snap because Trump will be inaugurated as our 47th President. Talk about a cold front settling across the nation! As for this post, I am left with many topics to detail in future posts. Until next time, stay safe, stay warm and enjoy. All is well.

Without heat in the modern age

For the past few weeks, I have been troubleshooting a problem with my gas furnace. It was kicking on and off frequently. It was having difficulty reaching the thermostats set temperature. My three level house was cold on the inside. It was colder on the outside.

My daughter’s horse Ruby had gotten clipped about two weeks ago. The shaving of the thick coat of hair requires that she be blanketed when the weather becomes bad and when the temperature falls below 40F. As it often does in northern New Mexico for this time of year, we have rain, freezing rain, snow. The temperatures can fall into the teens at night. The wind chill can make it very, very cold.

Waking up to snow. Ruby blanketed one cold winter morning. Ruby clipped on a warmer winter day.

This morning, as I write this post, it is cold and raining. Snow is in the forecast. It is a dreary day outside with no heat to speak of. It’s 33 as I grab my boots to get daughter up in order to go feed the horse. Inside is equally cold. It is only 62 and son is out of control playing with the dog.

Ruby has no problem with the cold weather. She gets plenty of hay, a warm and waterproof blanket, and a stall to keep her covered if the weather is bad. But she is a horse, so often we find her outside when the rain or snow is falling.

Now to the furnace. It was inspected when I bought the place a few years back. Worked fine. Of late, it hasn’t been very efficient in keeping the house warm. I figure it is about as old as the house, but not that elements have been upgraded based on the dates of various pieces of equipment. The furnace is a gas-fired water boiler that is the center of a hydronic heating system. The system heats water and circulates it through the various radiators on the three levels of the house.

Outside body of the gas furnace. The zone valve that is actuated by the thermostat. None of them are working properly. An expansion tank and some corrosion…or did the expansion valve open and spray out something.

The furnace appears to work fine in that it kicks on and heats gas. The problems appear to be (1) the zone valves are not working in all zones, and (2) the water lines that circulate during the heating cycle do not have water. This may be why the zone valves have stopped working. This explains why the heat wasn’t getting to the set thermostat setting. No water to circulate, no water to heat. Time to call in the repairman because I am not very good at things mechanical.

Easier said then done. I called on five different outfits. Left messages with three. No return call. Talked to a nice lady on Thursday who could not fit me in until Friday. On the fifth attempt, I was able to get a technician out late in the day. He spent an hour looking at the system. Didn’t fix anything. Couldn’t understand where the circulating water went or why it wasn’t filling. Clogged valve? He took many pictures and said he would call on Friday. Friday came. He called and said that I needed some new parts that would take time to order and receive. So there I was. This weekend and into next week without any heat. Was suppose to have a follow up call to authorize the parts. Nothing. Called Friday. Email and called Saturday. Nothing. Finally, a woman called me to acknowledge the email but had no information. No knowledge about parts, or when then could work on the system. Would call me first thing Monday.

In the mean time, I found the replacement parts on the internet. Some can be purchased at Home Depot and Lowe’s. Wanted to gauge the price of the parts because I am sure they will be marked up significantly. I get skeptical when they say that they need to bring it up to code! Cha-Ching! Wanted to see about ordering the parts if the repair company decides not to call me back. Caution…Based on experience.

So what are The kids and I doing for heat? The house has a fireplace so we have wood. Will probably do that today as it is cold and raining outside. We also have a space heater that has been working nonstop since Friday. Sleep has been great with a couple of blankets and a warm dog to curl up with me.

Yep. Heating 2100 square feet with a single furnace. Actually not too bad.

The question is will they call back? When. When will they order the parts and how long before they arrive? Will they even call me back? I leave for business travel next week. My house will have no heat for a couple of days but it looks like the weather will cooperate. The aquarium has a water heater so the fish will be ok. Jonny the hamster has lots of bedding so he should be fine.

Will it be fixed for Christmas? May be that is what I’ll ask Santa as my present?

More importantly, when will I learn that things don’t last forever. They do require maintenance. Things, and animals, and people, do require proper care if they are to last for a long time.