Long Post - from a Long Hot-Sweaty Weekend of Fun...NOT!

The Texas heat wave of 2011 continues....and not without its 'moments'.....like this one:

On a hot Saturday afternoon, I was puppy-sitting with sweet Bella, and dozing on the couch after Lindsey & Kylie headed home. When I woke up, it seemed a little warm and I thought, oh, that sunlight hitting the sofa must be making it really warm in here. Off to the thermostat where I see it "set" for 77, yet the "temperature" shows 82. Yipes! No adjustment will help and I start to panic...not to mention sweat! The house tends to warm a little quickly with 103+ temps!

With Bella on leash, I check the outside unit - nothing! No visible signs of ants that might have interfered with the contacts...a noted problem in Texas. That was the end of my professional observation...so I got on the phone to try to locate my favorite repair guy. No luck and a phone call to Lindsey who invited me over to her house - Bella and all - until it could be repaired. Most likely I'd spend the night, since Sunday was Kylie & YaYa day at church.

I threw basics in a bag - underwear, meds, pjs...then packed up Bella - food, snacks, leash, & kennel & headed to the car. A/C relief and Bella in the front seat! Another call to Lindsey determined I needed to meet them at the parking garage where they were running the ramps for exercise, Kylie in tow in the stroller. (I couldn't believe they were doing that in the HEAT!!) I would get their house keys and garage door opener and settle in before they returned home, but not before a quick trip to McD's for a large diet coke to quench my thirst.

I got to the house & unloaded Bella & stuff...dropped my stuff on the kitchen table...and decided I'd better take her outside to potty. I put her on the leash and headed out the front door, being careful to note that the dead bolt was unlocked. Just on the outside of the door, click! The door locked shut with the door knob's lock! No phone, no keys, no luck. I was stuck outside in the heat w/Bella, praying that Lindsey & all would arrive soon.

Bella did her thing as the sun was going down...and we walked down the street a ways...then I thought, I'll get a key from the neighbor across the street! No such luck, not home. Ok, I thought, I can handle this...the sun is going down, there is a slight breeze...and I found the garden hose! I got a drink for Bella and myself, hosed off my feet...and continued to sweat profusely. I watched vehicle after vehicle go up and down the street...the moon started to peek out and the street light came on. The sweat was stinging my eyes and salting my upper lip.

I lowered the tailgate on Joe's truck, thinking I'd sit for a bit...but it was too high off the driveway. More pacing back and forth with Bella and then back to the hose. This time I watered the grass a little bit and sprayed straight up in the air, hoping for some misty relief. Thank God it was after dusk and I prayed that I would not pass out before Lindsey got home. I held the hose above my head and soaked myself. The water was warm, not cool, but it did help a little. Bella was not nearly as interested in cooling off as she was chasing the cat next door. I was enjoying my wet clothes a bit when here came the familiar truck down the road.

I walked up to the truck window and grinned at Lindsey, my curly hair in tight curls, flat against my head. She asked "what are you doing? I called and got no answer so I thought you were asleep". I told her I locked myself out and had been there about an hour and a half. She frantically gave me her water bottle, but I refused....water I had!

I went in the house with them and into the bathroom - thank goodness THAT was not a problem while outside! Bella went to her kennel and bedded down for the night. I asked for a towel and sat on the couch and Lindsey set a fan in front of me while Kylie played with her toys. Joe showered while Lindsey de-baby-proofed the bathtub for me to shower later. I sipped on what was left of my diet coke, crunched on ice and cooled down. I had spoken to Stephanie and was told John Ed would go by the house after church the next day.

Lindsey took a shower next - heck, I didn't need hot water FOR SURE! I had the experience of no hot water a couple of weeks prior when a control on the water heater went out, so I was no stranger to cold showers. I anxiously awaited my turn and hoped that I wasn't stinking up the place too badly.

With Kylie in bed, Joe watching TV and Lindsey lounging, it was time for my shower. It felt so nice. Then I realized I didn't bring all of my pajamas....just a tank top. How special. Joe had gone to bed so I schlepped off to the computer room where my twin size bed was ready for me. I relaxed, but still couldn't get cooled down. There was no ceiling fan and I was just restless. I got up about 1:30 and logged in to the computer for a bit. I had not planned to go to church after this evening's events, it would be just me and Kylie as Joe & Lindsey headed off to work @ 6. My phone was dead - and I didn't bring my charger! Rats.

I did manage to sleep some, then got up and got Kylie to start our day. We just hung out, played, walked Bella (with the garage door OPEN) and watched TV. Kylie was an angel all day - she took a nap after lunch and I dozed on the couch - even got cool enough for a little cover! After Joe & Lindsey got home around 3, I used Lindsey's phone to call John Ed and he said he had fixed it - or so he thought he had anyway! He said if it was cool when I got home, it was fixed. He also shared that a wire had come loose in the outside unit, so thank you God it was nothing worse!

Happily I loaded everything back into the car and headed home about 6. I had work the next day and was looking forward to a good night's sleep. Lindsey had mentioned to me at some point that the a/c vent in the computer room had been closed - thus my experience with failing to get cooled off. It was 82 in the house once I got home...but no problem....that was cooler than I had been in a while!! Bella was enjoying running around the living room and I grabbed a big cold bottle of water to relax.

I had just logged in to my computer...when BOOM! What sounded like a gunshot was another sound I was too familiar with...a transformer on the power poll next to the neighbor's house had blown! The neighborhood was 'dark' as the sun was going down. I could not believe it...really??? Heating up again in no time, at least I had the forethought to charge my phone. I called Lindsey & told her what was going on and shared with another friend how comical the weekend had been, now being the icing on the cake. I called Encor & actually talked to a human who told me the 'trucks should be out there by 10PM". Great! It was 7!! One more call to Lindsey & she said they were heading over and I could come to their house.

Now, why were they coming over? My garage door opener wouldn't work - and while I could back out, the door had to be closed so I could go to their house. I loaded Bella back in the car - thank God I had not unloaded her stuff yet - and waited in the A/C for Lindsey & Joe. The plan was for Joe to lower my garage door, then have Ryan come by the next day to reconnect the opener when the power was back on. After just a little while, here they came. I was laughing and joking about it. Lindsey handed Kylie to me and we sat in the car with Bella while they went in the house to get the door lowered.

Success! The door was lowered and they returned to their truck to head home. At that point, Lindsey was looking at me and pointing in my direction. I didn't understand what she was saying, so she got out of the truck and told me to look - Encor was on the next street! Hallelujah! I didn't know what quite to expect - how long it would take - or if I should go ahead to Lindsey's house for the night. I decided to wait a little bit and they headed out.

About 3 minutes later...I had powerr!! Yahoo!! Back on the phone to Lindsey - who had just rounded the corner out of the neighborhood - and back they came!! Joe reconnected the door and I decided to go for a little drive to allow the A/C to cool off the house a little. I told Joe he was my "hero" - and promised to make a breakfast casserole for him sometime soon. I drove to Sonic and ordered a diet coke float - yes diet coke with regular-fully-sugared ice cream - not too shabby! Lindsey & Joe were two stalls down ordering a drink as well! Finally back home, I took Bella out once more, then off to bed! I was exhausted! The heat wave continues...we've broken a few records...and I've never been more ready for FALL!! It cannot get here fast enough!