I hung out with the plumber, Dan, yesterday and tried to pick up some tips, but I don't think I'm going to be able to unscrew the pipes from the meter with the mondo plumber's wrench and blow the line with C02. It's more complicated and dangerous than I thought.

What a good guy. Dan's a year away from retiring, and his eyes dance and he's got a dry sense of humor. "If I put the meter back facing the house," he said, "Entergy will have to send you checks." Ha. Lighting the pilots I think I can do, after he showed me twice.

So, I've been washing dishes in lavish amounts of hot water. The heat's on. We made hamburgers and mashed potatoes on the gas stove. All at the same time! But the gas is jumping. Shit. Dan said it needs to run steady. We've had 10 days of knockout weather, but the wind's shifted out of the north and a cold front is on the way. Dan? Come back, Dan!