On Wed 09 Mar 2005 12:22:47p, Damsel in dis Dress wrote in
rec.food.cooking:

> "jmcquown" >, if that's their real name, wrote:
>
>>Just got a call from Damsel (Carol). She and Crash are at a motel for
>>at least the next couple of days. The fusebox in the basement decided
>>to do a melt-down in the middle of the night. If Crash hadn't
>>awakened... well let's just say the basement was thick with smoke but it
>>hadn't made it upstairs yet nor was anything yet in flames. They and
>>their pets got out safely. The power company has shut off all power to
>>their house until further inspection can be done; it appears they will
>>have to have it rewired.
>
> And now, through the miracle of modern technology, we're back online!
>
> Thanks for letting folks know, Jill.
>
> I asked the ringleader of the fire fighter's gang that showed up what
> would have happened if Crash hadn't awakened. He said our house would
> have burned to the ground. He's also going to give the City Electric
> Inspector some good-natured shit. He was here on February 28th, and
> slapped his sticker of approval inside the door of the fuse box.
>
> It was determined by the electrician to be Just One of Those Things.
> The main fuse had gotten a little loose and one thing led to another.
> When Crash went down there, it was in the process of melting. The
> wonderful electrician just left. We have a brand-new, big circuit
> breaker box, and heat! We have heat! When we came over here yesterday,
> the inside temperature was 61. This morning, it was 51. Now it's a
> balmy 68. I feel like frolicking nude after being so cold for so long,
> but I don't want to frighten the neighbors.
>
> The Red Cross came and arranged for lodging for us (the lack of heat and
> the stench of burning electrical stuff prevented us from staying home
> the past two nights), gave us some "Clean-Up Kits" (toiletries so we
> wouldn't reek from the fumes), and a homemade quilt for each of us that
> are ours to keep. I will always cherish these tangible reminders of the
> goodness of other people when we needed it the most. Those quilts are
> priceless.
>
> The motel is not one that I would recommend to anyone. When we came
> home from there yesterday morning, our unheated house was a lot warmer
> than our room there. I was also pretty excited to find a roach bait
> thingie with one of our dog's teeth marks in it. Oh ... we considered
> stealing the ice bucket and tray for glasses and stuff and returning
> them to Day's Inn and the Ramada. Yup, this was a high-class joint.
>
> First thing I did when the power was restored was to check the meat in
> the freezer. It's all hard as a rock. Whew! I've been fretting over
> all that meat the entire time we were without power. There's a whole
> ham, a turkey, a huge slab of brisket, and a bunch of roasts and stuff.
> Thank goodness. I honestly thought that we were going to be
> roasting/grilling everything and freezing the cooked meat. I'm
> relieved. It's better when the stuff is freshly prepared.
>
> In the past 36 hours, I've had 5 hours of sleep (not all at once). I'm
> gonna go through my e-mails and take a lonnnnnnnnnnng nap!
>
> Thanks for all the good wishes. We appreciate your kindness and
> concern.
>
> Carol
>

I am SO happy and relieved to see you, Carol! Get a good rest, then come
join us.

Wayne