Heat Wave

Well, here I sit on a sofa at my father's house in Southlake, using a laptop with a wireless connection to his network, hoping my server at home does not melt before I save this entry. Just to spice things up, my two dogs are running around the house with his four trying to figure out who is going to be the boss.

What's that, you say? Why would my server melt? Well, it all started when I sent Amy off to Nashville on Wednesday to see several friends.

Well, okay, it didn't really start then, but that's an added factor in this story. I was surviving as a single man for Wednesday and Thursday, and was looking forward to having a bunch of guys over to play Risk and Quake2 on Saturday. Friday afternoon, after what felt like a very long day at work, I got home and got about 5 feet into my house before I realized I had missed the relieved feeling of cool air that typically meets me at the door this time of year. For that matter, neither of my dogs met me at the door either. That's because it was 90 degrees in my house and no one was in the mood for anything involving motion!

After a few frantic calls to A/C repair outfits, I finally found one that would come out and examine my completely defunct outside unit. It turns out that my (three year old) compressor had shorted out during the day, and would have to be replaced. Unfortunately, the A/C hardware establishment chooses to keep banker's hours and there was no possibility (despite calls to a number of repairmen) to get a new compressor before Monday.

I managed to spent Friday night burning up the phone lines before retreating to my in-laws house for the night. Saturday I managed to spend most of the day at a friend's house who was gracious enough to let me bring the dogs. I also took a computer and ended up playing Jedi Knight II - Jedi Outcast for a good part of the day. Today, I met up with my dad and step-mom after church for lunch.

And now, here I sit, a fugitive from the heat, reduced to mooching off of family and friends for a cool place for me and my dogs to stay for an afternoon! In my defense, I should note that when I arrived here, this wireless connection was not working, so I have been trying to earn my keep!

In all honesty, however, I have been very humbled by the generosity of my friends and family. When I started making calls Friday night to cancel the Game Day that was scheduled for Saturday, all of the people I talked to immediately offered a sofa or spare bed if I needed it, and most of them were not even family members! I am truly grateful to have so many warm-hearted (and cool-housed) friends.

Amy will get back tomorrow, and it is my prayer that we will have a working air conditioning unit before then. If not, you may see more posts logged from far-flung homes offering solace from the summer!