finally, at long last, i'm on the mend

it's been too long since i felt non-sick. precisely December 4th ~ that was the day i realized an illness was setting in because when i laughed at brittany's funny jokes (she just came back from her US vacation) each laughter came with wheeziness deep from within my lungs.

for exactly four weeks i've felt various degrees of "like-shit"

3 doctor visits, 3 pharmacy visits, 2 x-rays, 1 electric blanket and 1 space heater later .... i'm finally feeling better. today i woke up and coughed without a wheeze was thankful for that wheeze-less cough.

i'm on the mend

last night Halmoni told us not to put on the boiler as much any more because the gas bill was 500,000 Won last month. it's been a constant battle with that woman. every time we go downstairs to turn that thing on, she waits for us to go back upstairs, then comes out of her room (conveniently located right next to the boiler controller panel) and turns it off. we sleep with hats on and scarfs around our faces ~ that's how cold it is in the house and the 2nd floor has it worse than the 1st so brittany and i have the worst time feeling comfortable in the house. we dream of battery powered hats and clothes that generate heat. lol


i don't know why she can't use some of the rent money that we give her (a total of 1,500,000 Won per month) to pay that bill? she's lived in this house for 30+ years and it's very likely that this house is paid off; that there is no mortgage on it. she has no children and her husband passed away, she goes no where and as far as i can tell someone else tends to her groceries and makes sure she's got enough kimchi. what are her expenses other than utilities and taxes on the house? i object to her keeping the boiler turned off and thus keeping the house like an ice box based on cost alone ~ it's an old house and therefore, costs a lot to make it livable in the winter, period. if i were owner of this house i'd invest in new exterior doors and windows which are so old, they don't even close, they are ajar because they can't close. i'd also invest in ondol flooring for the second floor which is heated by the boiler with radiators ~ the same boiler that heats up the ondol floor on the first floor - where Halmoni lives - which is much more efficient and effective in warming a room and its inhabitants and heats up quicker. when it's comfortable downstairs, it's still not even close to being warm upstairs. i'm sure it's warmer in a barn ~ all that hay, ya know.

a few years ago the boiler blew up and needed to be replaced and often, during the summer, she complains if the boiler - which also heats up the water for the shower - is left on by mistake (it has to be turned on before a shower and off after a shower). sometimes i think she's overly worried about this new one busting and is hyper vigilant to keep it turned off which i think is unnecessary. i object to her keeping the boiler turned off based on the fear of it busting. it's a new boiler; i'm sure the old one died because it was old and past its "good until" date and i further believe there's some smart programming possibilities in this new boiler such that the owner can program it to a "set it and forget it" mode where it would turn on and turn off to maintain a constant temperature in the house and i think that is using the appliance smartly and efficiently and would alleviate the need for Halmoni to sit right on top of that thing but she's old and can't handle new technology that offers more than an ON/OFF button.

we use a gas-powered space heater to provide warmth to our living room. it's powered by a small LPG gas tank that sits right outside the window, a gas line connects the two. SIX DAYS. we went through a single LPG gas tank in 6 days. never mind we suspect that we were delivered a half tank. we bit the bullet and ordered another tank. FOURTEEN DAYS that one lasted. we weighed it prior to use and it was 47 kgs at 32,000 Won a pop. none of us were here last winter and the kitty log doesn't seem to indicate frequent LPG gas tank purchases. anyway, none of us present house mates care to pay for 2 tanks a month for the rest of winter, or about two more months, Jan & Feb.

we decided to forget about getting more gas tanks and just invest in either a large electric space heater or a few small ones. though it didn't seem to bother me, the others felt the odor of the gas space heater was strong so this electric solution will eliminate our exposure to gas. and we can easily transport the space heaters into our rooms at night when we sleep.

okay, i'm off my soapbox.