RIP dragon candle
Oct. 14th, 2021 10:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
soniaWhen I was six years old, I was dragged along when my mom visited a friend. The friend had sculpted and painted a whole fantasy scene out of candles, large castle, knights, the works. There was a small upright orange dragon with painted scales that six-year-old me fell in love with, and the lady gave it to me.
That was the beginning of collecting dragons. Of course I never burned the candle. I have carried it with me from dorm to apartment to house all this time. In this house I had it upstairs on a shelf nestled in with a few stuffed animals and other treasured relics of childhood.
Today I noticed that the dragon was face down. I went to set it upright, and realized it's not that it had been knocked over. It *melted*, probably during the June heat dome. 116 degrees! Fifty-two-year-old me cried real tears and ceremonially carried it to the trash.
Ironically, I was looking closely at that shelf because I'm thinking about getting a heat pump mini-split for my bedroom, which is unheated except for a small electric heater I mostly don't use. There's no air conditioning in the house, although the basement stayed cool even during the heat dome.
The HVAC person said the room would be comfortable year-round. YES, I want that! Sadly, I'm not sure it would actually happen. Online reviews of the Mitsubishi system are mixed about reliability, and I'm worried that it would be noisier than I would be happy with. And also off-gas at first and give me headaches. Not to mention costing $6K+ to install.
It would require rearranging furniture, which I find myself reluctant to do. It feels right the way it is. There's a tall bookshelf which wouldn't really fit anywhere else, since the upstairs is a built-out attic with sloping ceilings. It's filled with memorabilia, not books, but I kind of like having the old photo albums and games visible, even if I rarely open them.
I think the first step is to run the silent electric heater that's already there more frequently. If I'm willing to spend $6K and then pay for electricity to run a system, I can just pay to run what I have. I think it would need supplementing if it gets really cold, but it's better than nothing.
While I love the idea of being cool and comfortable in summer, I also like sleeping with the windows open and being in contact with my surroundings. I resist shutting myself away from the natural world to run a machine instead. I hate that climate change is tilting toward needing air conditioning here.
Anyone out there have experience with heat pumps? What do you think of them?
That was the beginning of collecting dragons. Of course I never burned the candle. I have carried it with me from dorm to apartment to house all this time. In this house I had it upstairs on a shelf nestled in with a few stuffed animals and other treasured relics of childhood.
Today I noticed that the dragon was face down. I went to set it upright, and realized it's not that it had been knocked over. It *melted*, probably during the June heat dome. 116 degrees! Fifty-two-year-old me cried real tears and ceremonially carried it to the trash.
Ironically, I was looking closely at that shelf because I'm thinking about getting a heat pump mini-split for my bedroom, which is unheated except for a small electric heater I mostly don't use. There's no air conditioning in the house, although the basement stayed cool even during the heat dome.
The HVAC person said the room would be comfortable year-round. YES, I want that! Sadly, I'm not sure it would actually happen. Online reviews of the Mitsubishi system are mixed about reliability, and I'm worried that it would be noisier than I would be happy with. And also off-gas at first and give me headaches. Not to mention costing $6K+ to install.
It would require rearranging furniture, which I find myself reluctant to do. It feels right the way it is. There's a tall bookshelf which wouldn't really fit anywhere else, since the upstairs is a built-out attic with sloping ceilings. It's filled with memorabilia, not books, but I kind of like having the old photo albums and games visible, even if I rarely open them.
I think the first step is to run the silent electric heater that's already there more frequently. If I'm willing to spend $6K and then pay for electricity to run a system, I can just pay to run what I have. I think it would need supplementing if it gets really cold, but it's better than nothing.
While I love the idea of being cool and comfortable in summer, I also like sleeping with the windows open and being in contact with my surroundings. I resist shutting myself away from the natural world to run a machine instead. I hate that climate change is tilting toward needing air conditioning here.
Anyone out there have experience with heat pumps? What do you think of them?
no subject
Date: 2021-10-15 01:28 pm (UTC)I have a Mitsubishi, and I love it. Just love it. It's quieter than the system it replaced, and deals well with both the heat and humidity we tend to get. (And it heats well too, though here the AC is more important, especially in a passive solar house.)
no subject
Date: 2021-10-15 05:45 pm (UTC)