1406. Firewood

Curtis and Miriam hadn’t actually frozen to death throughout the winter, but they were never warm, never cosy. The wood burner in the house worked well enough, but they had to ration the firewood to make it last throughout the winter. The next winter they wouldn’t be caught out. They lived on the edge of a pine forest, so the coming summer would be a time to collect, chop and stack firewood.

Come summer, and Curtis and Miriam put several hours a day into the firewood. By autumn, they had enough firewood to keep the fire going all day every day throughout the winter.

That was when they received a notice from their landlord to vacate the house in several weeks. It was needed. It would no longer be rented.

Curtis and Miriam looked everywhere for another house to rent. The only suitable one didn’t have a wood burner. It had a heat pump. They moved in. They sold their firewood.

Come winter, on the proceeds from the firewood, they had a wonderful two weeks basking in the sun on a tropical island.

1399. Seasonal felicity

Felicity’s name was felicitous. She was so full of the joy of life, always smiling, always happy, and eager to spread that elation to others. She cared about people too, especially those not as fortunate as herself.

It was no surprise when she was elected to parliament by a majority so huge that people joked that it must have been arranged by angels!

One of the things Felicity wanted to achieve was to make sure that no one went cold in the winter. “No one should have to suffer the cold during the harsh winter season,” she said, as she introduced a bill into parliament. And it got through! It passed! No one would feel cold during the winter season because they changed the official winter months to the hottest time of the year.

How felicitous is that?

1141. Collecting for the Sallies

It was a cold winter’s day, and Evelyn had volunteered to stand outside the supermarket and ask for donations for the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen.

Evelyn: Hello. Would you like to make a donation to the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen?

Passer-by 1: Goodness. You must be freezing standing out here. Not a nice day at all, is it?

Evelyn: It’s certainly a bit chilly. Have a nice day.

Evelyn: Hello. Would you like to make a donation to the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen?

Passer-by 2: Goodness. You must be freezing standing out here. Not a nice day at all, is it?

Evelyn: It’s certainly a bit chilly. Have a nice day.

Evelyn: Hello. Would you like to make a donation to the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen?

Passer-by 3: Goodness. You must be freezing standing out here. Not a nice day at all, is it?

Evelyn: It’s certainly a bit chilly. Have a nice day.

Evelyn: Hello. Would you like to make a donation to the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen?

Passer-by 4: Goodness. You must be freezing standing out here. Not a nice day at all, is it?

Evelyn: It’s certainly a bit chilly. Have a nice day…

Music 105: Winter solstice

Brrr! Here in the southern hemisphere it’s the winter solstice. Can I perhaps already sense the days getting longer?!!

Listen to the music HERE!

870. Winter cold

There was no doubt it was an early frost. Mary Jane was quite unprepared. She’d cleaned the chimney over summer, but as for firewood… Not a twig.

Putting on her thick Finland sweater she had knitted, she ventured into the nearby frosty forest to collect enough wood to start the fire and at least clear the nip in the air. By the time the fire was going the sun had begun to warm the room.

That afternoon, Mary Jane went out and gathered enough firewood to last a week. She would collect more in the coming days.

The next morning it was even frostier. And the following morning, frostier still. Then the snow began. Cold, cold, cold. Mary Jane had the fire going all day.

The days grew shorter and colder. Mary Jane stoked the fire. The fire did not warm. And colder and colder grew the days. It was now so cold in the house that Mary Jane could hardly move. The damp had settled on the walls and frozen into icicles. There was no end to it.

Mary Jane set fire to the house.

To listen to the story being read click HERE!

579. Home renovation

© Bruce Goodman 12 May 2015

Myra (known as Bunny since babyhood) and Geoffrey were excited! They had just enough money to buy an old house and property. Slowly, while living in it, they would do it up.

As bits of money came in from work they would spend a little doing this, doing that. It was so satisfying. Then Geoffrey dropped a heavy concrete brick onto the roof and dented it. The roof leaked and they had to get it fixed. There was no money left over for a while after that.

Bunny discovered that the bathroom pipes under the house were leaking so that had to be done as well, rather urgently, for health reasons and because of the smell.

But at last they were on an even keel again and the first thing they did was to uninstall the gas heater in the lounge. They had purchased a proper wood burner, and it was going to be so cosy in winter. Unfortunately, they didn’t realize that they needed “resource consent” from the local town council. When the man came to inspect where the wood burner was to be placed, he refused. The room was inadequately insulated; the place for it to be set wasn’t sturdy enough.

Bunny and Geoffrey were last seen in winter sitting on a sofa together, wrapped in blankets, beanies on heads, and gloves and scarves, watching a TV home renovation programme.