Still Snakey

Although Tall Son came over to work on the siding problem this weekend, he distracted himself -- as he and I are both infamous for doing -- with another project.

My central a/c went out several years ago, and since my funds were low, I decided to use them to buy two window a/cs. And the central unit was old, old, and not worth throwing money at.

Tall Son, being in the construction industry, comes home with all sorts of interesting knowledge, tales, and just stuff.

One such item of stuff is a Trane a/c from a house being demo'd. The Trane was otherwise on the way to the landfill.

He was coached by an a/c guy on what to do to hook it up -- and we know we might have to call a pro to charge the freon -- but he gave it a try. But for the fact that his sautering on the copper piping didn't take, all seems to be well. However, the sun set and he had to stop work. Then come Sunday he wasn't feeling well, so all progress has stalled.

So now I have a not-quite-installed a/c unit, siding materials stacked up outside, and another little issue.

To try to drive the snake(s) out of my house, if indeed they are in my walls, I bought a BUNCH of mothballs. For starters, I spread them in a shallow cardboard box and put them in the storage room, which is adjacent to the laundry room, site of the snake sighting. I had also planned to have Tall Son lob mothballs all over my attic, just in case. Now I'm glad I didn't.

Even though the door between the storage room and the rest of the house is closed, the not-so-gentle aroma of mothballs wafts throughout my home. Standing outside the house I can smell the things.

Imagine brownies and mothballs.
Chicken and mothballs.
Rose-scented candle and mothballs.
Litter box and mothballs.

I hang some of my clothes in the laundry room to dry, and as I pulled my nightgown over my head last night, I acknowledged I might have to spend the night smelling like an acrid closet. But I slid between the sheets and pulled the blankets up to my neck, hoping a thermal blanket would be enough to keep my nose and the paradichlorobenzene apart.

I don't know the status of the snake(s), but I might be leaving soon.