Sneaky water is sneaky

*Sigh*. I really didn't need this right now.

I had *thought* that I was doing okay, roof-wise -- a small leak in the bay window due to the ice dam there, but no other signs of trouble. I knew that there were a few ice dams elsewhere, but thought that they weren't causing too much melt. I *have* been worried about roof collapse, but not too much about leakage, since there is no sign of dripping through the roof itself. Naive me.

I just discovered that the ceiling of the guest bedroom is totally trashed -- I walked in there to put something away, found the floor wet, a steady single drop dripping, and a mild but dangerous bulge in the ceiling. So I followed the advice from the TV yesterday: I put a (big) bucket in the desired location, grabbed an awl, and punched several holes in the drywall. A good gallon came through in the first couple of minutes.

There *still* is no apparent drip in the attic, so my best guess is that the ice dam is causing leakage right at the edge of the house, down by the soffits -- instead of going over the edge, it's flowing inward, and finally pooling about five feet into the room.

Pain in the tuchus. The ceiling is clearly a loss, so for now I'm just punching holes as needed and accepting that I'll need to replace it come spring. In the meantime, I dearly hope nothing else breaks horribly...

Sneaky water is sneaky

*Sigh*. I really didn't need this right now.

I had *thought* that I was doing okay, roof-wise -- a small leak in the bay window due to the ice dam there, but no other signs of trouble. I knew that there were a few ice dams elsewhere, but thought that they weren't causing too much melt. I *have* been worried about roof collapse, but not too much about leakage, since there is no sign of dripping through the roof itself. Naive me.

I just discovered that the ceiling of the guest bedroom is totally trashed -- I walked in there to put something away, found the floor wet, a steady single drop dripping, and a mild but dangerous bulge in the ceiling. So I followed the advice from the TV yesterday: I put a (big) bucket in the desired location, grabbed an awl, and punched several holes in the drywall. A good gallon came through in the first couple of minutes.

There *still* is no apparent drip in the attic, so my best guess is that the ice dam is causing leakage right at the edge of the house, down by the soffits -- instead of going over the edge, it's flowing inward, and finally pooling about five feet into the room.

Pain in the tuchus. The ceiling is clearly a loss, so for now I'm just punching holes as needed and accepting that I'll need to replace it come spring. In the meantime, I dearly hope nothing else breaks horribly...

A lesson in practical microeconomics

That is to say, the way to make a profit is to sell customers what they want. And the way *not* to make profits is to not be able to.

*That* shopping trip was a complete washout. First stop was Lowe's; after hunting in vain for several minutes, I stop at the Customer Service desk.

"Can we help you?"
"Yeah -- I'm looking for the usual sorts of winter stuff."
The lady behind the counter starts to shake her head.
"Ice melt? Sand?"
"Oh, we've got some sand left. Aisle 1."
"I suppose it would be too much to ask for a snow rake?"
Sad smile. "Yes -- yes, that would be too much to ask."

*Sigh*. On to Target, for more mundane things like a furnace filter and some floss refills. Surely *that* will go well.

I get to the parking lot, which is suspiciously underpopulated for a Saturday. Halfway to the door, someone walking from it tells me that there are signs on the doors, saying that they are closed until they can get all the snow off their roof. Driving away, I see an *army* on the roof -- it looks like every employee of the store, probably 50 people, are up there piling snow onto blankets and tossing it over the side. They're making good progress, but of course that roof is half the size of a football field, so there's a lot to do.

So when next month's economic numbers come in a bit weak, I think we've got a couple of good examples of why...

A lesson in practical microeconomics

That is to say, the way to make a profit is to sell customers what they want. And the way *not* to make profits is to not be able to.

*That* shopping trip was a complete washout. First stop was Lowe's; after hunting in vain for several minutes, I stop at the Customer Service desk.

"Can we help you?"
"Yeah -- I'm looking for the usual sorts of winter stuff."
The lady behind the counter starts to shake her head.
"Ice melt? Sand?"
"Oh, we've got some sand left. Aisle 1."
"I suppose it would be too much to ask for a snow rake?"
Sad smile. "Yes -- yes, that would be too much to ask."

*Sigh*. On to Target, for more mundane things like a furnace filter and some floss refills. Surely *that* will go well.

I get to the parking lot, which is suspiciously underpopulated for a Saturday. Halfway to the door, someone walking from it tells me that there are signs on the doors, saying that they are closed until they can get all the snow off their roof. Driving away, I see an *army* on the roof -- it looks like every employee of the store, probably 50 people, are up there piling snow onto blankets and tossing it over the side. They're making good progress, but of course that roof is half the size of a football field, so there's a lot to do.

So when next month's economic numbers come in a bit weak, I think we've got a couple of good examples of why...