Cold is a good reason to stay inside

Was outside putting the trash out and playing with the dogs. Getting quite cold out there, the tips of my fingers were getting a bit numb so a few minutes on the keyboard should bring them back around. Suppose to drop to around zero degrees tonight, good night to throw an extra log on the fire. Not here though, propane hot water system, pretty comfy on it's own. Carol and I have talked about getting one of those roaring fireplace DVDs for the effect. We use to heat with wood - a masonry stove. Works like a Russian fireplace, has chambers that the heat and exhaust from a really hot fire pass through heating the masonry around it then I'd gradually close the damper as the fire burns out until the coals die down at the point of the damper being fully shut. Then throughout the night and the day that follows heat radiates back into the living area from the heated masonry. Simple and effective. The problem is that it's very interactive and must be maintained to keep the house warm and you don't want to be tending a burn all night if you weren't home early enough to be done with the process by your normal bedtime.

finger tips frosted
cold is the air that carries
then follows inside