The Morning Chill

Iron Smith (Wikipedia)

The morning chill sits fast in my bones and my breath makes a distinct fog in the unlit room.  I locate some matches and light up a couple of old kerosene lamps and a soft golden glow begins to illuminate the oaken walls of the cabin.  After locating my clogs,  I don a jacket, and head for the outside wood pile to chop some kindling and restock the woodbox that sits beside the pot bellied stove.  This will keep me nice and toasty for the day. To get a good fire going, I open up the flue on the chimney to get good airflow through the stove.  A little paper, some slivers of cedar kindling and a few pieces of nice dry alder stacked on top is all that's needed to get the stove piping hot.  The cedar begins to snap and pop as the fire takes off and begins to throw off a little heat on top of the stove.  It will be a while before the stove heats up and begins to radiate through the room.  I need to keep a eye on it though, or the fire can get away from me and make the little airtight glow red as an branding iron on a iron smiths forge.  A small adjustment to the flues damper slows down the airflow to settle the fire to a quiet moderate burn.  

With the stove glowing hotter, the chill begins to leave the room.  Now I can settle in for some ham and eggs mixed in with a few cubed potatoes all prepared  in a skillet on top of the airtight stove.  The blue jays begin their cacophony of calls for their breakfast which I gladly oblige them.  A few pieces of bread or peanuts and then they are on their way.  The tea kettle begins to whistle, signaling it's time for morning ablutions followed by a cup of tea. Heating more water in the kettle requires keeping the wood stove good and hot so then I can finally wash the morning dishes. Living without running water requires a lot more time and work than one would think.  By the end of my two year experience I decided living without modern electricity is something I can do, however, running hot water is a convenience I'd rather not go without.