I just took a nice, long, hot shower to get the chill out of my bones. (Well, and to get clean, too, but that's secondary.) It was quite sad how long it took me to convince myself that there was any reason to leave my warm, steamy cocoon and reenter the hard, cold world of the apartment. The feeling afterwards is reminiscent of being sent outside for recess in junior high in November immediately after swimming, and watching our wet hair crystallize into ice. (No frozen hair yet here, although I wouldn't be surprised.) We better figure out this heating stuff soon, since by my count only three of our seven radiators emit any heat currently, and I'm using a very loose definition of the word "any."

Speaking of heating, the landlord said that I'm basically going to need a space heater to get through the winter in my room. (Would you believe that it never occurred to me before I moved in that having a bedroom that's technically a porch might cause problems when it gets cold out?) I've done some preliminary research; what I've found so far is, "Space heaters are evil! You're going to die of carbon monoxide poisoning, unless the fire you start kills you first!" Seriously, though, I need to keep investigating. Prices seem to range between $20-$100, and I need to find something that's safe, energy efficient, compact, and maybe even with spiffy features like a timer so I could set it to turn on before I wake up in the morning. I'm kind of excited, although it's hard not to be excited about something that creates warmth as I sit in the freezer otherwise known as my room.  ¶ 3:02 AM