*sigh*

It's supposed to get down to 13 degrees tonight.  And guess what?  The furnace in our old house (where Cliff's sister lives) decided to quit today.  Rena said it was 58 degrees when she got home from work.  She has one of those fancy heaters that are so popular these days, and it would probably keep her and her son warm if they stayed in one room.  Unfortunately, the pipes would likely freeze downstairs in the basement.  
I called the guy who usually is so faithful to fix our heating and cooling problems, and for some reason he couldn't make it until tomorrow afternoon.  I called Cliff at work and he said, "Just call around until you find somebody who can come tonight."
After listening to half-a-dozen messages on answering machines at businesses that were closed for the day, I called the guy up the road.  He's very skilled, but he's a little pricey.  OK, very pricey.  
Not as pricey as it would be to have a plumber fix busted water pipes, though.  
I got his answering machine just as I did with the others, but he gave his cell phone number at the end of the message "in case you have an emergency".  
He's over there now.  No matter how costly this little trip turns out to be, if he gets the furnace running, it will be worth it.  
I think.