Saw Gwen my half french half English friend, who was visiting. Was good to see her and the language barrier has never been a problem...well she can speak amazing English, but there are curtain terms or phrases she does not understand.
Anyway, what made Christmas Eve so..um..interesting...was well....THE CHIMNEY CAUGHT FIRE!!
Granny, Pampa, and Auntie Beth had gone to Truro Cathedral, and as they had gone out, I had decided...to burn some rubbish on the fire, which I thought would be fine. But erm...it raged like an inferno...so I decided to let it calm down. Went into the kitchen. When I came back, smoke was coming out of not the fire but the skirting near the ceiling, the fire itself had calmed down, but I could hear a roaring fire still. Looked up the chimney..or as much as I could, and saw that the soot all around the chimney was on fire, by this time, I had opened up all the doors, as the smoke was in the top two rooms, Granny and Pampas room and the spare room. Ran up to find my Dad, he was out, so I had to ring him. He ran back from the pub. I went outside to look at the chimney and you could see actual flames coming out of the chimney pot, and sparks of flame. Dad couldn't use the hose as it had frozen, he found some fire hydrants, of which didn't do the trick. We ended up ringing the fire brigade. While we were waiting for them to turn up, we were having kittens. My Dad was like if the fire ignites the insulation in the loft, we're done for, we'll have no house. All the cats had scarpered by that time.
Finally the Fire Men came. Five of them, all calm. They made hardly any mess, they had poles and a hose, to push up the chimney, and one man went with breathing gear up into the loft, to monitor it, with a machine that shows up the heat in a particular place.
According to the Fire men, a normal chimney fire only takes 1 1/2 buckets or 2 buckets to put out, ours took 12 buckets to put out.
The chimney caught fire at about 6, the Fire men got there at quarter to 7, it finally got put out, at nearly 9. Granny and everyone got back at quarter past nine. Nearly had a panic attack.
There was heat still coming from certain parts in the chimney but the Fire men said it would cool down after a while.
Gave them all a cup of tea. They were all rather good looking.
Then they cleaned up after themselves and left.
All before Granny got back. So me and Dad hovered and cleaned what we could.
Apparently the soot in the chimney was really thick. And it wasn't my fault. It was the fact that no one had the chimney swept for a while.
Now the house is freezing!!.
Christmas day, we had no water, up stairs, couldn't have a shower till late afternoon, my hair was stinking of smoke, everything was stinking of smoke, the hall way was freezing. Granny wasn't feeling very well, went to see Great Granny...which was er ish.
Presents were good, got a BANJO!! and other bits and bobs. Food was good. Television..wasn't as good as some years.
Boxing day- today. Granny's in bed ill. And now kitchen fire is not working very well.
Upside.
A chimney sweep is coming tomorrow.
I hope he can sing and dance.
Shall photo it if I can :)
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