Where There's Smoke

There's not always fire. Thank goodness.....

I woke up this morning at about 4:45. Now, let me just say I am not always the brightest bulb in the lamp at that hour, especially when woken up gradually (for some reason phones and beepers make my brain kick in a little faster), so I lay in bed for a few minutes trying to figure out why I was awake.

The monologue in my head went something like this:

Why am I awake? Bathroom? No. Hot? No. Oh, I know! It's the smoky smell. OK, I'll go back to sleep......Wait, smoky smell? That's not right. I should open my eyes and see if I see flames.....Nope, no flames. Goodnight. .... Wait, I should be more concerned about this. I should get out of bed and check for flames.

So, my brain having finally kicked in, I got up and checked throughout the house for fire. Nothing in my room or bathroom, nothing in the playroom, nothing in Grace's room, nothing in the laundry room or the kid's bathroom, nothing in Peter's room, though the smokey smell was stronger there. Downstairs. Nothing in the entry way, nothing in the den, nothing in the dining room, nothing in the kitchen or living room. I go outside, and the smoky smell is unbelievable, plus the air is hazy. Same thing on the back deck. So, after a quick check in the attic, I decide that something else is on fire (but nothing that I can see from either the front or back of my house), so I do go back to bed this time.

Except by that point I was wide awake and wheezy from the smoke. Luckily, I had Albuterol and a book, so I went back to sleep fairly quickly.