Wood, stupid!

This morning when I was shaving, I hear a horrible rattling noise that sounded like it was coming from inside the walls. Fearing the worst, I shut the water off, and waited. There it was again - the fast rat-a-tat-tat of metal hitting wood. Since there's no water running, it can't be the plumbing. I walked around, trying to triangulate on the sound. Uh-oh. It was coming from the cantankerous 40-year old beast of a gas furnace. Granted, it doesn't get much use in Phoenix, but it's nice to have when it hits the 40s. The furnace was cold, its gas supply shut off since February. But the noise was definitely coming from the furnace.

A-ha! It must be a woodpecker! Sure enough, a quick trip outside revealed a mentally-challenged woodpecker, hammering away on the furnace's steel vent cap. A tossed beach ball and some loud squawks meant to approximate an unknown species of bird sent the woodpecker on its way. Hopefully, he won't be back tomorrow. Woodpeckers (other than Woody of cartoon fame) are no joke - they can cause serious damage. They're also loud, and in the case of this morning's visitor, none too bright. Wood, stupid. You're supposed to peck wood.

No animals were harmed in the making of this blog entry.