Light & Air

My big project for today was installing a new ceiling fan in our bedroom.

First I had to buy one. Instead of going out to a Home Depot in the suburbs, I went to Armstrong’s which is only a few blocks from our house in Mid-City. I had to wait my turn, but it was well worth it, because the saleslady was very helpful. The ceiling fans weren’t just off-the-shelf kits; you had to build your own. I couldn’t have put together all the components without some assistance. I ended up taking home a Craftmade Phoenix PX52 with a brushed nickel finish, oak blades, a four bulb lamp and some really nifty irridescent glass shades.

Of course, before I could install it, I had to remove the old defunct fan. It had never really worked right since we moved in. It was always extremely wobbly and noisy and I could never get it balanced. Sometime this summer the fan stopped working, and just a week or two ago the pull for the light came out, rendering it completely useless.

So, out with the old, in with the new.

It was actually easier to install than I’d expected. The whole job probably took two hours. And it seems to work beautifully.

A good ceiling fan is really not optional in New Orleans. It’s essential. With the fan, we may not need to run the AC in our bedroom tonight. Did I mention that the highs have still been in the upper 80s, even though it’s the end of October? Summer hasn’t ended yet.

I got carried away and bought a new floorlamp at Armstrong’s too. It’s beautiful.

If you want more detail you can look at the top or the base.