Earlier, after I posted the other thread I wrote (about tv shows that dont do research) I was sitting here, playing a computer game when all of our smoke detectors went off (and blew out my eardrums)

Apparently the CO2 detectors work.

I'd been dizzy for about an hour. So, when the alarms went off, I immediately went and checked things and went to get my parents out of the house, since I wasnt sure what was happening. I noticed that the ventless fireplace that's just outside my bedroom was on. (for the first time this year...it's got a thermostat and just has a pilot running when there arent actual flames in the fireplace)

I got my parents to get dressed and argued with my dad for a few minutes about calling the fire department. I won the argument (I actually just went ahead and called them)

I called my aunt who lives across the street from me too, and ironically, she was having a similar problem. She didnt have any alarms going off (which was disturbing) but she was feeling a lot sicker than I was, and she had a hazy smoke or something going thru her house. We had the hazy smoke too. You could see it around the lights in the house. It was really smoky in my basement, but my aunt's house was a lot worse with the smoke.

So, the FD got here, I showed them into my house, and then I grabbed a few of them and got them to check my aunt's house out.

We're all ok. I had vented my house (not a good thing. They said next time, just grab a coat and shoes and leave. Dont stay to vent)

The utilities guy that the FD had come to our house to check it out said that our problem was that when our gas heat came on (we have a heat pump) it sucked more oxygen out of the air and that the ventless fireplace was putting more gas into the air than could be burned off by the fireplace.

I'm not exactly sure what happened with my aunt's house. She just got a new furnace and heat pump a couple of weeks ago, so it could be that it was the first time it was on in this cold weather (18 deg outside right now, gas furnace takes over at 20degrees) She had actual hazy smoke-like stuff in the air in her house.

She wouldnt let the ambulance guys check her out. I felt better after walking around outside, so I declined too. Wasnt dizzy any more (except the flashing lights on all those trucks were disorienting)

So, now it's almost 3am (the FD left about 20 minutes ago) and I am WIDE AWAKE! I guess I wont be getting much sleep tonight. Partly because I'm freaked and worried it'll happen again (gas fireplace is completely turned off!) and partly because of all the excitement.

It's really interesting to me that our smoke detectors went off and my aunt's didnt. My aunt and I both had the same thought. Wednesday was the 13th anniversary of my uncle (dad's brother) dying. My aunt and I both think that my uncle made our smoke detectors go off so that I would call 911 and call my aunt to warn her that the FD was coming so that she wouldnt worry. It might be kind of stupid (and weird coming from me, an atheist) but I do still kind of believe that my uncle has stuck around to watch my aunt. The detectors going off here, was just his way of telling me to call her and make sure she was ok.

Good thing I'm still a bit of an insomniac, because it was nearly 2am when all this started. I'd have been asleep.